OFFENSE Tate Forcier said before the game Saturday his throwing shoulder was still sore, and he looked like it, avoiding contact on most runs. The passing game was almost non-existent, but Brandon Minor was a beast in the running game. He scored twice - the first two rushing TDs Iowa has allowed all year - and Michigan ran for 195 yards against one of the Big Ten’s best defenses. Three turnovers can’t be excused, though. Grade: C-plus
DEFENSE
A mixed bag, as usual. Donovan Warren intercepted a pass for the third straight game and returned it for an early score, and Brandon Graham was his usual unstoppable self. Graham had two sacks, nine tackles and 3 ½ tackles for loss. The bad: Iowa converted seven of 11 third downs in the first half, including several third-and-longs, and Ricky Stanzi (284 yards) nearly had a career day passing. Grade: C-plus SPECIAL TEAMS Zoltan Mesko was great. No other word for it. He had a 61-yard punt out of his own end zone, but Michigan wasn’t crisp otherwise. Greg Mathews botched a key third-quarter punt and the Wolverines had two penalties on returns (one declined). Grade: C-minus COACHING All the focus is on Rich Rodriguez’s decision to play Denard Robinson over Tate Forcier on Michigan’s final two drives, and for good reason Robinson gave Michigan a spark, but Forcier should have been in at the end. He’s led two game-winning drives this year. Aside from that, I thought Rodriguez and his staff had a very good game plan. Unfortunately, that decision resulted in the crucial interception when Robinson missed a part of a signal at the end. Grade: C-minus 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.
Get the Ann Arbor RSS Feed
AnnArbor.com