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Michigan is looking to rebound after a 13-6 overtime loss to Indiana last weekend. The Wolverines hit the road for just the second time this season and Michigan is in Piscataway to take on Rutgers. The Wolverines are a major disappointment in Year 1 under Kyle Whittingham, but the Scarlet Knights is having a much worse season.
Rutgers has two wins this season and has one of the worst defenses in college football. Michigan has one of the worst offenses in college football, and this could be a game where the Wolverines get something going on that side of the ball.
Tommy Carr is drawing his second start and should fare better this weekend. And while the Wolverines are going to be without a few players, Michigan has decent news heading into the game.
This is actually promising for Michigan. For starters, neither John Henry Daley or Enow Etta has missed any games due to injury. Barring things not going well in pre-game we would guess both players will take the field for the Wolverines' defense. As far as Nichols goes, he's been very limited and didn't play against Indiana.
But the good news is that Michigan will get its starting offensive line back, other than Andrew Sprague, who has been out since UTEP. Blake Frazier is off the report and should assume his duties at right tackle. The Wolverines don't have Jake Guarnera listed either, which means he will start at center.
Rutgers has been a poor defense this season, and getting the O-line back to full health is important to establish the run game.
Rutgers won't have starting quarterback Dylan Lonergan against Michigan, but the Scarlet Knights are hoping to get their 6'6" star wide receiver. KJ Duff was initially listed as 'Doubtful' for the game, but he was upgraded to 'Questionable' and is now a true game-time decision.
Duff is the No. 2 wide receiver in the Big Ten, behind Jeremiah Smith. While the Wolverines' defense hasn't been an issue this season, catching a break by not having Duff on the field isn't a bad thing.
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