Cold Seat For Coach Rod! Michigan 28-24

CollegeFootballBreakdown.com

South Bend, IN-Michigan and Notre Dame combined for 1067 yards of total offense with Michigan, behind the sensational Batman QB Denard Robinson come out on top in a hard fought game with a late 4th quarter drive prevailing 28-24.

Both teams showed their weaknesses on defense as was expected. Notre Dame fought very hard to contain the elusive Denard Robison but their lack of defensive speed was obvious at all three levels of defense. Robinson ran for 258 yards, a Michigan school record for a QB behind an offensive line that did a nice job of controlling the Notre Dame defensive line forcing linebackers and safeties to commit more to the run. This forced cornerbacks to play softer coverage which allowed Robinson to hit many short passes to wide open Michigan receivers. Michigan did struggle on third down going only 3 for 16 because of a Notre Dame defense that played their hearts out for most of the game.

On offense, Notre Dame did move the ball well at times but was also ineffective on 3rd downs going 4 of 14. Clearly, the injury to Dayne Crist with 8 minutes left in the first quarter was a big factor in the outcome. Christ developed eye problems after being dinged up on a QB sneak on Notre Dames opening touchdown drive. At the point of Crists departure, which lasted a quarter and a half, Notre Dame was leading 7-0 and driving towards a second score when backup QB Reese threw a pick on his first throw. Michigan took advantage and drove for a game tying touchdown. Notre Dame then went to a third QB, Nate Montana, who played the balance of the first half. Montana also threw a pick on his own thirty yard line after Notre Dame had just come up with a big stop. Michigans offense continued to move the ball well and led 21-7 at half.

Dayne Crist returned for the third quarter and immediately Notre Dame responded with a touchdown pass of 53 yards to T J Jones to pull within 7. ND continued to play spiritedly on defense and made key third stops to allow chances for Crist. With 3 minutes to go, backed up on his own 5 yard line, Crist hit tight end Kyle Rudolph for a 95 yard td pass to take the lead by 3. But Robinson would not be denied. He threw perfectly on Michigans last drive and sealed the game with a two yard td run with 40 seconds remaining. The final score was Michigan 28, Notre Dame 24.

Key Points

Michigan: Denard Robinson puts so much pressure on safeties to commit to the run and he has a much stronger and accurate arm than given credit for. The offensive line has been doing a great job of staying on blocks allowing the QB read. The wide receiving core has been a surprise. LB Jonas Moutan is hard hitting and seems to be all over the field. The DL held the line of scrimmage well but did not create much of a pass rush. The secondary looked confused at times and seems to be lacking playmakers due to the injuries.

Notre Dame:Although the pass protection by the offensive line was very good, they need to improve on opening holes for RB Armando Allen who ran extremely well on Saturday. Dayne Crist will grow into being a very good QB and is light years better than the current backups. Notre Dames defense played with passion but they struggle to get off blocks and show a lack of speed.

CollegeFootballBreakdown.com-Big Ten Analyst-John Jacobson