ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Michigan athletic director Dave Brandon's worst nightmare came true on Saturday night.
There was the Michigan football team, the cash cow of his financial empire, losing a game in a nearly empty Big House, with the loudest cheers coming from the visiting fans who had covered the stadium's iconic Block M.
Yes, this wasn't a normal night. The Wolverines didn't finish their 26-10 loss to Utah until nearly six hours after they started it, and most of their fans had gone home during a two-hour and 25-minute rain delay.
It was still strange to hear "Let's go, Utes!" ringing out across the Big House, even as Michigan tried desparately to find enough offense for an improbable comeback.
"That might have been the weirdest moment of my career," linebacker Jake Ryan said. "We were playing at home, and there was no one there. This whole night was weird."
It is hard to blame the crowd for abandoning the team. Heavy storms hit the stadium with Michigan down by 16 points with only 7:11 to play, and backup quarterback Shane Morris had just thrown an interception that ended any realistic chances of a come-from-behind victory.
Morris had just saved a touchdown with his tackle of Tevin Carter, but the crowd of 103,890 was still booing Michigan's offensive ineptitude when the call came to evacuate the stands.
Michigan coach Brady Hoke reiterated his feeling that Wolverines fans shouldn't boo the players. But he understands the anger when, in two games against quality opponents, his team hasn't even reached the red zone, much less scored an offensive touchdown.
"I don't like them (the boos) because we're talking about 18- to 22-year-old students who are out there busting their butts every day," Hoke said. "I understand the fans pay for their tickets and have the right to boo anyone they want, but I don't like it. If the boos are for me, though, that's fine. That's OK."
The fanbase is certainly angry at Hoke after a rout by Notre Dame was followed by a lopsided loss to a bottom-tier Pac 12 team, but he wasn't the only person getting booed. Devin Gardner continued to struggle, throwing a pair of interceptions before being pulled, and while Morris showed the ability to launch the ball 70 yards down the field, he also turned the ball over twice in in 17 plays.
Michigan came into the game with one of the nation's worst turnover margins, and the three interceptions and a fumble won't do much to help that, especially with the offense only forcing one.
"Ball security has been a huge coaching point for us all season, and that certainly isn't about to change," Hoke said. "We talked to the team after the game, and we made it clear that we cannot continue to give the ball away during the Big Ten season if we want to win games."
The problem for Hoke and offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier is, although neither quarterback played well against Utah, one of them has to start against Minnesota.
"It is way too early for me to make any assessment on that, especially before Doug and I get a chance to watch the tapes," Hoke said. "It might have been good for Devin to get a chance to come out of the game, take a step back and watch the things that he might not have been seeing on the field. There are times that that helps.
"All I can say right now is that we will have two quarterbacks working hard during the week, and we'll make a decision about a quarterback at the appropriate time."
Morris completed only four of his 13 passes, but he was in a nearly impossible situation. Most of his playing time came after the rain delay, when Michigan was down 16 points and forced to throw deep on nearly every play.
He showed great athletic ability on two plays, when he escaped pressure in the end zone and threw balls to the Utah 35-yard-line. But they were nothing more than Hail Marys.
That's where things are right now for the Michigan offense -- reduced to playground plays against a team predicted to finish fifth in the six-team Pac 12 South.
"I don't think we need an offensive overhaul," Hoke said. "This is about the little things and our execution. If we fix those things, and that starts with me doing a better job of coaching and continues all the way through my assistants and everyone who works at Schembechler Hall.
"Our goals are still out there. I reminded our team about 1998, when we lost at Notre Dame and lost to Syracuse here and still won a part of the Big Ten title. I believe this team is still capable of doing that because I see them every day and I see how hard they work."
Hoke isn't about to publicly give up on his team. That isn't his style. But he knows that the two non-conference losses don't bode well for a season where the Wolverines still have to go to East Lansing and Columbus.
If he and Nussmeier don't find some offensive answers in a hurry, this season could spiral into something as ugly as Saturday's storm.
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