Sherrone Moore Extols Performance Of ‘Violent’ Michigan Defense On ‘Big Jim’s House’
The Michigan defense is coming off a strong week, and Moore hopes they will keep rolling against a potent USC offense.
Quarterback Bryce Underwood and possible Heisman contender Justice Haynes grab a lot of headlines for the Michigan Wolverines. But in their latest win, the defense stole the show.
Powered by a formidable front-seven, physical play at all levels, and sophisticated scheming by defensive coordinator Don "Wink" Martindale, the Michigan defense overwhelmed the Badgers en route to a 24-10 win, their second in Big Ten play. After Wisconsin grinded out an early touchdown drive, the Wolverines allowed just three points and 177 total yards of offense the rest of the game. They held Wisconsin to just 75 rushing yards, after it looked like the Badgers had found a groove with an average of 159 over their previous two games.
How did they do it? As head coach Sherrone Moore explained in his newest interview with Jim O'Brien on 94.7 WCSX, it boils down to one word: violence.
"They are a bunch of violent human beings. Nothing that I love better, nothing that I love better," Moore said. "I want to see the offense continue to feed off of that, and I think they're getting there, and they've got definitely gotten better. But, they're just so deep (on defense), they're so physical, they're so strong, and like, we roll so many guys, and our coaches have done such an outstanding job of preparing them. You start with coach (Don) Martindale and how he orchestrates that, and they come from so many different angles. Maybe it's one guy blitzing, then maybe it's two, and then it's nobody, but then they're moving, and then it's this -- it's just hard to keep track of.
"But at the end of the day, they all just play physical, and it's from the first level all the way to the third level. The DBs hit hard, the linebackers hit hard, and the D-line hits hard. So, for me, it's a pleasure. It's awesome to watch the energy that they have and the physicality that they have, and they'll continue to play that way."
The defense has its tallest task of the season on deck, as the high-powered USC Trojans host them in prime time Saturday night. USC is second in the nation with a whopping 565 yards of offense per game and third with a ridiculous 48.4 points per game. Trojans quarterback Jayden Maiava is fifth in the country with a 191.1 passer rating.
At the same time, Michigan is the biggest test that USC will face so far. Last week's game against Illinois was USC's first against a ranked opponent, and No. 15 Michigan is the highest-ranked team on their schedule to date. So, Moore is hoping that the defense and its many violent human beings will make a statement to the Trojans and to the conference in Saturday's big-time showdown.
Listen to the full Coffee With The Coach interview every Thursday at 8:05 a.m. EST on 94.7 WCSX.
