2020 Michigan Wolverines football team

2020 Michigan Wolverines football
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Division	East Division
Record	2–4 (2–4 Big Ten)
Head coach	Jim Harbaugh (6th season)
Offensive coordinator	Josh Gattis (2nd season)
Defensive coordinator	Don Brown (5th season)
Home stadium	Michigan Stadium
Uniform
Seasons ←  2019 2021  →

2020 Big Ten Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
East Division
No. 2 Ohio State xy$^		5	–	0					7	–	1
No. 12 Indiana		6	–	1					6	–	2
Penn State		4	–	5					4	–	5
Maryland		2	–	3					2	–	3
Rutgers		3	–	6					3	–	6
Michigan		2	–	4					2	–	4
Michigan State		2	–	5					2	–	5
West Division
No. 10 Northwestern xy		6	–	1					7	–	2
No. 16 Iowa		6	–	2					6	–	2
Wisconsin		3	–	3					4	–	3
Minnesota		3	–	4					3	–	4
Nebraska		3	–	5					3	–	5
Purdue		2	–	4					2	–	4
Illinois		2	–	6					2	–	6
Championship: Ohio State 22, Northwestern 10
^ – College Football Playoff participant $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Note: Due to COVID-19, the Big Ten suspended the season on August 11, but later decided to begin play on October 24. In addition to the title game that was played on December 19, the conference seeded all remaining teams for "championship week" games. [1] Rankings from AP Poll.

The 2020 Michigan Wolverines football team was an American football team that represented the University of Michigan in the East Division of the Big Ten Conference during the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. In their sixth year under head coach Jim Harbaugh, the Wolverines played only six games (all against conference opponents) in a season shortened by the COVID-19 pandemic, compiling a 2–4 record.

The Big Ten Conference initially canceled the fall sports season, on August 11, 2020, ^[2] but reversed course on September 16, announcing an eight-game conference-only schedule. ^[3] Michigan's previously scheduled nonconference games against Washington, Ball State, and Arkansas State were canceled due to the pandemic. ^[4] Precautions were taken to promote player, staff, and fan safety, including regular COVID-19 testing, isolation requirements, and mask wearing; games were largely played with no fans in attendance.

Michigan began the year ranked 16th in the preseason AP Poll. In the season's opening game against then-No. 21 Minnesota, Michigan won on the road, 49–24. After rising to 13th in the polls, Michigan was upset by unranked in-state rival Michigan State. After losing two more games against ranked opponents Indiana and Wisconsin, Michigan won a triple-overtime game against Rutgers, and lost to Penn State the following week. Michigan's final three conference games, against Maryland, Ohio State, and Iowa, were canceled due to COVID-19 outbreaks. ^{[5] [6] [7]} While the NCAA's win requirements for bowl eligibility were lifted for the season, Michigan was not selected to a bowl game for the first time since 2014. ^[8]

Quarterback Joe Milton began the season as the team's starting quarterback, but by the end of the season he had been replaced by backup Cade McNamara. The team's leading rusher was Hassan Haskins, with 375 yards, and the team's leading receiver was Ronnie Bell with 401 receiving yards. On defense, lineman Kwity Paye led the team in tackles-for-loss and was named second-team all-conference. Linebacker Josh Ross led the team in tackles. ^[9]

Preseason

Coaching changes

It was announced a day after the Citrus Bowl that safeties coach and special teams coordinator Chris Partridge accepted a co-defensive coordinator role at Ole Miss. ^[10]

Coronavirus

The COVID-19 pandemic led to the cancellation of all University of Michigan athletic activities during the spring of 2020, including the football team's annual spring game. ^[11] The pandemic also led to cancellation of the team's international trip for the first time since 2016. ^[12]

On July 9, the Big Ten Conference announced that it would adopt "a conference-only season" for all sports due to the coronavirus pandemic. The decision resulted in the cancellation of the first three games of Michigan's 2020 season against Washington, Ball State, and Arkansas State. ^[13]

On August 11, the Big Ten announced that all fall sports, including football, would be indefinitely postponed due to COVID-19. The conference allowed for the possibility of competition in these sports to begin in the spring. ^[2] However, the conference later announced the season would begin on October 23, with a schedule to be announced on September 19. ^[3]

Recruiting

Main article: 2020 college football recruiting class

Michigan signed a total of 21 recruits in its 2020 recruiting class, including eight that enrolled early. The class was ranked 10th in the nation by 247Sports and 11th in the nation by Rivals.com. ^[14]

