At some point this season, Michigan's defense will have to step up and win a game for the Wolverines.
That almost certainly won't be this weekend -- the Wolverines are expected to steamroll hapless Akron -- but defensive coordinator Greg Mattison knows that his players can't rely on the offense keeping up a 50 point-per-game average. He knows the next two weeks, against the Zips and at Connecticut, will be important for his young defense.
"It takes a lot of patience, because we're so young out there," Mattison said this week. "When Notre Dame was moving down the field, my instincts were telling me to get after them, but I knew that I had to stay patient, avoid giving up the big play and count on our kids doing their job in the red zone."
The plan worked, as Notre Dame kicked three field goals and failed on a fourth-down pass into the end zone. One or two touchdowns on those drives could have changed a game that was down to four points in the fourth quarter.
"That was an exciting game, and I'm proud of the way our kids played," Mattison said. "They gave up some drives, but they stayed resiliant, and they held on. If you can keep teams from scoring seven points when they get inside your 30, you are going to win a lot of games, and they did that."
Mattison knows that his team is making too many mistakes, whether it comes to getting out of position on a run play, missing a tackle or failing to put any pressure on the quarterback, but he sees a pattern on film.
"There were a couple plays where we had a senior or a junior make a mistakes, but almost all of what I was seeing was plays being missed by sophomores and redshirt freshmen. We have to remember that we are a very young team," he said.
"That's not an excuse -- we can't make excuses at this level -- but these aren't guys that we've coached for four years and who still aren't getting it. These are kids that want to be very good, and working hard to get there.
"They are getting there, but they have to get it a lot more and a lot faster than they did last week."
The biggest problem has been the pass rush. Tommy Rees had all the time he needed to pass Saturday night, and although Akron doesn't compare to the Irish, it is still something that the Wolverines have to improve before Big Ten play begins in October.
"Notre Dame's offensive line is very good, but there were a lot of battles out there that we were supposed to win," Mattison said. "A lot of that is technique. When you are a young player, you have to play great technique or you don't have a chance.
"It's a work in progress -- you can't all of a sudden become a great pass-rush team -- but we have to improve and we will improve."
The Wolverines probably won't put up a lot of sacks against Akron's quick-hitting passing attack, but any pressure at all could be a problem for sophomore quarterback Kyle Pohl.
Pohl only threw for 98 yards against Central Florida, averaging just six yards per completion, and didn't exactly light things up against FCS opponent James Madison. If Michigan disrupts Pohl's dink-and-dunk attack, the Zips will have almost no chance to convert long-yardage situations.
Jawon Chisholm leads Akron with 97 yards rushing in two games, but 55 of those came on one carry against James Madison. Against Central Florida -- a bowl team last year, but not one near Michigan's level -- he carried the ball 11 times for 10 yards.
At the same time, the Wolverines offense shouldn't have much trouble keeping up their gaudy scoring numbers. Central Florida gained 476 yards against Akron, averaging 7.2 yards per rush and 11.8 yards per pass play. Quarterback Blake Bortles threw for 314 yards and three touchdowns on only 24 attempts.
Devin Gardner should be able to hit Jeremy Gallon, Devin Funchess, Jake Butt, Joe Reynolds and anyone else who wanders onto the field. Expect to see a lot of Brian Cleary under center and Derrick Green at tailback in the second half -- a preview of Michigan's long-term offense.
So, yes, the Wolverines shouldn't break much of a sweat for this one. The biggest question might be the student section -- Hoke has been very pleased at how early they have shown up for the first two games of the season, but a chilly noon start against a MAC opponent might be their biggest test of the year.
