Michigan now is where Minnesota was two weeks ago, and where the Wolverines go from here depends on things going very differently for them. Minnesota finally threw in the towel on Conor Rhoda midway through another dismal offensive performance against Michigan State. Demry Croft came in, threw three fourth quarter touchdowns and nearly completed the comeback, leaving Gopher fans simultaneously mad that the change hadn't been made sooner, but newly optimistic for the future. In the two weeks since then, he's been 14-43 for 186 yards, with a touchdown and 3 picks, and only 30 yards rushing on 23 carries, with back to back QBRs below 8. No Big Ten quarterback has done that twice in a season, let alone in back to back weeks, since 2004 when Zack Mills of Penn State and Stephen Reaves of Michigan State both had two such games. Now it's Michigan fans' turn to both be mad that it took Harbaugh so long to switch to Peters, and optimistic about the offense going forward. The big difference here is the surrounding talent. O'Korn never had to win Michigan games, but his costly turnovers, and poor scrambling decisions were actually costing them. If Peters can play within himself, that alone is an improvement. That's exactly what he showed against Rutgers. He didn't have any "WOW" moments, but in three quarters of action, he also only made two bad throws, and got the ball out. Getting Karan Higdon rolling again certainly helps too. He doesn't have Evans' speed or Isaac or Walker's power, but he's clearly the most well-rounded back Michigan has right now. He's had monster games against Indiana and Rutgers, sandwiched around a lackluster performance against Penn State. The commitment to feeding him carries is going to be important for Peters, who didn't face a ton of third and longs last week. Minnesota has obviously a vastly superior defense to Rutgers, but against the run they are vulnerable. Offensively, Minnesota plays right into Michigan's strength. Penn State spread Michigan out and exploited one and one matchups, and Lewerke at least threatened them deep. Minnesota can't do either of those things, and you want to fight a trench war against this Michigan line? Good luck.
MICHIGAN 31, MINNESOTA 12
