Indiana defensive coordinator Chad Wilt: 'You see Harbaugh's thumbprint' all over Michigan offense
Michigan Wolverines football‘s offense has picked up where it left off from last season. The Maize and Blue have put up gaudy numbers, ranking tied for sixth nationally in scoring offense (45.4 points per game), and while U-M has mixed it up, the identity is still to be a physical, running team.
Indiana defensive coordinator Chad Wilt broke down what jumps off the page about Michigan’s offense in a Monday press conference.
“What you always try to look at is, how do teams score their points,” Wilt explained. “A lot of times, that tells you a little bit their identity and who they are as a team. Nineteen rushing touchdowns, 8 receiving touchdowns. What does that tell you what their identity [is]? Now, some of that obviously is distorted, some of the games earlier in the season they got up on people and they ran the ball more. But you see a very effective and efficient running game.”
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Despite being a Heisman Trophy finalist and first-round pick at the quarterback position, Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh has long prided himself on having teams that run the ball well. The Maize and Blue slot 13th in the country with 221.8 rushing yards per game, and junior Blake Corum is leading the sport with 10 rushing touchdowns.
“Coach Harbaugh has been known for that for a long time, so you see that right away,” Wilt continued. “You see effective and efficient quarterback play and who [sophomore quarterback J.J.] McCarthy is and how they ask him to operate. And then you see effective and efficient tight end play, effective and efficient wide receiver play. They don’t create negatives for themselves, they don’t put themselves in bad spots offensively.
“You just see the effectiveness and efficiency through the whole offensive system, and they don’t put themselves in bad spots. They can just stay on track, stay on course, take their shots when they want to take them.”
Through five games with four starts, McCarthy has shown the ability to take what the defense gives him but also connect on some shots down the field when they’re there. He’s completed 66 of his 84 passes for 848 yards and 6 touchdowns with no interceptions. His 78.6 completion percentage leads the nation, and his 10.1 yards per attempt average ranks tied for fifth.
“They’ll ask the quarterback to do a lot, it’s not just game management,” Wilt said. “Old Trent Dilfer with the Ravens, don’t screw up the game — that’s not the situation with them at all. But they know what they’re asking him to do, and asking him to do things that he does well.”
Wilt, Indiana’s first-year defensive coordinator, faced Harbaugh-coached Michigan teams as the defensive line coach at Minnesota in 2021 and at Maryland in 2015. The Wolverines’ offensive coordinator(s) have changed each time he’s faced them, but the overall look of the unit has remained similar.
“How do you become effective and efficient? You keep doing the same things over and over,” Wilt said. “You certainly see the continuity and consistency of Jim Harbaugh, regardless of who the coordinator is, who’s calling the plays, who’s not calling the plays. You see the continuity and consistency.
“Go back and watch Stanford when Harbaugh was there. They had a big O-line and big tight ends, and they use their tight ends. And what do you see from these guys? Big O-line and effective, and good tight ends, and effective in the run game. It just sets everything else up for them for who they want to be. You see Harbaugh’s thumbprint on that thing wherever he’s gone and how he wants to manage the game offensively.”
