Michigan Defense Part 1- Base Coverage Overview and Coverage Concepts of the Wolverines Defense on Early Downs

The Michigan Defense was very sound in 2022 under Defensive Coordinator Jesse Minter. Jesse was a part of the Ravens staff and took over for Coach MacDonald when he went back to the NFL

They were #6 in the country in points allowed, 16.1 ppg. They were #5 in yards allowed only allowing 292 yards per game. They also played good pass defense only allowing 5.9 yards per attempt and 194 yards passing per game. These were all very good numbers.

The only area they struggled in was the red zone, in which they played much more man and they were 50th in that category.

As you study Michigan’s defense, you will see some of Vic Fangio’s influence on the Michigan Wolverines. They have evolved from a man heavy system with Don Brown and have gone zone based on early downs. They played primarily zone in their 2 games I watched vs Ohio State and Purdue with more man vs TCU. They were in zone coverage on early downs over 90% of the time vs Ohio State and Purdue. You see some cover 4, quarter/quarter/half concepts mixed in with cover 3 strong and weak. They do get into more man coverages in the red zone and 3rd down which we will get to.

Which was interesting when they played TCU as they went to some more man concepts. They played 9/38 concepts in man or man free for a 23% ratio. They also went 2 under 3 deep which I rarely see from them. They got a little more away from zone that game, was much more aggressive sending cb fires and safety pressures with motion. It was a little more aggressive game plan and if you watch the 4 big plays in the pass game, they were against, cover 0, 2 under 3 deep, corner fire zone and more aggressive type schemes

In my 3 game study vs Ohio State, TCU and Purdue, I looked at the coverages you saw on early downs. This will include all 1st down and 2nd down snaps but not in the red zone.

Here is the breakdown on 1st and 2nd down:

Vs. Purdue 39 snaps

Cover 4 2 snaps

Cover 42(4 to the field, 2 to the boundary) 5 snaps

Cover 24(2 to the field, 4 to the boundary) 5 snaps

4 cloud 4 snaps

cover 4 2 snaps

3 weak 13 snaps

3 strong 5 snaps

man free/2man 3 snaps

Overall, the coverage was as follows:
2 high structure 2/4: 18/39 46%

Cover 3: 18/39 46%

Man concepts: 3/39 8%

Vs Ohio State 40 snaps

40 snaps on early downs(not including red zone)

Cover 42- 6 snaps

Cover 24- 6 snaps

3 weak- 10 snaps

3 strong- 5 snaps(mostly unbalanced)

Cover 4 solo- 1 snap

Cover 4- 5 snaps

cover 2- 5 snaps

man free 2 snaps

Overall, the structure was as follows:

2 high structure: 23/40 58%

3 weak/strong 15/40 37%

man concepts: 2/40 5%

Vs TCU 38 snaps

3 strong   8/38 snaps

3 weak    8/38 snaps

24           3/38 snaps

42          6/38 snaps

4            3/38. snaps

0 man    3/38 snaps

m/f         6/38 snaps

2 under 3 deep  1

Overall Coverage Structure vs TCU was as follows:

2 high Coverage coverages 12/38. 32%

Cover 3 strong/weak. 17/38 45% (throw the 2 under 3 deep in there)

Man/Man Free. 9/38 23%

This is the coverage breakdown for the 2 games vs Ohio state and Purdue. You can see how they played these 2 teams and how they primarily run 2 high and cover 3 concepts on early downs.

Stay tuned for part 2 of my Michigan Analysis as I dive more into the defense, show some film and discuss some more aspects!

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