US college sports recruiting information for 2020 recruits
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Andrew Gentry OT	Littleton, Colorado	Columbine High School	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	310 lb (140 kg)	Dec 8, 2021
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
A. J. Henning WR	Frankfort, Illinois	Lincoln-Way East High School	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	183 lb (83 kg)	Jun 26, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Braiden McGregor DE	Port Huron, Michigan	Port Huron Northern High School	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	248 lb (112 kg)	May 24, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Blake Corum RB	Laurel, Maryland	St Frances Academy	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	193 lb (88 kg)	Jun 27, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Kalel Mullings LB	Boston, Massachusetts	Milton Academy	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Jun 27, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Andre Seldon CB	Belleville, Michigan	Belleville High School	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	154 lb (70 kg)	Jun 20, 2018
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Jordan Morant S	Oradell, New Jersey	Bergen Catholic High School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Jun 23, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Darion Green-Warren CB	Harbor City, California	Narbonne High School	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	187 lb (85 kg)	Jan 4, 2020
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Makari Paige S	Bloomfield Township, Michigan	West Bloomfield High School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	182 lb (83 kg)	Jul 30, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
R. J. Moten S	Delran, New Jersey	Delran High School	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Jul 27, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Zak Zinter G	Cambridge, Massachusetts	Buckingham Browne & Nichols School	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	300 lb (140 kg)	May 16, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Jaylen Harrell WDE	Tampa, Florida	Berkeley Prep	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	235 lb (107 kg)	Dec 11, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Osman Savage LB	Baltimore, Maryland	St Frances Academy	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Jan 25, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Jeffrey Persi OT	San Juan Capistrano, California	J Serra Catholic	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	265 lb (120 kg)	Jun 25, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Roman Wilson WR	Honolulu, Hawaii	St Louis HS	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	Jul 2, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Nikhai Hill-Green LB	Baltimore, Maryland	St Frances Academy	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	230 lb (100 kg)	May 23, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Matthew Hibner TE	Burke, Virginia	Lake Braddock High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	230 lb (100 kg)	Jun 9, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Reece Atteberry C	Aurora, Colorado	Eaglecrest High School	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	280 lb (130 kg)	May 24, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
William Mohan ATH	Brooklyn, New York	Erasmus Hall High School	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Jun 23, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Cornell Wheeler LB	West Bloomfield, Michigan	West Bloomfield High School	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Sep 25, 2018
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Eamonn Dennis CB	Worcester, MA	St John's	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	173 lb (78 kg)	Jun 23, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Kris Jenkins DE	Olney, Maryland	Good Counsel High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	239 lb (108 kg)	Jul 3, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Dan Villari PRO	Massapequa, New York	Plainedge High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	Dec 19, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A    Rivals:     247Sports:     ESPN:
Overall recruiting rankings:   Rivals: 10th   247Sports: 14th   ESPN: 7th
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2020 Michigan football commitments". Rivals.com. "2020 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. "2020 Michigan football commitments". 247sports.com.

Schedule

Michigan was originally scheduled to play non-conference games against Washington, Ball State, and Arkansas State; and conference games against Ohio State, Maryland, and Iowa. However those games were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. ^{[4] [5] [6] [7]} The Big Ten Conference announced on July 9 that if the conference is to participate in a fall sports season, member schools will play a conference-only schedule. ^[15] The Big Ten announced a revised schedule on August 5, ^[16] which was scrapped when the conference announced postponement of the season on August 11. ^{[2] [3]} A new schedule was released on September 19. ^[17]

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
October 24	7:30 p.m.	at No. 21 Minnesota	No. 18	TCF Bank Stadium Minneapolis, MN (Little Brown Jug, College GameDay )	ABC	W 49–24	589	[18]
October 31	12:00 p.m.	Michigan State	No. 13	Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI (rivalry)	Fox	L 24–27	615	[19]
November 7	12:00 p.m.	at No. 13 Indiana	No. 23	Memorial Stadium Bloomington, IN	FS1	L 21–38	1,034	[20]
November 14	7:30 p.m.	No. 13 Wisconsin		Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI	ABC	L 11–49	605	[21]
November 21	7:30 p.m.	at Rutgers		SHI Stadium Piscataway, NJ	BTN	W 48–42 3OT	0	[22]
November 28	12:00 p.m.	Penn State		Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI (rivalry)	ABC	L 17–27	0	[23]
December 5	3:30 p.m.	Maryland		Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI	BTN	No contest		[5]
December 12	12:00 p.m.	at No. 4 Ohio State		Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH (rivalry)	Fox	No contest		[6]
December 19	7:00 p.m.	at No. 16 Iowa		Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA (Champions Week)	ESPN	No contest		[7]
Rankings from AP Poll and CFP Rankings (after November 24) released prior to game All times are in Eastern time

