<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2h2nCk_0vj4nd1W00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2h2nCk_0vj4nd1W00" width="1210" height="806" ></figure>Last weekend, the Michigan Wolverines weren’t the only Big Ten team running all over the field. Similarly to how the Wolverines’ 290 rushing yards shattered USC, Iowa overpowered Minnesota by running the ball for 272 yards.After the Golden Gophers took a 14-7 lead into halftime, the Hawkeyes shifted their plan of attack, deciding to go all-in on the run game. That strategy proved fortuitous as a seven-point deficit transformed into a 17-point victory.And coming off a complete second-half implosion, Minnesota will see a similar strategy when it faces Michigan this weekend.“In terms of their offense, they’re gonna run the football,” Golden Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck told the media earlier this week. “They did that with (former coach) Jim Harbaugh, they’re doing that with Sherrone (Moore), and they’re doing it in a lot of unique ways, especially with the quarterback change.”For the first three games of the season, the Wolverines went with Davis Warren as their starting quarterback. But after throwing three interceptions against Arkansas State, he lost the starting job to Alex Orji.With Orji taking over responsibilities, the quarterback change led to a run-focused game plan, given Orji’s different strengths and weaknesses. Fleck recognizes that with Orji as Michigan’s quarterback, its identity will be a run-first offense. That’s something he both understands and has seen firsthand.“They’re big, they’re strong — I mean, we’ve got to be able to stop the run, we know that,” Fleck said. “Now, they’re going to have things off of that with the play action pass when you are doing that. But again, if it was a big schematic issue I would sit here and be like, ‘Ok, I’m really worried, their people are nowhere to be found.’ We have people everywhere where they need to be, we just gotta be able to just make the play.”The Wolverines’ strategy, at this point, is no secret. Orji’s arm is unreliable, while his mobility is his biggest asset. It’s one thing to understand the strategy and another to combat it, though. Fleck saw that exact same strategy last Saturday against Iowa.Minnesota undoubtedly has a sour taste in its mouth coming off that loss, and it will look to correct its errors against the Wolverines.“That’ll be a big emphasis, is to be able to slow that run game down,” Fleck said. “Again, I don’t know if you stop Michigan’s run game, but you can slow it down by a lot of different things, and that’s what we’re working on right now. But we have a lot of respect for them and what they do and how they do it. They do it at will; that’s the one thing that’s Michigan — they do it at will, they run the football at will, it’s what they do.”Last week the Golden Gophers failed to stop Iowa’s run game and saw how detrimental that is. Facing a similarly run-heavy opponent in the Wolverines this weekend, Fleck hopes to not let history repeat itself.</div></body>

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P.J. Fleck hopes Minnesota can ‘slow down’ Michigan’s run-heavy offense this weekend

Last weekend, the Michigan Wolverines weren’t the only Big Ten team running all over the field. Similarly to how the Wolverines’ 290 rushing yards shattered USC, Iowa overpowered Minnesota by running the ball for 272 yards. After the Golden Gophers took a 14-7 lead into halftime, the Hawkeyes...