Grades: More D's for Michigan football team, but not for the defense

Offense

Brandon Minor (shoulder) and Carlos Brown (knee) were almost non-existent because of injuries, so Michigan leaned heavily on Vincent Smith. He played well and Tate Forcier was 20-of-26 passing, but the offense managed just 17 points and failed to get anything from another goal-line series. The Wolverines averaged 2.2 yards per rush for the game as the offensive line got manhandled at times. Grade: D Defense Wisconsin converted a number of third-and-longs early to keep drives alive and Michigan couldn’t stop running back John Clay late when it knew what was coming. Wisconsin scored on all four possessions in the second half. Brandon Graham (11 tackles, 4 TFL) was huge as usual and Michigan forced two turnovers and got a defensive score on Ryan Van Bergen’s fumble return, but poor tackling remains an issue. Grade: D-minus

Special teams Once again, huge negative plays were killer. Brandon Smith and Jon Conover collided with each other then punter Brad Nortman for a roughing-the-punter penalty that kept alive a Wisconsin drive that ended with a touchdown. Jason Olesnavage also had a 19-yard field goal blocked in the first half. Grade: D-minus Coaching Give defensive coordinator Greg Robinson credit for at least trying something new with his brutal defense. Michigan changed personnel on that side of the ball and played eight men in the box most of the game in a futile attempt to stop Clay. There was a questionable play call on third-and-goal at the 1, when Forcier ran a sweep right instead of handing the ball to Minor. But Wisconsin is just a superior team. Grade: B Dave Birkett covers University of Michigan football for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached by phone at 734-623-2552 or by e-mail at davidbirkett@annarbor.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.