Rankings

Further information: 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend:██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	Final
AP	16	16*	—	—	23	20	19	18	13	23	RV	—	—	—	—	—	—
Coaches	15	15*	—	19	21	19	19	17	14	25	RV	—	—	—	—	—	—
CFP	Not released												—	—	—	—	Not released

Radio

Radio coverage for all games was broadcast statewide on the Michigan Sports Network and on Sirius XM Satellite Radio and online via TuneIn. The radio announcers are Jim Brandstatter with play-by-play, Dan Dierdorf with color commentary, and Doug Karsch with sideline reports. ^[24]

Game summaries

At Minnesota

See also: 2020 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team

Michigan at Minnesota
(Little Brown Jug)

1 2 3 4 Total •No. 18 Wolverines 21 14 7 7 49 No. 21 Golden Gophers 10 7 7 0 24 Date: October 24 Location: TCF Bank Stadium Minneapolis, MN Game start: 6:44 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 3:27 Game attendance: 589 Game weather: 30º F, cloudy, N 4 MPH Referee: Larry Smith TV announcers (ABC): Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit and Maria Taylor Sources: [18]

Scoring summary 1 12:44 MINN Ko Kieft 14-yard pass from Tanner Morgan (Brock Walker kick) MINN 7–0 1 12:33 MICH Zach Charbonnet 70-yard run (Jake Moody kick) Tied 7–7 1 7:08 MICH Donovan Jeter 15-yard fumble return (Jake Moody kick) MICH 14–7 1 0:37 MINN Brock Walker 29-yard field goal MICH 14–10 1 0:15 MICH Ben Mason 8-yard pass from Joe Milton (Jake Moody kick) MICH 21–10 2 9:38 MINN Mohamed Ibrahim 16-yard run (Brock Walker kick) MICH 21–17 2 4:48 MICH Hassan Haskins 4-yard run (Jake Moody kick) MICH 28–17 2 1:00 MICH Hassan Haskins 4-yard run (Jake Moody kick) MICH 35–17 3 9:36 MINN Mohamed Ibrahim 5-yard run (Brock Walker kick) MICH 35–24 3 5:20 MICH Joe Milton 2-yard run (Jake Moody kick) MICH 42–24 4 13:51 MICH Chris Evans 5-yard run (Jake Moody kick) MICH 49–24

On October 24, Michigan opened its season with a 49–24 victory over Minnesota in Minneapolis. Michigan retained the Little Brown Jug trophy in a rivalry that had not been contested since 2017.

Michigan defeated Minnesota 49–24. ^[25] On Michigan's opening drive, Preston Jelen blocked Will Hart's punt and recovered the ball at Michigan's 17-yard line. On its second play from scrimmage, Minnesota scored via a 14-yard touchdown pass from Tanner Morgan to Ko Kieft. Michigan tied the score via a 70-yard touchdown run from Zach Charbonnet. The Wolverines took the lead when Donovan Jeter recovered a Tanner Morgan fumble and returned it 15-yards for a touchdown. Brock Walker narrowed the lead to 14–10 with a 29-yard field goal. Michigan extended its lead to 21–10 on an eight-yard touchdown pass from Joe Milton to Ben Mason. In the second quarter, Minnesota scored on a 16-yard touchdown run from Mohamed Ibrahim. Michigan added 14 points on two four-yard touchdown runs from Hassan Haskins, which made the score 35–17 in favor of Michigan at half-time. The teams exchanged touchdowns in the third quarter via a five-yard touchdown run from Ibrahim for Minnesota and a two-yard touchdown run from Milton for Michigan. Michigan scored the only points of the fourth quarter via a five-yard touchdown run from Chris Evans. ^[26]

In his first start at quarterback, Joe Milton completed 15 of 22 passes for 225 yards and one touchdown and rushed for 52 yards on eight carries. Ronnie Bell led the Wolverines' receivers with four catches for 74 yards. Hassan Haskins led the backs with 82 rushing yards and two touchdowns on six carries. ^[26]

