Mike Hart Leads Michigan to Ninth Straight Win Over Penn State

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Michigan may not have opened the regular season in the way that everyone wanted, but the start to the Big Ten portion of the schedule was something completely different. In a game that really could set the tone for the rest of 2007, Michigan stepped it up in a big way on both sides of the ball. Mike Hart's 44 carries for 153 yards and 1 crucial touchdown got Michigan enough points to be in a position to win. Then on defense, the entire unit as a whole made plays all day long to hold off the Nittany Lions. At the end of the game, as a result of this solid play, the Wolverines walked away with a 14-9 win, making it 9 straight and continuing the ownage of Penn State. Here's how it happened.

Following a defensive stand to open the game by Michigan, Penn State had to punt and put U-M in great field position. Although the Wolverines couldn't capitalize and went three and out themselves, the next play would make up for that. Anthony Morelli dropped back to pass inside his own 20-yard line and had the ball knocked loose by Brandon Graham, who has been an absolute animal in the last two games. Chris Graham scooped it up and put Michigan back on offense on the PSU 10.

With absolutely great field position, it was Ryan Mallett who made a surprising play to put the Maize and Blue on top. Mallett dropped back to pass but couldn't find anybody open, so he faked a pass and then took off. With ease, the freshman quarterback walked into the endzone for a 10-yard run and the score. Never in recent years has a Michigan QB made a run like that down by the goal line, so it was truly a refreshing sight to see, especially since it put U-M ahead 7-0.

From this point on, the defense took over the game. Michigan's offense really struggled to get anything going, but the defense did it's job. Since Anthony Morelli isn't Dennis Dixon or Armanti Edwards, the defenders didn't have to worry about him taking off, which really does appear to be the difference between the "D" being horrible one day and great the next. Regardless, Penn State's struggles rivaled Michigan's on offense, and it wasn't until five minutes or so into the second quarter when PSU got its first point of the day. Luckily it was only a field goal, so the Wolverines' lead held up. That was important as we found out throughout the rest of the game considering U-M just couldn't score. On a field goal attempt on the proceeding drive, Jason Gingell clanked it off the upright, keeping the lead at only 7-3, which is what it was at the half as Ryan Mallett was intercepted when U-M was driving late in the second quarter.

The third quarter got started with punts going back and forth between Michigan and Penn State, and things really didn't get interesting until midway through the third when the Nittany Lions drove deep into U-M territory. Getting all the way down to the Michigan 11, it appeared that the Wolverines' lead was about to become non-existent. That was, of course, until Tim Jamison forced a fumble and Brandon Graham grabbed the ball. Austin Scott had the ball jarred loose and gave it over to Michigan, stopping a very promising drive.

The defense would be tested yet again as Ryan Mallett fumbled the snap once the Wolverines got out to their own 33-yard line. That gave Penn State another short field, putting the defense in a tough spot. PSU actually got all the way down to the Michigan 2-yard line this time (a holding penalty put it back to the 12 where they were stopped on third down), but there was no way the Maize and Blue were giving up a TD. Because of the defensive stand, PSU only got a field goal out of the turnover, cutting the deficit to 1.

Obviously needing another score to give the defense a cushion, Mike Hart just took over the game. Ryan Mallett made a few important plays as well, but the next drive was all about Hart. He received handoff after handoff after handoff and just kept gaining yards. Despite everyone knowing who was getting the ball, Hart powered his way through the Penn State defense and eventually ended up in the endzone. It wasn't by much as it wasn't too obvious that Hart scored (the ball barely broke the plane), but it was a TD nonetheless. That put Michigan on top 14-6, and from then on there was no looking back.

Penn State did manage to add a field goal on its next drive, but that was much better than what things originally looked like. After a 38-yard run by the Nittany Lions, it appeared that things would soon be tied. Instead, the defense regrouped and held PSU to keep the lead in Michigan's favor.

Getting the ball back with just over 6 minutes left in the game, Michigan's main goal now was to just eat up the clock. It first looked as though very little time would be used up, but that changed after a huge play was made by Ryan Mallett on third down. With 11 yards to go, Mallett nearly was sacked before avoiding defenders and completing a pass to Greg Mathews. It was just a long enough pass to move the chains. That allowed Michigan to continue to run the clock thanks to Mike Hart, but Penn State did eventually get one last chance to win the game with 1:28 to go. The drive started at PSU's own 13-yard line, so there was a lot of field in front of the Nittany Lions.

Now, normally in a situation like this, especially with Michigan, we see the defense go into prevent mode. That never is effective but is used only to keep a team from going down the field with a big play. Instead, it is a combination of quick and easy passes that moves the ball down the field. Well, seeing as how that never works, Michigan actually decided to do something different. They turned it up a notch and played even more aggressive than usual. After getting pressure on Morelli on first and second down, there was no other option except throwing it away. Then on third and fourth down, Jamar Adams broke up both passes (with help from Morgan Trent on the fourth down play) to end all hopes for Penn State fans.

Getting the ball back, all Michigan had to do was take a knee. The clock ran out and the celebration began (starting with the worm by Mario Manningham) in Ann Arbor. This win puts Michigan on top of the Big Ten and starts what is a long road ahead of them in the conference. Even though there are a lot of games left in the season, getting a win over Penn State, who was ranked 10th at the time, is a huge step in the right direction. Although the offense didn't play absolutely great, they did just enough to win. For the defense, it was simply an all around great effort.

Michigan now heads to Northwestern to play a bad Wildcats team. It should be a win, but after what happened against Appalachian State, who actually lost to Wofford this past weekend, anything is possible. Kickoff is set for noon on the Big Ten Network.