Wolverines Fire on All Cylinders, Overwhelm No. 14 Penn State

Saturday, November 3

Ann Arbor, Mich.

3:45 PM

Michigan

8-1 , 6-0

Penn State

6-3 , 3-3

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Penn State

Michigan

Devin Bush

Wolverines Fire on All Cylinders, Overwhelm No. 14 Penn State

11/3/2018 8:35:00 PM | Football

Box Score Photo Gallery Postgame Notes Player Participation PDF Boxscore In the Trenches Podcast: Penn State Photo Gallery

By: David Ablauf, Chad Shepard

» Michigan, top-ranked in total defense, stymied Penn State's potent offense, holding the Nittany Lions to fewer than 100 yards until midway through the fourth quarter and 186 total by game's end.
» The Wolverines intercepted two passes -- one returned for a touchdown -- and had five sacks.
» Michigan's offense posted 400 yards for the sixth time this season, and the Wolverines produced 40 points for the fifth time this year.

Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Michigan Stadium)
Score: #5 Michigan 42, #14 Penn State 7
Records: U-M (8-1, 6-0 Big Ten), Penn State (6-3, 3-3 Big Ten)
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Nov. 10 -- at Rutgers (Piscataway, N.J.), TBA

• Postgame Press Conference: Coach Harbaugh | Players

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The nation's leader in total defense lived up to its billing on Saturday night (Nov. 3) as the No. 5-ranked University of Michigan football team routed No.14-ranked Penn State, 42-7, in front of the Big House's biggest crowd of the year.

In front a crowd numbering 111,747, the Wolverines allowed the Nittany Lions and their 11th-ranked scoring offense just 186 yards of total offense -- 73 of which came in the fourth quarter, long after the game had ultimately been decided -- and a single fourth-quarter touchdown on Penn State's final drive. The Maize and Blue racked up 403 total yards of offense.

The Wolverines' ninth-ranked rush defense took center stage in the first half when it held the Nittany Lions to a net one-yard loss with four sacks -- including two by Josh Uche -- while the country's top-ranked pass defense claimed the spotlight in the second half.

In the final two quarters, the Wolverines twice intercepted NIttany Lion quarterbacks -- one interception was returned 62 yards for a touchdown by Brandon Watson -- and Michigan held Penn State without a second-half reception until midway through the fourth quarter. The 77 interception return yards by Watson and David Long nearly equaled the 83 total receiving yards Penn State gained until midway through the final quarter.

Ultimately, the Wolverines held Penn State to 68 yards rushing, well below the 97.1-yard average the Wolverines have allowed opponents this season. U-M also controlled PSU's air attack, allowing it only 118 yards (234.1-yard average heading into Saturday's game).

Michigan's offense was every bit as potent as its defense was immovable, posting 400 yards for the sixth time in nine games and 40 points or more for the fifth time. Quarterback Shea Patterson competed 11-of-17 passes for 144 yards and two touchdowns to Donovan Peoples-Jones and Zach Gentry, while Karan Higdon spearheaded the rushing attack with 132 yards and a touchdown -- one of three on the ground for Michigan, with Patterson and Chris Evans also finding the end zone.

If not for a Penn State touchdown with 1:59 remaining in the game, the Wolverines came within two minutes of dealing the Nittany Lions -- averaging 41 points per game this season -- their first shutout since 2001 when U-M went to Happy Valley and won, 20-0. Despite the late TD, it was Penn State's lowest points production since a 29-6 loss to Northwestern in 2014.

After allowing a 25-yard completion on the first play of the game, the Michigan defense clamped down with back-to-back sacks on second- and third-downs by Chase Winovich and Uche, respectively. In addition to forcing the punt, the defense also caused Penn State to burn its first timeout of the half on its first drive.

The Michigan offense put seven points on the board behind the strength of its ground game. Higdon ripped off 61 yards on the Wolverines' first three plays of the drive -- including a 50-yard dash deep into Penn State territory that set up U-M at the PSU 16-yard line.

Facing a third down, Patterson faked a handoff to Higdon up the middle and kept it for a run around the left edge to set up 1st-and-goal on the Penn State 4-yard line. Two plays later, Patterson again executed a fake to perfection and strode into the end zone all alone off the left side to give Michigan an early 7-0 advantage at the 8:12 mark of the first quarter.