Michigan's 49 points against Minnesota are the second-most points scored in a true road game against a ranked opponent in program history, trailing only those scored in a 54–51 loss at Northwestern in 2000. It also ties for the fifth-most points in a season-opening game in program history. Michigan's 35 points in the first half were the program's most against a ranked opponent in the AP Poll era. ^[27] The game's officiating crew was entirely African American, the first in the Big Ten Conference. ^[28]

Michigan State

See also: 2020 Michigan State Spartans football team

Michigan State at No. 13 Michigan
(Paul Bunyan Trophy)

1 2 3 4 Total •Spartans 7 7 6 7 27 No. 13 Wolverines 7 3 7 7 24 Date: October 31 Location: Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI Game start: 12:05 EDT Elapsed time: 3:40 Game attendance: 615 Game weather: Mid 40s, sunny, S 10–15 MPH Referee: Tom Stapleton TV announcers (Fox): Gus Johnson, Joel Klatt, and Jenny Taft Sources: [19]

Scoring summary 1 10:57 MSU Ricky White 30-yard pass from Rocky Lombardi (Matt Coghlin kick) MSU 7–0 1 7:01 MICH Blake Corum 8-yard run (Quinn Nordin kick) Tied 7–7 2 9:40 MSU Connor Heyward 2-yard pass from Rocky Lombardi (Matt Coghlin kick) MSU 14–7 2 2:49 MICH Quinn Nordin 23-yard field goal MSU 14–10 3 12:26 MSU Matt Coghlin 27-yard field goal MSU 17–10 3 8:00 MICH Blake Corum 1-yard run (Quinn Nordin kick) Tied 17–17 3 4:23 MSU Matt Coghlin 51-yard field goal MSU 20–17 4 5:11 MSU Connor Heyward 13-yard pass from Rocky Lombardi (Matt Coghlin kick) MSU 27–17 4 13:51 MICH Hassan Haskins 2-yard run (Quinn Nordin kick) MSU 27–24

After facing Minnesota, Michigan hosted its in-state rival, the Michigan State Spartans in their home opener, facing Michigan State back-to-back at Ann Arbor for the first time since the 1967–68 seasons, in the battle for the Paul Bunyan Trophy. ^[29] Last season, Michigan defeated Michigan State 44–10. ^[30]

Michigan was upset by Michigan State 27–24. ^[31] The teams exchanged touchdowns in the first quarter, on a 30-yard touchdown pass from Rocky Lombardi to Ricky White for Michigan State, and an eight-yard touchdown run from Blake Corum for Michigan. Michigan State regained the lead in the second quarter on a two-yard touchdown pass from Lombardi to Connor Heyward. Michigan responded with a 23-yard field goal by Quinn Nordin, which made the score 14–10 in favor of Michigan State at half-time. Michigan State extended its lead in the third quarter on a 27-yard field goal by Matt Coghlin. Michigan responded with a one-yard touchdown run from Corum to tie the game. Michigan State regained the lead with a 51-yard field goal by Coghlin. The teams exchanged touchdowns in the fourth quarter on a 13-yard touchdown pass from Lombardi to Connor for Michigan State and a two-yard touchdown run from Hassan Haskins for Michigan. ^[32]

The official attendance of 615 was the smallest football crowd in Michigan Stadium history. Graduate student kicker Quinn Nordin was successful on his first field-goal attempt of the season for 23 yards in the second quarter. It was the 41st field goal of Nordin's career, which ranks fifth among Michigan's all-time leaders. ^[33]

At Indiana

See also: 2020 Indiana Hoosiers football team

Michigan at Indiana

1 2 3 4 Total No. 23 Wolverines 7 0 7 7 21 •No. 13 Hoosiers 14 10 7 7 38 Date: November 7 Location: Memorial Stadium Bloomington, IN Game start: 12:03 EST Elapsed time: 3:37 Game attendance: 1,034 Game weather: 69º F, sunny, S 5 MPH Referee: Mark Klucynski TV announcers (FS1): Joe Davis and Brock Huard Sources: [20]

Scoring summary 1 8:57 IND Miles Marshall 13-yard pass from Michael Penix Jr. (Charles Campbell kick) IND 7–0 1 4:48 MICH Cornelius Johnson 37-yard pass from Joe Milton (Quinn Nordin kick) Tied 7–7 1 1:41 IND Ty Fryfogle 24-yard pass from Michael Penix Jr. (Charles Campbell kick) IND 14–7 2 6:53 IND Charles Campbell 52-yard field goal IND 17–7 2 0:56 IND Peyton Hendershot 1-yard pass from Michael Penix Jr. (Charles Campbell kick) IND 24–7 3 9:01 MICH Roman Wilson 13-yard pass from Joe Milton (Quinn Nordin kick) IND 24–14 3 4:39 IND Stevie Scott 1-yard run (Charles Campbell kick) IND 31–14 3 13:43 MICH Ronnie Bell 21-yard pass from Joe Milton (Quinn Nordin kick) IND 31–21 4 8:40 MICH Stevie Scott 2-yard run (Charles Campbell kick) IND 38–21

