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Michigan spent most of Saturday looking like the better football team against Iowa.
It moved the ball. It controlled possession. Its defense repeatedly shut down the Hawkeyes. Bryce Underwood found Andrew Marsh and JJ Buchanan against Iowa’s secondary, while the Wolverines eventually started creating room on the ground.
Iowa brings one of the best statistical defenses in the country to Michigan Stadium, along with a rushing attack built to drag the game into the fourth quarter. This is not a matchup where Michigan needs Bryce Underwood to throw for 300 yards or one running back to take over. It is a game about staying clean, finding enough explosive plays, and making Iowa play from behind.
Michigan opens Big Ten play against an Iowa team built to punish mistakes and make every possession matter. The Wolverines’ offensive progress finally looked real against UTEP, but Saturday will show whether those answers hold up against Phil Parker’s defense.
Michigan's offense spent the first half making a blowout look much harder than it eventually became.
The Wolverines moved the ball on their opening possession, reached the UTEP 24 and then lost a Bryce Underwood fumble. Savion Hiter coughed it up on Michigan's fourth possession, handing UTEP the ball at the Wolverines' 18 and helping the Miners take a 14-7 lead.
For a half, Michigan made this far more complicated than it ever needed to be.
Then the Wolverines came out of the locker room and turned the game into exactly what everyone expected.
UTEP is Michigan’s last game before Big Ten play begins, and this should not be another afternoon where Underwood has to become the run game because nothing else works. Michigan should be able to control this matchup physically. The interesting part is whether it can use that advantage to fix the things before Iowa.
Michigan beat Oklahoma, protected the football and walked away 2-0.
That alone makes this a much more encouraging offensive review than the Western Michigan opener.
There is a version of Saturday where Western Michigan ends up being the best thing that could have happened to this team. Not because needing a Hail Mary to survive a MAC opponent was somehow good. It wasn’t. The value would be in what happened after it.
Michigan's first game gave us plenty to work with. The second one should tell us a lot more.
Oklahoma is a different test, and the numbers around this matchup point to a game that looks a lot more uncomfortable than the opener. The Sooners are expected to move the ball. John Mateer is expected to make plays. Michigan probably isn't winning this one because Bryce Underwood throws for 350 yards and the Wolverines cruise.
Michigan survived Western Michigan, but the more useful question now is what from that game actually carries forward. The Wolverines have a much different test coming Saturday against Oklahoma, and a few of the strongest individual performances from Week 1 came at positions Michigan desperately needed to feel better about entering the season.