The Wolverines were not efficient in the run game and were held to 119 yards even with De’Veon Smith, who left the opener with bruised ribs, back in the lineup.
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Michigan: The Wolverines will have something to work on this week despite another lopsided win. On Saturday, Speight had three favorite targets – senior Jake Butt (seven receptions, 86 yards, two touchdowns), fifth-year senior Amara Darboh (five receptions, 111 yards, two touchdowns) and senior Jehu Chesson (four receptions, 84 yards).
While the Wolverines took advantage of several UCF special teams errors, they were not immune.
Wilton Speight, in his second start at quarterback, was 25-of-37 for 312 yards, four touchdowns and did not have an interception before backup John O’Korn entered the game late. Jabrill Peppers added eight total tackles, two of which were for loss.
Central Florida was limited in the pass game with 56 yards had 275 yards rushing.
UCF: The Knights might need a new quarterback to run Scott Frost’s no-huddle offense.
Special teams was the unsung hero of the day for MI. The Wolverines jumped out to a 21-0 lead on a 3-yard touchdown pass from Speight to Butt with 8:48 remaining in the first quarter, a 2-yard touchdown run by senior fullback Khalid Hill with 3:29 left and a 55-yard touchdown pass from Speight to Darboh with 1:55 to go in the first quarter.MI opened up a 31-0 lead with 11:30 remaining in the second quarter on a 14-yard touchdown pass from Speight to Butt before Central Florida finally got on the board with 11:10 left in the second quarter, Freshman Adrian Killins of the Knights got through the line on a jet sweep and outsprinted the defense down the sideline for an 87-yard touchdown. They ran for a first down on the first snap and forced MI to punt after its first three plays. It was obviously a result of UCF’s decision to load the box and take that away, but it cost the Wolverines a few times in the red zone, where they had to settle for a few field goals.
Defensively, Michigan played exactly the way you would expect.
UCF managed to get off its third punt attempt and Caleb Houston had a 47 yard kick, but on the Knights’ following possession, Chase Winovich had a big strip sack of Justin Holman, recovered by Maurice Hurst. Lewis has been out with an undisclosed injury, but during the ESPN broadcast, analyst Brian Griese indicated Lewis is suffering from a back issue. It was Allen’s first field-goal attempt of the season.
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Central Florida’s no-huddle offence vs. Michigan’s defence.