Following its game against Michigan State, Michigan visited the Indiana Hoosiers. Last season, Michigan defeated Indiana 39–14. ^[34]

Michigan lost to Indiana 38–21. ^[35] Indiana opened the scoring in the first quarter via a 13-yard touchdown pass from Michael Penix Jr. to Miles Marshall. Michigan responded with a 37-yard touchdown pass from Joe Milton to Cornelius Johnson. Indiana re-gained the lead via a 24-yard touchdown pass from Penix to Ty Fryfogle. Indiana scored 10 points in the second quarter via a 52-yard field goal by Charles Campbell and a one-yard touchdown pass from Penix to Peyton Hendershot, which made the score 24–7 in favor of Indiana at half-time. The teams exchanged touchdowns in the third quarter via a 13-yard touchdown pass from Milton to Roman Wilson for Michigan and a one-yard touchdown run from Stevie Scott for Indiana. The teams exchanged touchdowns in the fourth quarter via a 21-yard touchdown pass from Milton to Ronnie Bell for Michigan and a two-yard touchdown run from Scott for Indiana. ^[36]

Michigan's loss to Indiana snapped a 24-game series win streak for the Wolverines against the Hoosiers, this was their first loss to Indiana since 1987. With three successful PATs at Indiana, kicker Quinn Nordin moved into 12th place in all-time scoring for Michigan with 237 points. ^[37]

Wisconsin

See also: 2020 Wisconsin Badgers football team

Wisconsin at Michigan

1 2 3 4 Total •No. 13 Badgers 14 14 7 14 49 Wolverines 0 0 11 0 11 Date: November 14 Location: Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI Game start: 7:44 EST Elapsed time: 3:20 Game attendance: 605 Game weather: High 30s, rain likely, SE 10–20 MPH Referee: Jerry McGinn TV announcers (ABC): Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, and Holly Rowe Sources: [21]

Scoring summary 1 9:28 WIS Nakia Watson 2-yard run (Collin Larsh kick) WIS 7–0 1 6:08 WIS Mason Stokke 1-yard pass from Graham Mertz (Collin Larsh kick) WIS 14–0 2 14:54 WIS Mason Stokke 1-yard run (Collin Larsh kick) WIS 21–0 2 10:07 WIS Nakia Watson 2-yard run (Collin Larsh kick) WIS 28–0 3 12:52 MICH Quinn Nordin 46-yard field goal WIS 28–3 3 4:45 WIS Jake Ferguson 13-yard pass from Graham Mertz (Collin Larsh kick) WIS 35–3 3 3:00 MICH Mike Sainristil 23-yard pass from Cade McNamara (Cade McNamara pass to Giles Jackson) WIS 35–11 4 9:36 WIS Danny Davis III 4-yard run (Collin Larsh kick) WIS 42–11 4 7:34 WIS Jalen Berger 23-yard run (Collin Larsh kick) WIS 49–11

After facing Indiana, Michigan hosted the Wisconsin Badgers. Last season, Michigan lost to Wisconsin 35–14. ^[38]

Michigan lost to Wisconsin 49–11, their worst loss in Ann Arbor in 85 years, when they dropped a 38-0 decision to Ohio State. ^[39] Wisconsin scored 14 points in the first quarter via a two-yard touchdown run from Nakia Watson and a one-yard touchdown pass from Graham Mertz to Mason Stokke. Wisconsin added 14 points in the second quarter via a one-yard touchdown run from Stokke and a 10-yard touchdown run from Watson, which made the score 28–0 in favor of Wisconsin at half-time. Michigan finally got on the board in the third quarter via a 46-yard field goal by Quinn Nordin. The teams exchanged touchdowns via a 13-yard touchdown pass from Mertz to Jake Ferguson for Wisconsin and a 23-yard touchdown pass from Cade McNamara to Mike Sainristil and a two-point conversion pass from Giles Jackson to McNamara for Michigan. Wisconsin added 14 points in the fourth quarter via a four-yard touchdown run from Danny Davis III and a 23-yard touchdown run from Jalen Berger. ^[40]