A 47-yard completion from Patterson to Nico Collins put the Wolverines in position to add to their lead two drives later. A 50-yard field goal attempt by Quinn Nordin was blocked, recovered and returned by Penn State for an apparent touchdown, but an illegal block on the return by the Nittany Lions nullified the return.

Two plays later, a fumble by Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley on a handoff was recovered by Winovich at the Penn State 49-yard line.

Michigan made an early try for the end zone on the drive, but Patterson's 37-yard first-down pass to Peoples-Jones was broken up at the goal line. Fullback Ben Mason converted on a 4th-and-2 with a three-yard rumble up the middle to put Michigan just outside the 20-yard line. Patterson capitalized on the ensuing third down, when he found Peoples-Jones on run along the right sideline with a 23-yard strike to put the Wolverines up, 14-0, with 6:52 remaining in the first half.

It would not be long before Patterson, Peoples-Jones and Co. were back in action as the defense continued to stifle the Nittany Lion offense. Penn State went three-and-out, forced off the field by Uche's second sack of the day as he brought down McSorley for a seven-yard loss. Though the Wolverines went three-and-out, the drive resulted in a punt that pinned Penn State inside its own 10-yard line.

Penn State's offense made headway, collecting 48 of its 83 first-half passing yards in what would be its last appearance before halftime.

The Wolverine defense would not allow him another shot at scoring. Jordan Glasgow tracked down McSorley in the backfield on third down for the fourth U-M sack of the day. The sack forced the Nittany Lions to punt for the fifth time in the half, which nearly equaled their per-game average (5.125 punts) in the first half alone.

In ending the would-be scoring drive, the U-M defense became the first team this year to keep the prolific Penn State offense off the scoreboard for two consecutive quarters. Entering the contest, the Nittany Lions had scored in nine-consecutive quarters and had previously only failed to score in two quarters all season long.

The Wolverines and Nittany Lions traded punts early in the third quarter before the Michigan offense got rolling on its third drive of the quarter. With rushes of seven and 19 yards, Higdon crossed the 100-yard mark for the 12th time in his career -- historically a harbinger of a Michigan victory, with U-M holding a 12-0 record in games during which Higdon crosses the century mark -- to set up Patterson for a connection with Chris Evans for a 24-yard gain to the Penn State 11-yard line.

Two plays later, Patterson hit Gentry on a crossing route in the middle of the end zone for the second time this year to extend the Wolverine advantage to 21-0 with 56 seconds remaining in the third quarter.

Just when it looked like the Nittany Lions might jumpstart their struggling offense when quarterback Tommy Stevens -- who came in for McSorley -- scampered 18 yards for what was Penn State's longest rush of the game to that point, the Michigan defense once again put out the spark. On the next play, Watson intercepted Stevens at the Michigan 38-yard and tiptoed along the right sideline for 62 yards en route to his second career interception return for a touchdown with nine seconds remaining in the third quarter.

A three-and-out forced by the Michigan defense to start the fourth quarter put the ball back in the hands of Patterson and the offense. Two plays into the drive, a 41-yard touchdown pass from Patterson to Tarik Black was nullified by a holding penalty, but, again, the Wolverines soldiered on.

A 32-yard rush by Evans put Michigan at the Penn State 19-yard line, followed by a 13-yard rush by Patterson to give the Wolverines 1st-and-goal at the six. After Mason pushed the Wolverines to within four yards of the goal line, Higdon powered his way into the end zone for his seventh touchdown of the season to extend the Michigan lead to 35-0, with 9:49 left in the 4th quarter.

Less than 15 seconds later, on Penn State's first play of the following drive, the newly re-entered McSorley was picked off by Long -- his first interception of the season -- at the Nittany Lion 27-yard line and returned 15 yards to the Penn State 12-yard line.

Evans rushed four yards over two plays to bring Michigan inside the 10, with a seven-yard scramble by freshman quarterback Dylan McCaffrey setting the Wolverines up with a 1st-and-goal on the Penn State 1-yard line. Evans capped the drive with a one-yard push for his third rushing score of the season and a 42-0 Michigan advantage with 7:44 remaining in the game.

Penn State's offense finished its night with an 11-play, 75-yard drive that culminated in an eight-yard touchdown rush by Stevens to bring the score to 42-7.

Michigan will return to action on Saturday (Nov. 10), when it hits the road to battle Rutgers in Piscataway, New Jersey. The start time and broadcast network are to be announced.