After a heart-breaking loss to South Florida, Notre Dame heads into the belly of the beast to take on Michigan, hoping to vanquish the demons of two consecutive last minute losses at the hands of Michigan quarterbacks.
Two years ago, it was freshman phenom Tate Forcier who led the Wolverines past the Irish, completing a touchdown pass to Greg Matthews with 11 seconds left in the game. Last year, it was Denard Robinson’s turn, single-handedly propelling Michigan to a 28-24 victory. Of course, as most Notre Dame and Michigan games go, there’s always another story.
Forcier’s comeback was fueled by some questionable decisions by Irish head coach Charlie Weis, who called two pass plays late in a game he was leading (not to mention some very questionable penalties). Robison’s heroics overshadowed the bizarre injury suffered by quarterback Dayne Crist, leaving Notre Dame without a quarterback for much of the first half and putting the Irish in a big halftime hole it had crawled out of until Robinson stole the show in the game’s final minute.
There for it all has been the Detroit News’ Angelique Chengelis, Michigan beat writer for the Detroit News. Chengelis has seen a lot of the big blue, entering her 20th season on the beat. She was kind enough to spend some time answering my questions, getting us prepped for the primetime, throwback showdown this Saturday night.
I asked, Angelique answered. Here goes:
Inside the Irish: What do you make out of Michigan’s debut under Brady Hoke. Impressive? About what you expected? Anything surprise you?
Angelique Chengelis: Well, it was a short debut! First off, and I know Notre Dame fans endured this, as well, but the weather was really unpredictable and affected so much with the game ending with 1:27 left in the third quarter. But for a Hoke-coached first game, it was about what I expected. I wouldn’t say the performance was impressive or disappointing. There were elements of both. I think Denard Robinson, while certainly not producing any of the flashy plays to which we became accustomed last season, was steady and made good decisions. The offense ran only 39 plays, but even if Michigan had played a full game, I still think the offensive staff would have kept it close to the vest. Vanilla. Defensively, it certainly wasn’t a great start allowing Western Michigan to drive the field and score. There were communication issues. But I do think adjustments were made, and the defense looked more aggressive. Still, I expected more from the defensive line. Special teams? Not so good. A blocked punt and breakdowns on kickoff coverage allowed WMU some nice starting field position.
ITI: Do you think this defense has improved under Greg Mattison? Obviously they made two big defensive plays, but they gave up some significant yardage to the Broncos. Were they hiding some things from the Irish?
AC: I don’t think the defense was hiding anything from the Irish -- this defense can’t afford to hide anything, because it still has so much to learn and prove. Jordan Kovacs had a nice game, so did Brandon Herron, obviously, with the two turnovers for touchdowns. Again, with a weather-shortened game, it’s tough to tell, but it did seem like the D was picking up steam. The coaches certainly weren’t happy with the D, particularly the line.
ITI: After hearing a lot about a new pro-style offense, Michigan ran a lot of shotgun and kept the ball in Denard Robinson’s hands, even while probably playing vanilla in the opener. What do you expect on Saturday from an Al Borges-led offense?
AC: I expect to see more of Denard out of the shotgun, and I definitely agree the offense was intentionally vanilla. The running backs accounted for three touchdowns, but I don’t think either back, Fitz Toussaint or Michael Shaw, had brilliant days. Stephen Hopkins, a bigger back who played as a freshman last season, will be back from a one-game suspension, and I think he could be a guy who plays this weekend and could give the ND defense some trouble. I also think receiver Junior Hemingway has to play more of a role.
ITI: Michael Floyd was kept in check in last year’s game. He was also kept in check in the first half against USF, until Tommy Rees was inserted in the offense. Can Michigan’s secondary keep the Irish passing game in check? Did the Irish QB decision matter to the Michigan staff?
AC: The Irish QB change didn’t seem to change any opinions among the Michigan staff and team. The coaches said what you’d think -- both Crist and Rees are very good -- but Greg Mattison talked a lot about Rees’ performance the last four games of 2010 and how this guy clearly likes the pressure. Keeping the Notre Dame passing game in check is about all Michigan can ask, because the Wolverines can’t stop them, in my mind. Floyd is a huge presence physically and with his reputation as a guy who’s the second-leading receiver in ND history. Darryl Stonum (6-2, 195), the receiver taking a redshirt this season after being suspended for a second DUI offense in the spring, and Jerald Robinson haved donned Floyd’s No. 3 in practice and apparently are giving the defense a good look. But it can’t be that easy to mimic Floyd, right?
ITI: You’ve been around the Michigan football program for a long time. How far is this football team away from contending for a Big Ten title? What are you trying to say?
AC: I’m old? Don’t answer that. Well, look, Rich Rodriguez had three seasons at Michigan and was recruting his type of players to run the spread offense and a 335 defense. While he brought in some talent, including Denard Robinson, Hoke wants to run a pro-style offense and 4-3 defense. Hoke and his staff have had a solid recruiting effort for 2012, but that has to be the case for 2013, 2014. The 2012 Michigan schedule is tough, starting with Alabama in Dallas, and the Wolverines travel to Notre Dame, Nebraska and Ohio State. I say by Hoke’s third year, you get a real feel for what his Michigan teams will look like, and I would say by that point, U-M will be in a place to contend.
ITI: Michigan is an underdog playing in front of a primetime audience in Michigan Stadium. What’s the recipe for a Wolverines victory?
AC: I really do think emotion plays a huge role in college football, so on a very minor level, Michigan needs to feed off a home crowd that will be in a frenzy for the first night game. But will that setting determine the outcome? Nope. I don’t think quick-strike is the answer. I think Michigan needs to ball-control on offense and, obviously, can’t turn the ball over. I think we’ll see Denard do a bit more than he did in the opener and will be utilized more as a weapon. Notre Dame had five turnovers last weekend, and the Michigan defense will have to try to force a few on Saturday, because it’s going to be tough to stop the Irish offense. Finally, the special teams play, in my mind, was mediocre at best last weekend. Michigan can’t afford to give Notre Dame the field position Western Michigan had on returns.
ITI: How do you see Saturday’s game playing out?
AC: In our Detroit News picks this week, I’m taking Michigan and the points, because I do think it will be close. Straight-up, I think this is a coin-flip game. How’s that for teetering on a fence?
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Read more of Angelique’s coverage on the big game at The Detroit News, or follow her on Twitter at @Chengelis.