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Michigan 28, San Diego State 7
ANN
ARBOR, Mich. -- Junior quarterback Denard Robinson (Deerfield Beach,
Fla./Deerfield Beach) and the University of Michigan football team (No.
22 AP/No. 21 USA Today Coaches) rushed out to a fast start against San
Diego State in a 28-7 victory Saturday (Sept. 24) at Michigan Stadium.
Robinson
did most of his damage with his legs, racking up 200 rushing yards on
21 carries and tying his career high with three rushing touchdowns,
with the trio of scores coming in the first half. It was the third time
in his career that Robinson has recorded 200 rushing yards or more and
the seventh time he has produced multiple rushing touchdowns in a game.
Robinson added 93 passing yards, completing 8-of-17 passes.
The
win gives the Wolverines (4-0) a sweep of the non-conference portion of
their schedule for the third straight season and extends their
September winning streak to 13 games.
Junior running back
Vincent Smith (Pahokee, Fla./Pahokee) posted nine carries for 47 yards
and a seven-yard touchdown run and was Robinson's favorite receiving
target with a team-best three catches for 44 yards. Junior/sophomore
tailback Fitzgerald Toussaint (Youngstown, Ohio/Liberty) contributed to
Michigan's team total of 320 rushing yards with 13 rushes for 67 yards.
The
Michigan defense was relentless throughout the afternoon, shutting out
SDSU in the first half and preserving the Wolverines' lead despite
being in dangerous, short-field situations in the second half. Junior
defensive end Craig Roh (Scottsdale, Ariz./Chaparral) made his two
tackles count as they both went for a loss, including his third career
sack and third career forced fumble. Senior/junior linebacker Kenny
Demens (Oak Park, Mich./Detroit Country Day) had a team-high seven
tackles and forced a fumble in the first quarter. Junior/sophomore
safety Thomas Gordon (Detroit, Mich./Cass Technical) also contributed a
team-high seven tackles and recovered a fumble -- his second fumble
recovery and third takeaway in the last two games. Sophomore/freshman
linebacker Jake Ryan (Westlake, Ohio/St. Ignatius) registered five
tackles, including one for a loss, and had the first two fumble
recoveries of his career.
After Roh and the Michigan defense
stuffed San Diego State to force a three-and-out to start the game,
Robinson and Smith accounted for 59 of Michigan's 61 yards -- all
rushing -- on the ensuing possession. Each had a big play to extend the
drive, with Robinson scrambling 19 yards on third down and Smith
breaking multiple tackles for a 32-yard gain. Robinson scored on a
designed quarterback run from five yards out following Smith's long run
for the first score of the contest and a 7-0 Michigan lead.
The
Wolverine defense set up Michigan's second touchdown when Demens forced
the SDSU running back to fumble the football, which was recovered by
Gordon. Robinson rewarded the defense's effort with his second
touchdown run three plays later. Robinson sprinted down the right hash
marks a season-long 53 yards untouched on an option play to extend
U-M's lead to 14-0 with 6:22 left in the opening frame.
Both
offenses stalled on their next few drives with holding penalties
negating significant gains that would have entered opposing territory.
The Maize and Blue regained its offensive rhythm late in the second
quarter with a 12-play, 81-yard drive that resulted in Robinson's third
rushing touchdown. Robinson converted a fourth-and-two from U-M's
48-yard line and later scampered 34 yards down to the SDSU 11-yard
line. He finished the drive on a naked bootleg to the left, where he
sidestepped two Aztec defenders for a one-yard rushing touchdown to
give Michigan a 21-0 lead heading into the halftime break.
The
second half began with sloppy play from both offenses, resulting in
three turnovers in the first six minutes. The most pivotal turnover was
committed by San Diego State when the Aztec running back broke off a
large gain on a toss sweep, but fifth-year senior defensive tackle Ryan
Van Bergen (Whitehall, Mich./Whitehall) forced a fumble on his 100th
career tackle, and Ryan jumped on it inside the Michigan five-yard line
to prevent a SDSU scoring chance. However, the Aztecs took advantage of
Michigan's third turnover of the third quarter with a 16-yard touchdown
pass with four seconds remaining in the third stanza to cut the
Wolverine lead to 21-7.
The Aztecs had an opportunity to cut
their deficit to one score, but the SDSU quarterback was unable to
connect with his tight end on fourth-and-two from the U-M 43-yard line.
Michigan responded four plays later with a seven-yard rushing touchdown
by Smith, who seemed to have been stuffed a few yards beyond the line
of scrimmage before plowing through a few defenders and reaching over
the goal line for a 28-7 advantage with 6:29 left in the game.
San
Diego State transitioned into a fast-paced, no-huddle offense and
marched inside the U-M red zone late in the final frame, threatening to
score. However, Roh sacked the quarterback and knocked the ball loose
just before the SDSU signal caller was about to attempt his pass,
allowing Ryan to post his second fumble recovery of the game and seal
the win for Michigan.
Next week the Maize and Blue opens its Big
Ten Conference schedule at home against Minnesota with the renewal of
the battle for the Little Brown Jug. Kickoff is set for noon Saturday
(Oct. 1) on the Big Ten Network.
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