It was a game of highs and lows, but Michigan managed to come away with the win against New Mexico on Saturday night at the Big House. While the Wolverines won by 17 points, the game felt a little too close for comfort at times. The defense allowed the Lobos to hang around late in the game, but still came up with stops when they mattered most. Meanwhile, the offense put points on the board with some impressive drives of their own, with most of the scoring coming in the first half.
Here are three winners and two losers after Michigan’s Week 1 performance.
RB Justice Haynes – Winner
Welcome to Ann Arbor, Justice Haynes! He did not disappoint in his Michigan debut, recording 16 carries for 159 yards — averaging just less than 10 yards per carry — and three touchdowns. He had two carries of 50+ yards, including his 56-yard touchdown in the first quarter. He certainly proved why the coaches wanted him to come and play for Team 146.
Michigan had eight penalties for 65 yards, with a lot of those penalties keeping drives alive for New Mexico. Whether or not you blame the officiating, the team needs to clean up the penalties moving forward. New Mexico sustained its drive in the third quarter because of some penalties, and the Wolverines might not be able to survive a similar situation in Norman next Saturday.
QB Bryce Underwood – Winner
Bryce Underwood met expectations in his first performance under center. It wasn’t a perfect debut by any means, but there was a lot to get excited about. He completed 21-of-31 attempts for 251 yards and one touchdown, while only taking two sacks. While a few of his passes were a little off, he didn’t make any huge mistakes and protected the football. Hopefully he can get a little more help from his receivers in some of those situations moving forward, too.
There were a few miscues on special teams in this one. Freshman Andrew Marsh fumbled a kick return and lost the ball, while Semaj Morgan mishandled — but recovered — the ball on one of his punt returns. While neither mistake ended up costing the team this week, it’s those types of things you want to clean up moving forward.
LB Cole Sullivan – Winner
Sophomore Cole Sullivan has had the coaches’ praises since he arrived in Ann Arbor. He had plenty of reps on special teams as a freshman, and now he’s getting quality reps on defense. Sullivan came up big with an interception towards the end of the game and also had a sack. He also finished third on the team with five tackles.
We know the team wins and loses together, but who would you say won the day, and who could use some improvement heading into next week? Let us know in the comments!
