ANN ARBOR, MICH. >> Lightning strikes forced a one-hour delay to the start of tonight’s game at Michigan Stadium.
Fourth-ranked Michigan was a greater force of nature in the Big House, rolling to a 56-10 rout of Hawaii.
NCAA rules call for a minimum 30-minute delay after a lightning strike within 10 miles of the venue. Seventy-five minutes before the scheduled 8 p.m. ET kickoff, players were ordered to the locker room and fans were instructed to head underneath the concourse.
It was 8:30 p.m. when officials ruled it would be safe to play the game. That gave the teams 25 minutes to warmup, followed by 5 minutes for the playing of the national anthem and the coin toss. It also left no time for the Wolverines to touch their banner ahead of the game, a tradition interrupted for the first time since 1961.
The Rainbow Warriors, who entered as much as 53-point underdogs, won the coin toss, electing to receive the opening kickoff. That turned out to be the evening’s highlight.
The Wolverines blasted their way to a 42-0 lead at the intermission. It was their first half-time advantage of more than 40 points since 2016.
This time, the Motor City team hummed with J.J. McCarthy at the controls. Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh had set a two-game audition at quarterback. Cade McNamara started last week in the Wolverines’ season-opening rout of Colorado State. On Saturday, it was McCarthy’s turn.
McCarthy. a sophomore who was a 5-star prospect at IMG Academy, was 11-for-12 for 229 yards and three touchdowns in the first half. McCarthy’s lone first-half incompletion was Ronnie Bell’s drop in the open field. But Bell made up for it when he caught a 13-yard scoring pass on a crossing pattern.
McCarthy, who is widely viewed as a run-first quarterback, proved his pocket skills. With UH blitzers bracketing the perimeter, McCarthy stepped and fired a pass to Cornelius Johnson on a corner route for a 42-0 lead.
Donovan Edwards, Michigan’s No. 2 running back, made a case for more action when he starred in a three-play scoring drive. Edwards raced around right end for a 25-yard gain, caught 33-yard pass from McCarthy, and then scored on a 1-yard blast up the middle.
Perhaps the most efficient Wolverine was Roman Wilson, a Saint Louis School graduate. Wilson’s first two touches resulted in touchdowns.
On Michigan’s opening drive, the Warriors showed a two-deep look, then moved their safeties up. Wilson, aligned as an inside receiver on the left side, zipped his way on a post pattern and secured McCarthy’s pass for a 42-yard touchdown.
Later in the first quarter, Wilson was set up on the right side. He motioned across the formation, took a handoff from McCarthy. and scooted around left end and up the field for a 21-yard touchdown.
Quarterback Joey Yellen made his second consecutive start for UH. Against an aggressive four-man front and tight coverage, Yellen misfired on 12 of his first 17 passes. He threw for only 33 yards in the first half.
The Warriors ended the drought with Matthew Shipley’s 26-yard field goal with 3:5 left in the third quarter. UH’s forced Michgan into two three-and-out drives to open the second half, leading to the Warriors’ scoring drive.
Freshman running back Tylan Hines’ 54-yard touchdown run — the first score of his career — made it 49-10 with 11:27 to play.
Yellen finished 13-for-36 for 113 yards.
Read More: World News | Entertainment News | Celeb News
Star Ads
