Three Up/Three Down: Michigan Handles Rutgers In Jim Harbaugh's Return

Michigan is now 4-0 overall and 1-0 in conference play after taking care of business against Rutgers.

In Michigan's return, the Wolverines found some solid adjustments at halftime and ended up pulling away from Rutgers, winning 31-7. The Wolverines are now 4-0 overall and 1-0 in Big Ten play. Here's how it looked today in Ann Arbor.

Three Up

JJ McCarthy running the ball

Finally! For the first time since he became a starter, McCarthy was utilized as a runner with some conviction. He's not Mike Vick, but he's plenty fast and smart enough to really punish a defense and he did that today. McCarthy finished with 51 yards on seven carries and was only sacked once. He had some key third down conversions and, most importantly, cruised out of bounds untouched on most of his totes. He looks good running the ball and if you mix that in with everything else he and Michigan's offense can do, look out.

Jelling

This could be viewed as a positive and a negative at the same time, I suppose, and it's with two different position groups — the offensive line and the secondary. 

For the first time all year, Michigan's starting secondary was on the field together. Rod Moore returned from injury for the first time and Makari Paige and Will Johnson were both utilized in a full capacity. Josh Wallace and Mike Sainristil, who have been solid all year, were also out there all day long and it paid dividends. Moore took a bad angle and missed a tackle on Rutgers' big 69-yard touchdown early in the game, and then he was out of the lineup here and there, but overall it's a net positive having him in the game with his fellow defensive backs. That unit needs to jell and today was a good start.

When it comes to the offensive line, the group still isn't dominating like most thought it would. Today the lineup changed a bit, which will be discussed more below, but the group still isn't moving the line of scrimmage like we saw so often last year. Yes, Blake Corum finished with 97 yards on 21 carries and scored twice, but Donovan Edwards still can't find a crease and it just hasn't hasn't felt like most thought it would. Obviously going against a sound, solid defense like Rutgers isn't an easy task, but the group still has work to do and today was a good step in that direction.

Mikey Sainristil

I've said it before and I'll say it again — Mike Sainristil is the most in-position player in the entire country. Week after week after week the dude shows up in the exact position he's supposed to be in and today, it resulted in a pick-six on a very quick bubble screen. Sainristil was so locked in, that he picked the ball off and started to return it for a score before the Scarlet Knights even knew what happened. He has become arguably Michigan's best overall defensive player and provides value that is unmatched on the roster.

Two Down

The run game

It actually wasn't that bad, and Blake Corum did what Blake Corum does, but it still just feels a little off for whatever reason. It's not entirely clear why, but the offensive lineup did change a little during the middle of the game on Saturday. For at least a series, Karsen Barnhart moved from left tackle over to right tackle for Myles Hinton, while LaDarius Henderson came in at left tackle. Later in the game, it looked like Hinton was limping just a bit, so it might've been a temporary thing while Hinton was checked out for an injury, or it might've been a short tweak to see if it would result in more production. Either way, something is still amiss with Michigan's usually-dominant running game.

Mike Sainristil working through something

Midway through the 4th quarter, Sainristil was seen entering the medical tent and then moments later, he exited with a noticeable limp. He appeared to be favoring his left leg and did not return to the game. The game was at hand, so he wasn't needed, but Sainristil is so important to Michigan's defense you just hope it's nothing nagging or lingering.