For a second straight week, Michigan avoided a fourth-quarter disaster to beat Minnesota 27-24 on Saturday.
The Wolverines appeared to be in cruise control in the first half, jumping out to a 21-0 lead, but a Minnesota offense that managed three points on its first nine drives woke up in the fourth quarter, scoring touchdowns on its final three possessions. The Wolverines were outgained 296 yards to 241 for the game but improve to 4-1 and 2-0 in Big Ten play.
Overall, Michigan earned an overall grade of 77.5 from Pro Football Focus — its second-lowest of the season. An average grade is about 64 out of 100, per PFF.
Here’s a look at the snap counts from Saturday’s victory and other notable grades and trends:
*PFF evaluates every player on every play in multiple facets of the game, such as passing, rushing, receiving, pass blocking, run defense, etc. It is important to note that PFF doesn’t base its grade on the outcome of the play, but rather what a player attempts to do on a given play.
OFFENSIVE SNAP COUNTS (out of 62)
*Denotes starter
- *Evan Link — 62
- *Josh Priebe – 62
- *Giovanni El-Hadi – 62
- *Dominick Giudice – 62
- *Alex Orji – 62
- *Kalel Mullings – 47
- *Marlin Klein – 43
- *Kendrick Bell – 40
- Tyler Morris – 39
- *Myles Hinton – 38
- Max Bredeson – 32
- Donovan Edwards – 24
- Jeffrey Persi – 24
- C.J. Charleston – 21
- Peyton O’Leary – 19
- *Colston Loveland – 16
- *Fredrick Moore – 15
- Zack Marshall – 5
- Andrew Gentry – 4
- Hogan Hansen – 3
- Jalen Hoffman – 2
DEFENSIVE SNAP COUNTS (out of 70)
- *Jyaire Hill – 70
- *Aamir Hall – 70
- *Quinten Johnson – 67
- *Makari Paige – 66
- *Ernest Hausmann – 60
- *TJ Guy – 60
- *Zeke Berry – 56
- *Jaishawn Barham – 50
- *Mason Graham – 48
- *Derrick Moore – 45
- *Kenneth Grant – 44
- Rayshaun Benny – 31
- Jimmy Rolder – 30
- Cameron Brandt – 25
- Brandyn Hillman – 20
- Ike Iwunnah – 13
- Dominic Nichols – 7
- Enow Etta – 3
- Kechaun Bennett – 3
- Trey Pierce – 2
Orji average in second career start
The junior received an overall grade of 64.7, which is an improvement from the previous week (54.7). The Wolverines haven’t shown any signs of being a threat airing it out though. Orji finished 10 of 18 passing for 86 yards, but was 0 for 2 with an interception on passes that traveled 20-plus yards in the air.
Receiving struggles continue
The three lowest offensive grades were all receivers: Kendrick Bell (53.1), C.J. Charleston (49.6) and Fredrick Moore (41.1). Tyler Morris (60.0) and Peyton O’Leary (56.9) also earned below-average marks. The group combined for just three catches, while Bell had a drop.
Loveland paces the offense
The Wolverines’ star tight end returned to action after missing last week because of injury and received an overall mark of 82.2, which led the team. He only played 16 snaps but was effective when he was out there, catching a team-high four passes for 41 yards. Notably, he wasn’t on the field for any running plays.
Hill steps up in Will Johnson’s absence
Jyaire Hill had a standout performance with Johnson, Michigan’s All-American cornerback, not playing Saturday. He notched the best overall grade (80.3) and coverage mark (79.3) on defense, allowing four catches for 16 yards on six targets. He also had a highlight-reel interception. Aamir Hall, a graduate transfer from Albany, earned the start opposite of Hill and earned a grades of 62.2 (overall) and 62.3 (coverage).
Lowest run defense grade of the season
The Wolverines allowed just 38 rushing yards on 25 attempts but they received their lowest run defense grade of the season by far (58.0).
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