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Michigan football notebook: Block Derrick Moore with TEs at your own risk; who was the third-and-11 throw intended for?

clayton-sayfieby: Clayton Sayfie16 hours agoCSayf23
Derrick Moore
Michigan Wolverines football EDGE Derrick Moore had 2 sacks against Washington. (Photo by Lon Horwedel / TheWolverine.com)

Michigan Wolverines football senior EDGE Derrick Moore has been extremely disruptive lately, posting 12 tackles, 5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks over the last four games, wins against Nebraska, Wisconsin and Washington and a loss to Southern California.

Sometimes, they can’t help it because he’ll get there anyway, but opposing offenses typically want to scheme around stopping Michigan’s top playmakers, including Moore. However, Washington slipped up in the 24-7 loss to the Wolverines over the weekend, blocking the 6-foot-3, 260-pound Moore with 6-foot-4, 245-pound tight end Decker DeGraaf.

Let’s just say, DeGraaf didn’t provide much resistance on a fourth-down play in the fourth quarter, with Moore getting to quarterback Demond Williams Jr. for a strip sack. The fumble was recovered by Washington, but it didn’t matter because it was a turnover (on downs, at least) either way.

“Sometimes I don’t even really notice it,” the Michigan EDGE said of when opponents put a tight end on him. “I just already have my rush plan thought of, and I just go with it.

“Going back and thinking about that play, I was really just thinking about getting off the ball. When I got off the ball, I saw the tight end went around him. The quarterback was right there. That’s it, really.”

Moore is now tied sixth in the Big Ten with 4.5 sacks and tied 11th in the conference with 20 pressures, with his big performance against Washington putting him in the upper echelon in the league.

“Really just stressing my preparation for the week,” Moore said of what led to that. “I pretty much knew how they were going to attack us and also attack me. I want to give a big shoutout to the scout O-linemen for helping prepare me for last week, as well. I feel like they played a big part of it, as well. But it was really just my preparation for that week that helped me go out there and perform well.”

NFL Draft analyst Todd McShay wrote about Moore as a standout from week eight in college football.

“Moore and the Wolverines’ defense held Washington’s Demond Williams Jr. to –19 yards rushing,” McShay wrote. “Moore also flashed his pass-rushing skills with a pair of sacks, including a strip-sack that generated a turnover. After a slow start to the season, he now has five tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks over his last four games.”

Who was Bryce Underwood throwing to on third-and-11?

One of the plays of the game came on third-and-11 from Michigan’s own 47-yard line early in the fourth quarter. Underwood dropped back, faced pressure in the middle of the pocket due to a lapse in pass protection by graduate left guard Giovanni El-Hadi and fired a perfect pass into a tight window to junior tight end Deakon Tonielli, picking up the first down and then some on a 28-yard gain.

Except, Tonielli had a vague answer in his postgame radio interview, saying that the play wasn’t supposed to go to him.

“So, it’s actually funny, that ball wasn’t supposed to go to me,” Tonielli said. “It was actually supposed to go to the dig. By the way the play just worked out, it ended up getting in my hands, and I did what I could with it.”

Freshman wide receiver Andrew Marsh was running the dig, but what Tonielli meant is that Marsh was the No. 1 option on the play even though it didn’t go to him, based on what head coach Sherrone Moore said in response to our question Monday. Underwood was able to go down the progression list to Tonielli, making the throw even more impressive.

“Yeah, it was to Deakon,” Moore said. “It’s crazy, him and Deakon all summer … he worked a lot with a lot of guys. But I remember early mornings in the summertime, Deakon was here, and maybe it was even May when he was here. Deakon would be in there with the receivers, throwing and catching. So he’s put a lot of hard work in to get where he is.”

Tonielli didn’t have a single catch as a Michigan player but notched 3 against Washington.

“That game was no accident of his potential, what he can do. So that was awesome to see,” Moore added.

Underwood’s ability to throw with pressure in his face, like on that throw, or on the move, like on others, is something that stands out to the Michigan coach.

“Bryce just does some things that you can’t teach, you can’t coach,” Moore noted. “That throw was one of them. The throw to Andrew Marsh, which he caught one-handed, was one of them. Throwing to his left, the defender’s to his right, he throws it away from the defender, and he catches it with one hand.

“I mean, that’s a special play by some freshmen. He does some things you can’t coach. You never want the pressure, but he does a really good job of avoiding it.”