ANN ARBOR, Mich. – There’s only so much we can learn about college football in one week, but we got our first glimpse of all nine Big Ten teams on Michigan’s schedule, and it offered a better idea of what to expect this season.
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Here are some takeaways from Week 1:
Rutgers
Beat Northwestern 24-7.
- Rutgers is still strong on defense, but lacks explosiveness on offense.
- Gavin Wimsatt is a dual threat, but still inconsistent with accuracy. Michigan picked him off twice last season to turn second-half a deficit into a blowout win -- it seems like he could be prone to similar mistakes.
- This defense will come after the quarterback. Michigan needs to get the starting offensive line solidified by Week 4.
Nebraska
Lost to Minnesota 13-10.
- New coach, same old Nebraska. The first game of the Matt Rhule era began pretty much how the entire Scott Frost era played out: Nebraska hanging onto a lead until blowing it at the very last moment.
- Georgia Tech transfer Jeff Sims is dangerous on the ground, but maybe not as good as we thought through the air (three interceptions).
- Michigan still has to be careful with that Nebraska home atmosphere, especially since it’s the first road game of the season. But it might take Rhule more than a few months to turn this ship around.
Minnesota
Beat Nebraska 13-10.
- It’s another vintage P.J. Fleck team: three penalties, one turnover, and 60 minutes of solid defense. Minnesota doesn’t beat itself. As uninspiring as this game was offensively, going into Minnesota next month won’t be easy.
- Tanner Morgan is gone, but Athan Kaliakmanis has some weapons at receiver. The Gophers’ passing game will get better.
Indiana
Lost to Ohio State 23-3.
- Maybe Indiana’s defense won’t be a punching bag this season after holding Ohio State to just 23 points.
- The offense is really, really bad: 2.2 yards per rush, 4.1 yards per pass, and only three points without turning it over? Yuck.
Michigan State
Beat Central Michigan 31-7.
- Noah Kim might be an improvement over Payton Thorne. He threw for 279 yards and two touchdowns against CMU, looking especially impressive in the second half after settling in.
- Nathan Carter is another great transfer addition for Mel Tucker in the backfield. He racked up 113 yards on 18 carries.
- Michigan State’s defense was swarming, with 12 different players getting in on 10 tackles for loss. They also batted down five passes and only allowed one Chippewas touchdown.
Purdue
Lost to Fresno State 39-35.
- Texas transfer Hudson Card did his job, throwing for 254 yards and two touchdowns. Both scores went to Deion Burks, who had 154 yards on four catches.
- Ryan Walters built such a strong defense at Illinois, but that’s going to take time at Purdue. Fresno State put up 487 yards, including 371 through the air. J.J. McCarthy should feast.
Penn State
Beat West Virginia 38-15.
- The Penn State hype was real. This is a dangerous team on both sides of the ball.
- Drew Allar looks every bit the five-star quarterback he was advertised to be, and that makes Penn State a championship contender.
- KeAndre Lambert-Smith is a problem, catching four passes for 123 yards and two touchdowns. Will Johnson will have his work cut out for him during this matchup.
Maryland
Beat Towson 38-6.
- We all know the Maryland conversation starts and ends with Taulia Tagovailoa. He had a nice game, with four total touchdowns and 260 passing yards.
- The defense only had two sacks and three tackles for loss against Towson. That’s been an issue for Maryland against Michigan teams in the past. We’ll need to see more pressure.
Ohio State
Beat Indiana 23-3.
- Don’t forget about Cade Stover. Marvin Harrison Jr. only had a pair of catches, so Ohio State turned to its star tight end, who caught six passes for 98 yards. That might be Michael Barrett’s biggest assignment of the year.
- Ohio State has three stud running backs -- don’t be surprised if Ryan Day uses them more this season. Luckily, Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant are the strength of the Michigan defense.
- Kyle McCord was fine in his debut as starter. C.J. Stroud wasn’t immediately a superstar, either. Don’t draw conclusions until mid-October.
