So far this year, despite a hot start with a series of blowout wins, the Wolverines’ offensive line has been less than impressive. Still, yesterday, it appeared to catch its stride once again, prompting 9th-year Michigan football head coach Jim Harbaugh (and RB Blake Corum) to break down how his “Lion has teeth” following yesterday’s 31-7 victory over Rutgers.
Michigan football head coach Jim Harbaugh reflects on major improvements at offensive line
Michigan football got off to a slower start yesterday, and while the Wolverines are still yet to score more than 35 points in a single game, Michigan remains unbeaten heading into Week 5 of the season. While the offensive line still had its moments over the weekend, there was notable progress being made — yes, it was just Rutgers, but the line struggled with Bowling Green the weekend before, so I will take any amount of progression at this point.
After the game, Michigan football head coach Jim Harbaugh — who just returned from suspension — gave us his thoughts.
“The offensive line, I thought they played great,” Harbaugh said, “I knew they were good. I mean, it’s like a lion that has a roar. You know, I’ve seen the roar, today it had teeth. That lion’s got– it’s not just a lion with a good roar, the teeth were showing today. And that was great to see.”
Blake Corum says the offense is “still a work in progress” heading into Week 5
On top of what Jim Harbaugh had to say, Michigan football star running back Blake Corum added that, while the offense is still a work in progress, the Wolverines are moving in the right direction after the Rutgers win.
“The offense is a work in progress,” Blake Corum explained. “We’re always going to critique because we hold ourselves to a high standard. We’re going to critique ourselves really, really hard, and today, every yard we got was earned. Rutgers, Coach Greg (Schiano), he has a great team in Rutgers, a great defense. There was definitely an extra man in the box every time we ran the ball, but it was a smashmouth type of day. Get four, get three, get five. In the fourth quarter, that’s when we started getting eight and ten.
“I think our run game is fine,” Corum continued. “We have to critique a couple of things. Obviously, just watch the film, see where I can get better, see where the offensive line can get better, and just get on the same page a little more, but best believe we’re fine. The offense is fine. I think we averaged over 400 yards today. That’s a productive day. But just going back to the table and seeing where we can do better. We’ll come back next week better than we were this week.”
Wolverines shifting gears from Rutgers to Nebraska
Next weekend, Michigan football hits the road for the first time this year, where its unblemished record will be put to the test in Lincoln, NE, against the Nebraska Cornhuskers (2-2, 0-1 Big Ten). Right now, the Maize and Blue are 18-point favorites to knock off Matt Rhule’s Huskers and improve to 5-0 heading into Week 6.
Thank you for reading Blue by Ninety. For more Michigan Athletics content from Blue by Ninety, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. You can also subscribe to our YouTube Channel. For feedback, questions, concerns, or to apply for a writing position, please email our Managing Editor at [email protected]. Also, be sure to check out our shop and our podcast, which is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and all other streaming platforms. It is because of your support that we have become one of the fastest-growing and most influential Michigan media outlets there is!
