No. 3 Michigan skates by Indiana
The Sports Xchange
Nov 19, 2016
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- De'Veon Smith ran for a career-high 158 yards and two touchdowns on 23 carries to lead No. 3 Michigan past Indiana 20-10 in its home-finale on Saturday at Michigan Stadium that ended in a blizzard.
With normal starting quarterback Wilton Speight missing the game because of a shoulder injury suffered in last week's loss at Iowa, the Wolverines turned to Smith and their dominant defense to fend off an upset bid by Indiana, which led 7-3 at halftime and 10-6 in the third quarter before Michigan took control.
The win officially set up next week's showdown at No. 2 Ohio State, which will likely serve as an elimination game in the College Football Playoff race.
After Michigan took a 3-0 lead with 8:48 remaining in the first half on a 28-yard field goal by Kenny Allen, Indiana drove the field on its next possession and took a 7-3 lead on a 2-yard touchdown run by Camion Patrick with 4:19 left until halftime.
The touchdown run capped off an 11-play, 75-yard drive for the Hoosiers.
The teams traded field goals to start the third quarter before Michigan took a 13-10 lead with 4:02 remaining in the third on a 34-yard touchdown run by Smith.
Smith's run came one play after quarterback John O'Korn, who filled in for Speight, scrambled for a 30-yard gain to the Indiana 34-yard line on third-and-9.
Smith then struck again in the final minute of the third quarter, scoring on a 39-yard touchdown run with 29 seconds left in the third quarter to give the Wolverines a 20-10 lead.
Indiana (5-6, 3-5) will need to beat rival Purdue next week in order to officially qualify for a bowl game.
NOTES: The win was the 21st consecutive for the Wolverines over Indiana. Michigan's last loss to Indiana overall came in 1987 in Bloomington. The Hoosiers' last win over Michigan in Ann Arbor was in 1967. ... Indiana played its fourth top-10 opponent of the season, which is the first time the Hoosiers have done that in a season. Indiana lost to Ohio State, Nebraska and Penn State this season when all three were ranked in the top-10 at the time the Hoosiers played them. ... Michigan completed its first unbeaten season at home since 2012. ... With his performance, Smith surpassed 2,000 rushing yards for his career at Michigan. ...Going into next Saturday's game at Ohio State, Michigan will look to snap a seven-game losing streak to the Buckeyes in Columbus. The last time Michigan won at Ohio State was in 2000, when the Wolverines prevailed, 38-26. Michigan has also lost 11 of its last 12 meetings overall against Ohio State. ... Indiana will head into its rivalry game against Purdue next week looking for its fourth straight win over the Boilermakers. The last time Indiana beat Purdue four times in a row was from 1944-47.
Nov 19, 2016
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- De'Veon Smith ran for a career-high 158 yards and two touchdowns on 23 carries to lead No. 3 Michigan past Indiana 20-10 in its home-finale on Saturday at Michigan Stadium that ended in a blizzard.
With normal starting quarterback Wilton Speight missing the game because of a shoulder injury suffered in last week's loss at Iowa, the Wolverines turned to Smith and their dominant defense to fend off an upset bid by Indiana, which led 7-3 at halftime and 10-6 in the third quarter before Michigan took control.
The win officially set up next week's showdown at No. 2 Ohio State, which will likely serve as an elimination game in the College Football Playoff race.
After Michigan took a 3-0 lead with 8:48 remaining in the first half on a 28-yard field goal by Kenny Allen, Indiana drove the field on its next possession and took a 7-3 lead on a 2-yard touchdown run by Camion Patrick with 4:19 left until halftime.
The touchdown run capped off an 11-play, 75-yard drive for the Hoosiers.
The teams traded field goals to start the third quarter before Michigan took a 13-10 lead with 4:02 remaining in the third on a 34-yard touchdown run by Smith.
Smith's run came one play after quarterback John O'Korn, who filled in for Speight, scrambled for a 30-yard gain to the Indiana 34-yard line on third-and-9.
Smith then struck again in the final minute of the third quarter, scoring on a 39-yard touchdown run with 29 seconds left in the third quarter to give the Wolverines a 20-10 lead.
Indiana (5-6, 3-5) will need to beat rival Purdue next week in order to officially qualify for a bowl game.
NOTES: The win was the 21st consecutive for the Wolverines over Indiana. Michigan's last loss to Indiana overall came in 1987 in Bloomington. The Hoosiers' last win over Michigan in Ann Arbor was in 1967. ... Indiana played its fourth top-10 opponent of the season, which is the first time the Hoosiers have done that in a season. Indiana lost to Ohio State, Nebraska and Penn State this season when all three were ranked in the top-10 at the time the Hoosiers played them. ... Michigan completed its first unbeaten season at home since 2012. ... With his performance, Smith surpassed 2,000 rushing yards for his career at Michigan. ...Going into next Saturday's game at Ohio State, Michigan will look to snap a seven-game losing streak to the Buckeyes in Columbus. The last time Michigan won at Ohio State was in 2000, when the Wolverines prevailed, 38-26. Michigan has also lost 11 of its last 12 meetings overall against Ohio State. ... Indiana will head into its rivalry game against Purdue next week looking for its fourth straight win over the Boilermakers. The last time Indiana beat Purdue four times in a row was from 1944-47.
