Tomorrow can’t come soon enough for Michigan defensive tackle Will Johnson.
The senior didn’t have a chance to watch the national reaction to Appalachian State’s upset victory last weekend – but it wasn’t because he refused to turn on the TV.
Cable wasn’t installed in his apartment until Tuesday.
If Johnson had watched TV, he would’ve seen replays and analysis of last Saturday’s 34-32 loss, Michigan’s fall from the Associated Press Top 25 poll and calls for Michigan coach Lloyd Carr’s head.
He fielded questions on some of those topics Monday, but the quiet guy from Oakland would rather talk about the next opponent: Oregon.
“Sure, we had a loss,” Johnson said. “But we have to go forward, we have to get ready for Oregon, and that’s what we’re concentrating on.”
Michigan may be the team with a clear motive heading into Saturday’s game, but the Ducks come into Ann Arbor looking to prove a point of their own. Last season, Oregon lost its final four games, including a 38-3 Las Vegas Bowl thrashing at the hands of Brigham Young.
In this year’s season opener, the Ducks took care of Houston, 48-27.
Oregon and the Wolverines last met in 2003 in Eugene, Ore., with the Ducks pulling out a 31-27 win.
The good news for the Wolverines is Oregon runs the spread offense, just like Appalachian State.
The bad news is Michigan struggled to stop the Mountaineers and their five-wide offensive sets.
“Because of the formations you get (with the spread offense), you’re spread out,” Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said. “And if you don’t spread out, if you don’t line up over those receivers, then you create serious mismatches on the perimeter.”
Similar to Appalachian State, Oregon’s offense starts with the legs of quarterback – Dennis Dixon. The senior has 625 career yards on the ground and complements his speed by completing around 60 percent of his passes.
Against Houston, Dixon ran for 141 yards – highlighted by an 80-yard touchdown scramble – and threw for 134 yards and two touchdowns.
“He’s a great athlete and he’s a guy that it starts, I think, with his mobility,” Carr said. “He has, I think, excellent vision. He has a knack for finding the open receiver. But when you look at what he did on Saturday against Houston in terms of the yards that he produced either throwing or running, he can do them both.”
Even though Michigan’s defense struggled in the first half against Appalachian State, the unit appeared to settle down in the second frame, limiting the Mountaineers to two field goals.
And linebacker Chris Graham knows the defense needs a good showing for the Wolverines to reach a few of their remaining season goals.
“You just pick yourself up, because it is the first game,” Graham said. “We have plenty of games to go, so how are you going to adjust from there? You get your team together and get guys motivated, get guys to be more leaders out there, get guys to really buy in and work together.”