We forge on. #GoBlue pic.twitter.com/73hyZwHWlR
— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) September 9, 2017
Advertisement |
We forge on. #GoBlue pic.twitter.com/73hyZwHWlR
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Senior running back Ty Isaac rushed for 133 yards on 20 carries to help lead No. 8 Michigan to a 36-14 win over Cincinnati in its home opener on Saturday.
Michigan (2-0) opened the scoring on the first drive of the game, taking a 7-0 lead with 11:54 left in the first quarter on a 43-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Wilton Speight to sophomore wideout Kekoa Crawford.
The Wolverines took a 14-0 lead on a 28-yard interception return for a touchdown by junior Tyree Kinnel with 6:50 left in the first quarter, but Cincinnati (1-1) closed to within 14-7 with 2:13 to go in the first quarter on a 1-yard touchdown run by senior running back Mike Boone.
After Michigan took a 17-7 lead into halftime, Cincinnati shaved its deficit to 17-14 with 11:15 remaining in the third on a 10-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Hayden Moore to junior wideout Kahlil Lewis.
The scoring play capped off an 85-yard, 10-play drive.
Michigan finally got on track again late in the third quarter offensively, mounting an 80-yard drive and taking a 24-14 lead with 3:01 left in the third quarter on a 33-yard touchdown pass from Speight to junior wideout Grant Perry.
Following a 24-yard field goal by freshman kicker Quinn Nordin that gave Michigan a 27-14 lead with 9:02 left, a bad snap on a Cincinnati punt was batted out of the end zone for a safety to put Michigan ahead 29-14 with 6:53 remaining.
Michigan then went ahead 36-14 with 4:21 left in the game on a 24-yard interception return for a touchdown by sophomore cornerback Lavert Hill.
NOTES: This was the first ever meeting between Cincinnati and Michigan. ... With the win, Michigan improved to 115-18-3 all-time in home openers. The last time the Wolverines lost their home opener came in 2008, when they lost to Utah (25-23). ... After opening the season at home with a 26-14 win over Austin Peay, Cincinnati began a three-game road swing. The Bearcats will visit Miami (Ohio) next Saturday and Navy on Sep. 23. ... Both teams weren't shy about throwing newcomers into the fire during their season openers. Michigan had 15 players make their career debuts in a win over Florida, while Cincinnati had 18 players take the field for the first time in its win over Austin Peay. ... Michigan has one more nonconference game on its schedule before opening up Big 10 play, that being a home tilt with Air Force next Saturday. ... First-year Cincinnati head coach Luke Fickell entered the game familiar with Michigan Stadium and the Michigan program in general. Fickell spent the last 18 seasons as an assistant and head coach at Michigan's archrival, Ohio State. ... Attendance for the game was 111,384.