Michigan
Rutgers
Michigan Monday: Game 4 vs. Rutgers
9/23/2019 11:08:00 AM | Football
Rutgers (1-2, 0-1 Big Ten) at #20/#20 Michigan (2-1, 0-1 Big Ten)
Michigan Stadium • Ann Arbor, Mich.
Saturday, Sept. 28, 2019 • Noon EDT
Television: BTN
Radio: Michigan/IMG Sports Network
Rutgers Game Promotions
• Celebrating 150 Years of College Football
• Parade of Champions
• 1964 Team Recognition
• Michigan Marching Band Halftime Show: The Life of Maggie St. Clair
• Champions Recognition: Women's Gymnastics, Water Polo
• Giveaway: 25,000 Vintage Wolverine Pennants
• Full Promotions Schedule
Monday, Sept. 23
Complete Game Notes (PDF)
Coach Harbaugh Weekly Press Conference | Watch
Inside Michigan Football Radio Show (7 p.m.) | Listen
• Michigan has a 4-1 record against Rutgers, winning the past four match-ups after losing the first game played as Big Ten foes.
• Senior viper Khaleke Hudson is second in the Big Ten and ninth nationally in tackles per game (11.3 avg.).
• Junior Will Hart leads the conference and is sixth in the NCAA with a 47.6-yard average per punt.
• U-M leads the Big Ten and is fourth nationally in pass defense, allowing 135 yards passing per contest.
• The Wolverines are sixth nationally in kickoff return defense. U-M has allowed one return for 11 yards in 13 attempts.
Wolverines and Scarlet Knights
• This will be the sixth meeting between Michigan and Rutgers, two of college football's oldest programs.
• The Wolverines lead the all-time series, 4-1, with victories in the last four match-ups. Rutgers won the inaugural meeting at home in 2014, and Michigan claimed victories at Michigan Stadium in 2015 and 2017 and on the road during the 2016 and 2018 seasons.
• U-M defeated Rutgers by a score of 42-7 last season in New Jersey after winning 78-0 in 2016.
• In the two games played at Michigan Stadium, the Wolverines posted a 49-16 win over the Scarlet Knights in 2015 and tallied a 35-14 victory in 2017.
Series vs. Rutgers: U-M leads 4-1
Series Streak: U-M won 4
Last Meeting: 2018 (W, 42-7)
Last Michigan Win: 2018 (42-7)
Television Coverage
BTN will broadcast the game to a national audience. Kevin Kugler (play-by-play), Matt Millen (color) and Lisa Byington (sideline) will call the game.
In the Polls
• Michigan dropped to 20th in the national polls following its loss at Wisconsin, listing No. 20 in the Amway Coaches Poll and No. 20 in the Associated Press rankings.
• This week's match-up with Rutgers will be the first contest in the past 10 games in which U-M will be listed outside of the top 10 of the polls.
• Michigan finished last season ranked 14th in both national polls, the same position that it began the 2018 season.
• The Wolverines have been ranked in the national polls for 17 straight games and for all but eight contests during coach Jim Harbaugh's tenure (first four games of 2015 and four contests in 2017).
• U-M posted a 3-3 record against ranked teams in 2018, defeating No. 15 Wisconsin, No. 24 Michigan State and No. 14 Penn State while falling to No. 11 Notre Dame, No. 10 Ohio State and No. 10 Florida. The last time that U-M beat three top 25 teams in the same season was 2005, and the last time it defeated three straight ranked opponents was 1997.
Game Notes Nuggets
• Michigan's roster features five players from the state of New Jersey: DL Michael Dwumfour, DB Brad Hawkins, DB Hunter Reynolds, OL Cesar Ruiz and OL Jon Runyan.
• Despite a less-sharp outing than usual at Wisconsin, quarterback Shea Patterson continues to be efficient. His career pass efficiency rating of 149.9 is best all-time at U-M, and his 1.93 percent interception rate is second-lowest in program history.
• Patterson's career 7.16 yards per play ranks second only to Denard Robinson (7.31) in U-M history. His career 64.2 percent completion rate also ranks second all-time, trailing only Todd Collins (64.3 percent).
• Viper Khaleke Hudson is back to his tackling-machine ways. Hudson has had eight or more stops in each game this season and has notched double-digit tackles in back-to-back efforts, with 12 against Army and 14 against Wisconsin. Prior to this season, Hudson had double-digit tackles just twice in 32 games, including his career-high 15-tackle game against Minnesota in 2017.
• Hudson's average of 11.3 tackles per contest ranks second in the Big Ten and ninth in the country at this point of the season.
• With an in-game injury to linebacker Josh Ross, linebackers Jordan Anthony and Cameron McGrone stepped up against the Badgers. Anthony chipped in three tackles, while McGrone set a new career high with six tackles including five solo stops.
• Wide receiver Ronnie Bell led the Wolverines in receiving yards for the second week in a row, matching his 81-yard output from the matchup with Army. Bell had seven receptions against the Black Knights but needed just two catches to hit that mark against Wisconsin, including a career-long 68-yard grab.
• Michigan's leading receiver has had 80 yards or more in all three games this season (Tarik Black, 80 yards vs. Middle Tennessee State).
• Wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones returned to action against the Badgers and caught a five-yard touchdown. Peoples-Jones is up to 13 career touchdowns, with 11 receiving and two via punt return.
• Punter Will Hart leads the Big Ten and is sixth nationally with a 47.6-yard average per punt this season. He averaged 51 yards on five punts at Wisconsin and boomed 61-yard punts vs. Army and Wisconsin.
