3 areas of concern for Michigan football heading into Week 2

Yesterday, Michigan football knocked off East Carolina by 27 points in the team’s home opener. While the Wolverines did not quite cover the spread, the starters were taken out early, and there were a number of suspensions and injury issues to deal with as well, so it’s understandable that everything did not go 100% perfect on Saturday. That said, from offensive line woes to question marks in the pass rush, here are three areas of concern for the Maize and Blue heading into Week 2.

3 major areas of concern for Michigan football heading into the UNLV game

1. The offensive line didn’t look that great

Michigan football reportedly has 10-12 starting-caliber players along its elite offensive line — a line that has now won two straight Joe Moore Awards and more; however, yesterday, it was clear that the line needs some help. Trevor Keegan and Zak Zinter looked pretty good, Drake Nugent did alright, and the tackles were okay. That said, the aggressive push that has made Michigan’s O-line so dangerous over the past few years was simply not there.

This could just be a consequence of the offensive line taking some time to mesh, but regardless, the Wolverines have some work to do before Big Ten play starts later this month.

2. The pass rush was quiet

The entire defensive line has been stellar for Michigan football since Jim Harbaugh arrived as head coach ahead of the 2015 season. That said, the Maize and Blue didn’t see much action off the edge yesterday — the Wolverines didn’t record a sack, and due to ECU’s offense ditching the ball quickly, there were not many pressures either. Michigan football has time to clean it up next week, but the pass rush needs to be more involved throughout the rest of the season.

3. Does Michigan football have a reliable kicker?

Michigan football has been spoiled over the past few years on special teams with an elite kicker/punter combo of Brad Robbins and Jake Moody. This year, with both of them gone, for the first time in a while, the Wolverines missed an extra point on Saturday. Now, perhaps that was just a one-time thing — it was Week 1, after all — but it raises some questions on whether or not Michigan football has a true starting kicker that can be relied upon right now.

New transfer kicker James Turner went 3/4 on extra points and 1/2 on the field goals — it’s worth noting that he drilled a 50-yarder, so it’s clear that his ability is not the issue. Right now, consistency and durability remains the question.

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