Quinn Nordin's 46-yard field goal in the third quarter was his 14th career field goal at 40-yards or longer, setting a Michigan program record. ^[41] With the loss to Wisconsin, Michigan had their first 1–3 start to a season since 1967. ^[42]

At Rutgers

See also: 2020 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team

Michigan at Rutgers

1 2 3 4 OT 2OT 3OT Total •Wolverines 0 7 14 14 0 7 6 48 Scarlet Knights 7 10 10 8 0 7 0 42 Date: November 21 Location: SHI Stadium Piscataway, NJ Game start: 7:40 EST Elapsed time: 4:24 Game attendance: 0 Game weather: 53º F, cloudy, N 8 MPH Referee: Jeff Servinski TV announcers (BTN): Mark Followill, James Laurinaitis, and Elise Menaker Sources: [22]

Scoring summary 1 4:33 RUT Johnny Langan 2-yard run (Valentino Ambrosio kick) RUT 7–0 2 8:45 RUT Johnny Langan 2-yard run (Valentino Ambrosio kick) RUT 14–0 2 4:23 RUT Valentino Ambrosio 38-yard field goal RUT 17–0 2 3:26 MICH Cornelius Johnson 46-yard pass from Cade McNamara (Quinn Nordin kick) RUT 17–7 3 14:49 MICH Giles Jackson 95-yard kickoff return (Quinn Nordin kick) RUT 17–14 3 13:48 RUT Bo Melton 61-yard pass from Noah Vedral (Valentino Ambrosio kick) RUT 24–14 3 10:07 MICH Nick Eubanks 9-yard pass from Cade McNamara (Quinn Nordin kick) RUT 24–21 3 6:00 RUT Valentino Ambrosio 42-yard field goal RUT 27–21 4 13:38 MICH Mike Sainristil 6-yard pass from Cade McNamara (Quinn Nordin kick) MICH 28–27 4 5:07 MICH Cornelius Johnson 9-yard pass from Cade McNamara (Quinn Nordin kick) MICH 35–27 4 0:27 RUT Aron Cruickshank 11-yard pass from Noah Vedral (Noah Verdal rush) Tied 35–35 OT2 0:00 RUT Jovani Haskins 25-yard pass from Noah Vedral (Valentino Ambrosio kick) RUT 42–35 OT2 0:00 MICH Cade McNamara 2-yard run (Quinn Nordin kick) Tied 42–42 OT3 0:00 MICH Hassan Haskins 1-yard run MICH 48–42

After facing Wisconsin, Michigan traveled to Piscataway, New Jersey to face the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. Last season, Michigan defeated Rutgers in a blowout 52–0. ^[43]

Michigan defeated Rutgers in triple overtime, 48–42. ^[44] Rutgers opened the scoring in the first quarter via a three-yard touchdown run from Johnny Langan. Rutgers added 10 points in the second quarter via a one-yard touchdown run from Langan, and a 38-yard field goal by Valentino Ambrosio. Michigan finally got on the board later in the quarter via a 46-yard touchdown pass from Cade McNamara to Cornelius Johnson, which made the score 17–7 in favor of Rutgers at half-time. Michigan added 14 points in the third quarter via a 95-yard kickoff return by Giles Jackson and a nine-yard touchdown pass from McNamara to Nick Eubanks. Rutgers added 10 points via a 61-yard touchdown pass from Noah Vedral to Bo Melton and a 42-yard field goal by Ambrosio. Michigan added 14 points in the fourth quarter via a six-yard touchdown pass from McNamara to Mike Sainristil and a nine-yard touchdown pass from McNamara to Johnson, giving Michigan their first lead of the game. Rutgers responded with an 11-yard touchdown pass from Vedral to Aron Cruickshank and a Vedral two-point conversion run to tie the game and force overtime. After a scoreless first overtime period where both teams missed field goals, Rutgers scored via a 25-yard touchdown pass from Vedral to Jovani Haskins in double overtime. Michigan responded with a two-yard touchdown run from McNamara. In triple overtime, Michigan scored via a one-yard touchdown run from Hassan Haskins. ^[45]

Michigan's 17-point comeback tied the third largest come-from-behind victory in program history and tied the second-biggest comeback on the road. ^[46]

