Position grades for Michigan Football’s dominant win at Maryland

The Michigan Wolverines rolled past the Maryland Terrapins, 45-20, on Saturday, improving to 9-2 and remaining in the mix for the College Football Playoff. Here are our grades for each position group.

Bryce Underwood played one of the cleanest games of his freshman campaign, throwing for 215 yards and two touchdowns while completing 16-of-23 attempts. He led three straight scoring drives in the first half to help build a double-digit lead and eventually cruise to a blowout win.

With Justice Haynes and Jordan Marshall out with injuries, Bryson Kuzdzal made his first career start and was phenomenal to say the least. The former walk-on shattered his career-high, racking up 100 yards and three touchdowns on 20 carries. Jasper Parker also scored the second touchdown of his career, as Michigan ran for 228 yards and four touchdowns.

Coming off a record-setting game at Northwestern, Andrew Marsh showed why he’s one of the best freshman wide receivers in the nation once again. He finished with a team-high 76 yards and one touchdown on five receptions. Donaven McCulley scored a touchdown as well, as the passing attack has continued to show improvement in recent weeks.

The tight end group had one of its most productive performances of the season, combining for eight receptions and 74 yards. Marlin Klein and Zack Marshall were both heavily involved in the pass game, while Max Bredeson made just his second catch of the season for a critical first down. Marshall also made a key block to help spring McCulley’s 22-yard touchdown.

The offensive line was inconsistent for a third straight game — contributing to a dominant rushing performance that included an impressive 4.6 yards per carry, but also allowing two sacks and committing multiple penalties. Greg Crippen and Blake Frazier were flagged for false starts, and Frazier missed a block that allowed a tackle for a loss. All in all, it was a solid showing.

The defensive line continues to play at an extremely high level, giving up just 71 rushing yards at 2.8 yards per carry. Michigan came into the game with the third-best run defense in the Big Ten, and it was on full display as Maryland couldn’t find any success. Derrick Moore and Tre Williams both recorded a sack, while Jaishawn Barham totaled four tackles, two tackles for loss and one sack in the first game against his former program after spending two seasons at Maryland.

With Ernest Hausmann out, the linebacker unit wasn’t nearly as good as it has been for most of the season. Cole Sullivan seemed a step slow in his return from injury, missing a tackle and getting beat in coverage in the first half. Jimmy Rolder also didn’t make a huge difference in this game, finishing with two tackles in the win.

There were plenty of positive plays from the secondary – Mason Curtis grabbed his second career interception and finished with a team-high six tackles, Zeke Berry had a diving pass deflection, and Brandyn Hillman recorded four tackles and one tackle for loss. However, it wasn’t all good, as Jyaire Hill gave up several big plays in an uncharacteristically poor performance from him.

Following a game-winning field goal last week, Dominic Zvada was hoping to keep that momentum going. However, he just can’t seem to get fully on track, missing a 38-yard field goal in the first half before connecting on a 46-yarder. The special teams did get a boost from Marsh being the full-time returner, however, as he averaged 11.5 yards per punt return and recording a 39-yard kick off return.