Michigan Dismantles Nebraska in Big Ten Opener

Saturday, September 22

Ann Arbor, Mich.

Noon

Michigan

3-1 , 1-0

Nebraska

0-3 , 0-1

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Nebraska

Michigan

9/22/2018 4:11:00 PM | Football

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

By: Dave Ablauf, Chad Shepard

» The Wolverines amassed 491 yards of total offense (206 passing, 285 rushing). Karan Higdon ran 12 times for 136 yards -- averaging 11.3 yards-per-carry -- and a touchdown. Quarterback Shea Patterson went 15-of-22 for 120 yards and a touchdown.
» The Michigan defense was stout all afternoon, allowing just 132 yards of total offense -- 71 of which came in the fourth quarter after the game was already out of reach.
» The Wolverines compiled 14 tackles-for-loss (including four sacks) and forced two turnovers.
» On special teams, Donovan Peoples-Jones had a 60-yard punt return for a touchdown, Quinn Nordin hit both of his field-goal attempts (including one from 50 yards) and Will Hart averaged nearly 60 yards on his three punts.

Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Michigan Stadium)
Score: #19 Michigan 56, Nebraska 10
Records: U-M (3-1, 1-0 B1G), Nebraska (0-3, 0-1 B1G)
Attendance: 111,037
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Sept. 29 -- at Northwestern (Evanston, Ill.), 3:30 p.m. CDT

• Postgame Press Conference: Coach Harbaugh | Players

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 19-ranked University of Michigan football team dominated in all three phases in a convincing 56-10 win over Nebraska on Saturday (Sept. 22) in the Big Ten opener at Michigan Stadium.

Offensively, the Wolverines amassed 491 yards of total offense (206 passing, 285 rushing), gashing the Nebraska defense for nearly seven yards per play. Senior running back Karan Higdon was the prime beneficiary of some massive lanes created by the Michigan offensive line, rushing 12 times for 136 yards (11.3 yards per carry) -- and a touchdown. Sophomore Ben Mason ran six times and scored touchdowns on three of those carries, while the trio of junior Tru Wilson, freshman Christian Turner and sophomore O'Maury Samuels combined for 121 yards. Junior quarterback Shea Patterson was equally as effective through the air, going 15-of-22 for 120 yards and a touchdown.

The Michigan defense, particularly the defensive line, was in Nebraska's backfield all afternoon. The Wolverines limited Nebraska to just 132 yards of total offense -- 71 of which came in the fourth quarter after the game was already decided. They compiled 14 tackles for loss (including four sacks) and forced two turnovers. Junior Devin Bush led the squad with six tackles.

The special teams units were also active. Sophomore Donovan Peoples-Jones returned a punt 60 yards for a touchdown, junior kicker Quinn Nordin made both of his field-goal attempts (one of which was from 50 yards) and the punt-coverage team recovered a muffed Nebraska return. Junior Will Hart averaged nearly 60 yards on his three punts, pinning two of them inside the 20-yard line.

Nebraska chose to receive after winning the coin toss and picked up 32 yards on its first 3rd-and-10 of the game. But on the next play, fifth-year senior Lawrence Marshall batted Adrian Martinez's pass at the line and it was intercepted by junior Josh Metellus. Higdon picked up 46 yards on the offense's second play from scrimmage, carrying the Wolverines into the red zone. Mason took it from there, running three straight plays and scoring the game's first touchdown from one yard out.

The Cornhuskers faced a 3rd-and-9 on the ensuing possession before senior Jordan Glasgow sacked Martinez to stop the drive. After Peoples-Jones was interfered with on the punt return, drawing a 15-yard penalty, Higdon needed one play to score, dashing down the sidelines for a 44-yard touchdown. The Wolverines led 14-0.

After another three-and-out forced by the Michigan defense, Patterson made a big play on 3rd-and-12, finding senior Zach Gentry for a 21-yard gain, a play not possible without a big blitz pickup in the backfield from Higdon. The Wolverines found themselves in another third-and-long situation, but converted that, too, on a 26-yard gain from Wilson. Mason scored on the next play, making the score 20-0 after Nordin missed the extra point.

Michigan's next offensive possession ended in a 57-yard punt from Hart, but Nebraska's Tyjon Lindsey muffed the return, which was recovered by sophomore Ambry Thomas at the Nebraska 35 yard-line. Nordin made up for his missed extra point by connecting on a 50-yard field goal, extending the lead to 23-0.

The Wolverines added two more touchdowns before halftime: a five-yard pass from Patterson to Gentry and another one-yard run from Mason. Then with 4:03 left, Michigan added two more points via a safety when Martinez was called for throwing an illegal forward pass in the end zone, which came off catching his own deflection at the line of scrimmage. Michigan led, 39-0, at halftime.

Peoples-Jones brought the Big House to its feet in the third quarter with an electric 60-yard punt return for a touchdown. The sophomore fielded the punt at his own 40, put a spin move on a would-be tackler at the 20-yard line and dove for the pylon, making the score 46-0.

After a 35-yard field goal from Barret Pickering ended the shutout, sophomore Dylan McCaffrey entered the game and kept the offense moving. On his first play, he faked a handoff and outran the Nebraska defense for an apparent 75-yard touchdown run, but it was nullified due to a holding call. Nordin capped the drive with a 38-yard field goal. Two drives later, McCaffrey threw a perfectly-lobbed deep ball to freshman Ronnie Bell, who juked a defender on his way to a 56-yard touchdown.

Nebraska got its first and only touchdown of the game late in the fourth quarter on a three-yard run from Wyatt Mazour, capping the game's scoring at 56-10.

The Wolverines return to action next Saturday (Sept. 29), when they will face Big Ten West foe Northwestern in Evanston, Illinois. Kickoff is slated for 4:30 p.m.