Penn State

See also: 2020 Penn State Nittany Lions football team

Penn State at Michigan

1 2 3 4 Total •Nittany Lions 7 10 3 7 27 Wolverines 7 0 3 7 17 Date: November 28 Location: Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI Game start: 12:06 EST Elapsed time: 3:15 Game attendance: 0 Game weather: Mid 40s, sunny, SW 5–10 MPH Referee: Larry Smith TV announcers (ABC): Dave Pasch and Mike Golic Sources: [23]

Scoring summary 1 10:50 PSU Keyvone Lee 6-yard run (Jake Pinegar kick) PSU 7–0 1 0:30 MICH Hassan Haskins 2-yard run (Jake Moody kick) Tied 7–7 2 3:32 PSU Sean Clifford 28-yard run (Jake Pinegar kick) PSU 14–7 2 0:15 PSU Jake Pinegar 22-yard field goal PSU 17–7 3 9:10 MICH Jake Moody 40-yard field goal PSU 17–10 3 0:40 PSU Jake Pinegar 33-yard field goal PSU 20–10 4 13:12 MICH Hassan Haskins 2-yard run (Jake Moody kick) PSU 20–17 4 8:12 PSU Will Levis 2-yard run (Jake Pinegar kick) PSU 27–17

After facing Rutgers, Michigan hosted the Penn State Nittany Lions. Last season, Michigan lost to Penn State 21–28 in Penn State's annual White Out game. ^[47]

Michigan lost to Penn State 27–17. ^[48] Penn State opened the scoring in the first quarter via a six-yard touchdown run from Keyvone Lee. Michigan responded with a two-yard touchdown run from Hassan Haskins. Penn State scored 10 points in the second quarter via a 28-yard touchdown run from Sean Clifford and a 22-yard field goal by Jake Pinegar, which made the score 17–7 in favor of Penn State at half-time. The teams exchanged field goals in the third quarter, via a 40-yard field goal by Jake Moody for Michigan and a 33-yard field goal by Jake Pinegar for Penn State. The teams exchanged touchdowns in the fourth quarter, via a two-yard touchdown run from Haskins for Michigan and a two-yard touchdown run from Will Levis for Penn State. ^[49]

With the rest of their season cancelled, the loss to Penn State meant Michigan won no games at home for the first time in program history; the Wolverines played their first game in Ann Arbor in 1883.

