The Michigan Wolverines beat the Florida Gators 33-17 yesterday, and the defensive line of Michigan was a big reason why. Forced fumbles, tackles for loss, and continuous pressure on the quarterback were just a few of the things Michigan’s d-line did well Saturday.
Earlier this week, the now suspended Gator running back Jordan Scarlett didn’t say the smartest of things, stating "They (Michigan) don't run sideline to sideline. They don't move well sideline to sideline, so I think we should take advantage of things like that."
Michigan remembered that comment:
Maurice Hurst: “That was crazy for them to come out and say that to us. It added a lot fuel to our fire. I mean, we’re a team that already runs to the ball. But on screens we were already getting out as fast as we can. We just wanted to make a statement and I think we did a good job of doing that.”
“It was everything, that’s our defense. We run to the ball all the time. We’re always going ot give great effort. So to say something like that is very insulting to a D-line, and for him to just call us out, I mean, hit home to us.”
Chase Winovich: “I just didn’t really understand why Florida would come out say all these negative things about us. They didn’t respect us last time, we beat them pretty bad, you would think they would respect us this time. Just after that I get a text saying ‘look at the Florida running back saying you guys don’t run well sideline to sideline.’ It’s kind of sad, I don’t know why they would think that with our front being so athletic and our history of running to the ball. If you look at our tape, our defensive line ran on every play.”
Rashan Gary was also spotted in the tunnel after the game shouting at his teammates, reminding them of the negative comments that were made. Needless to say, Florida doing some trash talking was a mistake, it fueled Michigan’s defense more than they ever thought it would.