Three Up/Three Down: JJ McCarthy Steals The Show Against Hawaii
It only took two offensive plays for Michigan to get into the end zone and it never got much tougher. Aside from some garbage yards and points, Hawaii was hapless on offense all night and on defense, the Rainbow Warriors couldn't stop the Wolverines. At the end of the night, once the rain and lightning moved through Ann Arbor, Jim Harbaugh and his Wolverines were 2-0 after pounding Hawaii 56-10. No football game is ever perfect, but this one was pretty close.
Three Up
JJ McCarthy
We all saw it. McCarthy was virtually flawless; even Jim Harbaugh said so. The sophomore went 11-for-12 for 229 yards and three scores and threw three or four of the prettiest passes you can imagine. He was on time, on target, in control and barely broke a sweat. He only carried it one time for 16 yards, but we all know he's got that in his bag of tricks as well. Harbaugh anointed him the starter following the game during the post-game presser, which speaks to just how good McCarthy was. That's not typically how Harbaugh operates, but it was so obvious to everyone, why not?
Michigan defense
For the second week in a row, Jesse Minter's defense impressed. The Wolverines only recorded one sack against Hawaii, compared to seven against Colorado State, but everything they did was still effective. Michigan held Hawaii to just 4.4 yards per carry and had only given up 61 yards passing midway through the third quarter.
Edge rusher Jaylen Harrell was all over the field again and looked really fast. He worked a twist early on in the game and put a huge hit on the Hawaii quarterback. Braiden McGregor also continues to put nice things on tape. The linebackers and secondary members look fast and really haven't been out of position in two weeks and overall, the unit is playing extremely well together. The Wolverines pursued well, tackled well and covered well. It's clear that Minter has a lot to work with and he must be having fun using all of his athletes in various ways.
Roman Wilson's speed
For the second week in a row, Wilson's speed has been a difference maker. In week one, he took a bubble screen 61 yards to the house. On Saturday, against his home state school, he ran right past the defense and caught a 42-yard touchdown pass on the second offensive play of the game. Just eight minutes later, Wilson took a reverse 21 yards into the end zone and again looked like the fastest player on the field in the process.
It's clear that he's been working hard to be involved in the game plan and his speed is a big reason why it's working. He's been able to dominate lesser opponents, but he's got the kind of wheels that will work against anyone...just ask Iowa.
Three Down
Lightning delay
Okay, so obviously this one had nothing to do with football, but it did put a little bit of a damper on the night. It poured rain, delayed kickoff by an hour and made McCarthy's first start a memorable one for some less than ideal reasons. The team didn't run out and touch the banner, the band didn't perform before the game and the energy level leading right up to kickoff wasn't quite the same. Still, The Big House was loaded and saw plenty to cheer about in McCarthy's first start of many.
Donovan Edwards dinged up
Edwards carried the ball just three times for 26 yards and a score before exiting with an injury. It was reported that Edwards didn't return to the field after halftime as he was likely being treated in the locker room. Freshman CJ Stokes has looked great in spot duty, and Blake Corum is obviously fully capable of handling a heavy workload, but Edwards was poised to breakout as a sophomore, so hopefully his injury doesn't keep him out long.
Giving up the shutout
For the second week in a row, Michigan was pitching a shutout until very late in the game. Hawaii broke the seal with a field goal late in the third quarter and added a touchdown a few minutes into the fourth. Obviously Harbaugh is going to empty the bench and get younger guys and walk-ons some experience when the score is 42-0 at halftime, but defensive players, coaches and staffers never want to give up that goose egg. Defenses love seeing that big zero up on the scoreboard and hate when they lose it no matter what the situation is.
Last week, freshman cornerback Will Johnson got beat deep for a touchdown and, even though it didn't matter in the grand scheme of the game, you can guarantee the former five-star was beating himself up about it. On Saturday, Hawaii running back Tylan Hines got loose for a 54-yard touchdown run, which undoubtedly irked everyone on the defensive side of the ball. Winning 56-10 is a clobbering to be proud of, but 56-0 would've felt much, much better.
