Michigan running back Kalel Mullings. Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Michigan's win over USC was old-school, power football

By Adam Gretz | Last updated Sep 21, 2024 7:50 PM ET

The No. 18 Michigan Wolverines scored a huge Big Ten win over No. 11 USC on Saturday, pulling off a 27-24 victory to get its first conference win of the season.

It was an old-school Michigan game defined by power football, grinding it out on the ground and imposing its will on the opposing defense.

That was also probably what it had to do given the circumstances with a first-time starting quarterback.

That was demonstrated on Michigan's winning touchdown in the final minute when facing a fourth-and-goal from the one-yard, the Wolverines went with a power run behind a fullback that saw Kalel Mullings get into the end zone for the go-ahead score.

!!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/HMTgB8YgGI
— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) September 21, 2024

Even though that goes in the books as a one-yard run, that was a long one yard and was closer to two yards, making it an extremely gutsy call with the game on the line.

But that is the way Michigan played all day on Saturday, finishing the day with just 32 yards passing.

Quarterback Alex Orji, making his first college start, completed just 7-of-12 passes for 32 yards and did not complete a pass longer than 10 yards. Everything else for the Michigan offense was on the ground, finishing with 290 yards. That includes Michigan's game-winning drive that was set up by a 63-yard run for Mullings.

That sort of recipe might not work every single week, but it was just enough on Saturday for the defending national champions to score the first true signature win of the season.

Adam Gretz

Adam Gretz is a freelance writer based in Pittsburgh. He covers the NHL, NFL, MLB and NBA. Baseball is his favorite sport -- he is nearly halfway through his goal of seeing a game in every MLB ballpark. Catch him on Twitter @AGretz

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