Alabama Football: Breaking Down the Michigan Wolverine Offense

The Alabama Crimson Tide are just three days away from their showdown with the Michigan Wolverines in Dallas at Cowboys Stadium. It’s been a long seven months since Alabama last took the field in New Orleans, where they dominated LSU 21-0 to capture the BCS National Championship.

As for the Wolverines, they were last seen on the field in New Orleans as well, in a Sugar Bowl victory over Virginia Tech. Michigan went through a revitalization last season under first year head coach Brady Hoke, who led the Wolverines to 11 wins and a BCS bowl victory.

The focus all through the offseason for Crimson Tide fans has been Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson. The Wolverines offense goes as their quarterback does. Robinson is the lifeblood of the team, and has rewritten the Michigan record books in his two seasons as the starter in Ann Arbor.

Michigan’s offense finished last season ranked 26th in the nation in scoring at 33.3 points per game and 42nd in total offense racking up 404.7 yards per game. It was Michigan’s rushing offense, ranking 13th in the nation, that paced the offense. The Wolverines ranked just 93rd in the nation in passing offense.

Their numbers through the air and on the ground perfectly sums up the offense. The Wolverines are as dangerous as anybody on the ground, but they aren’t going to inject fear into opposing secondaries.

Denard Robinson is a run-first quarterback, and is as exciting a playmaker as college football has seen over the last few years. His passing ability, on the other hand, leaves a lot to be desired.

He ran for 1176 yards and 16 touchdowns in 2011. He completed just 55 percent of his passes for 2173 yards with 20 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. His 139.7 QB rating ranked 40th in the nation, yet he was named a semifinalist for the Davey O’Brien Award.

Robinson hasn’t faced many defenses the caliber of Alabama’s, but when he has, he has struggled. Last season Robinson faced three defenses ranked in the Top-10 nationally (Michigan State, Illinois, Virginia Tech), and his numbers were unspectacular.

In those three games, Robinson ran the ball 43 times for just 85 yards, which is under two yards per carry. Through the air, Robinson completed 24 of his 55 pass attempts, averaged 110 yards per game, and threw three touchdowns to three interceptions.

How will Robinson fare against an Alabama defense, albeit retooled, that ranked No. 1 in the nation in every major statistical category a year ago? He’s going to have to try to win the game with his arm because the Crimson Tide will not let him run the football. He won’t be able to get the corners against the Alabama defense, and when he scrambles he will be hit and he will be hit hard.

The Cam Newton comparisons have been floated around, as ridiculous as they may be. But we can look at Cam Newton’s performance against Alabama in 2010 to see what Robinson will have to do to beat the Tide. Newton had to do it with his arm, as he was held to 39 rushing yards on 22 carries. Problem is, Newton was ten times the passer Robinson is.

It also doesn’t help the Wolverines’ cause that they lost leading receiver Junior Hemingway. They do bring back Roy Roundtree and Jeremy Gallon however, who combined for 50 receptions for 808 yards and 5 touchdowns last season.

The X-factor for Michigan’s offense on Saturday will be whether or not starting running back Fitz Toussaint will be allowed to play by Head Coach Brady Hoke. Toussaint pled guilty to a lesser DUI on Tuesday, and his status for Saturday’s game is still largely up in the air.

Toussaint rushed for 1041 yards on 5.6 yards per carry and 9 touchdowns in 2011. If he doesn’t play, the Wolverines are left with 5-foot-6 172 pound junior Vincent Smith and an inexperienced sophomore in Thomas Rawls.

On the offensive line, depth is a huge question mark despite three returning starters. Replacing Rimington Award winner David Molk will be challenging, and that was evident in the Sugar Bowl with some botched snaps early in the game when Molk was on the sideline.

Michigan’s back-ups along the offensive line features four true freshmen, one redshirt freshman, and five walk-ons. Their offensive line will have their hands full against Alabama’s talented and ferocious front-seven. Nose tackle Jesse Williams will be a handful for the interior of the line, and edge rushers Damion Square and Ed Stinson will put pressure on the tackles.

Alabama is going to take away Denard Robinson’s legs and force him to try to win the game with his arm. I’d be shocked to see Robinson win the game with his passing, and I think the Wolverines offense will struggle against the physical defense of the Crimson Tide.

On Thursday I will take a look at Michigan’s defense, and what Alabama will look to exploit to have success.

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