Roster

2020 Michigan Wolverines football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class WR 0 Giles Jackson So RB 2 Blake Corum Fr WR 3 A. J. Henning Fr QB 4 Dan Villari Fr QB 5 Joe Milton  Jr WR 6 Cornelius Johnson So QB 7 Peyton Smith Fr WR 8 Ronnie Bell Jr RB 9 Chris Evans Sr QB 12 Cade McNamara  So WR 13 Eamonn Dennis Fr WR 14 Roman Wilson Fr QB 15 Andy Maddox  So QB 16 Ren Hefley  So QB 18 Max Wittwer  Jr WR 19 Mike Sainristil So RB 20 Nicholas Capatina  Sr RB 22 Danny Hughes  So RB 23 Gaige Garcia Fr RB 24 Zach Charbonnet So RB 25 Hassan Haskins  Jr WR 27 Christian Bartholomew Fr RB 28 Christian Turner  Jr WR 30 Will Rolapp Fr RB 31 Lucas Andrighetto  Jr RB 34 Leon Franklin  So TE 35 Luke Buckman  Jr RB 36 Nico Tiberia Fr WR 39 Matt Torey  Jr RB 41 Isaiah Gash Fr FB 42 Ben Mason  (C) Sr WR 43 Jake McCurry  Sr FB 46 Matt Brown  Sr G 52 Karsen Barnhart  So OT 53 Trente Jones  So C 54 Kraig Correll  Jr C 55 Nolan Rumler  So C 58 Zach Carpenter  So G 59 Joel Honigford  Sr OL 60 Luke Fisher  So OL 61 Noah Stewart Fr OL 62 Mica Gelb  So OT 65 Zak Zinter Fr G 66 Chuck Filiaga  Sr C 68 Andrew Vastardis (C)  Sr G 70 Jack Stewart  So OT 71 Andrew Stueber  Sr OT 73 Jalen Mayfield  So C 74 Reece Atteberry Fr OT 76 Ryan Hayes  Jr OT 77 Trevor Keegan  So OT 78 Griffin Korican  Jr OT 79 Jeffrey Persi Fr WR 80 Hunter Neff  So TE 81 Will Sessa  So WR 81 Nate Schoenle  Sr TE 82 Nick Eubanks  (C)  Sr TE 83 Erick All So WR 84 Sam Staruch Fr TE 86 Luke Schoonmaker  Jr TE 88 Matthew Hibner Fr WR 88 Matthew Harrison  So TE 89 Carter Selzer  Sr	Defense Pos. # Name Class CB 0 Andre Seldon Fr DT 2 Carlo Kemp  (C)  Sr CB 4 Vincent Gray  Jr CB 5 D. J. Turner  So S 6 R. J. Moten Fr S 7 Makari Paige Fr LB 8 William Mohan Fr CB 9 Sammy Faustin  Jr LB 10 Anthony Solomon So LB 12 Josh Ross  (C)  Sr S 14 Quinten Johnson  So DT 15 Christopher Hinton Jr. So CB 16 Jalen Perry  So DE 17 Braiden McGregor Fr DE 18 Luiji Vilain  Sr DE 19 Kwity Paye  (C) Sr S 20 Brad Hawkins Sr CB 22 Gemon Green  Jr LB 23 Michael Barrett  Jr CB 24 George Johnson  So LB 25 Cornell Wheeler Fr DB 26 Jake Thaw Fr LB 26 Kalel Mullings Fr S 27 Hunter Reynolds  Sr CB 28 Darion Green-Warren Fr DB 29 Jared Davis  Sr S 29 Joey Velazquez  So S 30 Daxton Hill So S 31 Jordan Morant Fr LB 32 Nolan Knight  So DE 32 Jaylen Harrell Fr S 33 German Green  Jr S 35 Caden Kolesar  So LB 37 Edward Warinner  Jr LB 37 Jonathan Lampani  Sr LB 38 Geoffrey Reeves  Sr LB 40 Ben VanSumeren  Jr LB 40 Ryan Nelson  Sr LB 41 Nikhai Hill-Green Fr DB 42 John Baty  Sr DB 44 Joshua Luther  So LB 44 Cameron McGrone  Jr LB 45 Adam Shibley  Sr CB 49 Keshaun Harris  So LB 50 Jerome Nichols Fr LB 54 Adam Fakih  Sr DE 55 David Ojabo  So DL 57 Joey George  Jr DT 58 Mazi Smith  So DT 67 Jess Speight  Sr DL 72 Elijah Pierre  Sr DE 90 Mike Morris  So DE 91 Taylor Upshaw  Jr DT 92 Phillip Paea  Sr DE 94 Kris Jenkins Fr DT 95 Donovan Jeter  Sr DT 96 Julius Welschof  Jr DE 97 Aidan Hutchinson  (C) Jr DE 99 Gabe Newburg  So	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K 3 Quinn Nordin  Sr K 13 Jake Moody Jr P 17 Will Hart  Sr LS 45 Greg Tarr Fr LS 49 William Wagner  So P 91 Brad Robbins  Sr K/P 92 Karl Kerska  So K 93 Cole Hussung Fr P 94 Izaak Gerkis  Sr	Head coach Jim Harbaugh Coordinators/assistant coaches Don Brown (defensive coordinator / linebackers) Josh Gattis (offensive coordinator) Jay Harbaugh (running backs / special teams coordinator) Brian Jean-Mary (linebackers) Ben McDaniels (quarterbacks) Sherrone Moore (tight ends) Shaun Nua (defensive line) Bob Shoop (safeties) Ed Warinner (offensive line) Mike Zordich (cornerbacks) Grant Newsome (graduate assistant) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster Last update: October 20, 2020

Awards and honors

Weekly awards Player Award Date awarded Ref. Giles Jackson Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week November 23, 2020 [50] All-Big Ten Player Position Coaches Media Giles Jackson KR 3 2 Kwity Paye DL Hon. 2 Hassan Haskins RB Hon. Hon. Daxton Hill DB Hon. Hon. Brad Robbins P Hon. Hon. Carlo Kemp DL Hon. – Andrew Stueber OT Hon. – Michael Barrett LB – Hon. Brad Hawkins DB – Hon. Hon. = Honorable mention. Reference: [51]

2021 NFL Draft

Main article: 2021 NFL Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL Team
1	21	Kwity Paye	DE	Indianapolis Colts
3	68	Jalen Mayfield	OT	Atlanta Falcons
3	89	Nico Collins	WR	Houston Texans
3	102	Ambry Thomas	CB	San Francisco 49ers
5	177	Cameron McGrone	ILB	New England Patriots
5	184	Ben Mason	FB	Baltimore Ravens
6	202	Chris Evans	RB	Cincinnati Bengals
6	225	Camaron Cheeseman	LS	Washington Football Team

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