Maybe Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan turnaround could happen quicker than originally thought.
The Wolverines were dominant on both sides of the ball Saturday, scoring a blowout 31-0 win over No. 22 BYU in Ann Arbor.
The Michigan defense was outstanding. Already stellar through the first three weeks of the season, entering Week 4 ranking as one of the top defenses in the country, the unit was sensational Saturday, limiting BYU — which scored 91 points and averaged 432 yards of offense in its first three games — to zero points and just 105 total yards.
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The Michigan defense at one point forced six consecutive three and outs.
Jake Rudock had his best game since arriving at Michigan, completing 14 of his 25 passing attempts for 194 yards and a touchdown and rushing for an additional two touchdowns. Rudock had the Michigan offense humming, too, with the team scoring touchdowns on four straight drives and getting points on five straight in the first half.
[MORE BIG TEN: New U.S. citizen Amara Darboh makes unreal one-handed catch for Michigan]
De’Veon Smith had his second triple-digit rushing day of the season, going for 125 yards on 16 carries, including a 60-yard touchdown run in which he shed a BYU tackler almost the entire way down the field.
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And receiver Amara Darboh had a big day, hauling in four passes for 57 yards and a touchdown. In addition to that touchdown grab, Darboh made a jaw-dropping one-handed catch on the sideline in the first half, an early candidate for catch of the year.
It was a mighty impressive win for a Michigan team that lost its only prior test of the season, a 24-17 defeat at Utah, ahead of two easy wins over Oregon State and UNLV. This game against a BYU team that’s been extremely impressive through the season’s first three weeks provided a big opportunity, and the Wolverines seized it.
In fact, it makes Harbaugh’s team look a little more dangerous in the Big Ten East, what with Ohio State and Michigan State going through their respective dips in recent weeks. Expect the Wolverines to find themselves in the top-25 rankings Sunday.