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Michigan-Ohio State: Statistical head-to-head preview

A statistical look at basically anything you could want to know about Saturday's 2012 edition of The Game, the greatest rivalry in sport between Michigan and Ohio State.

How does Michigan stack up statistically against the hated Ohio State Buckeyes?
How does Michigan stack up statistically against the hated Ohio State Buckeyes?
Rick Osentoski-US PRESSWIRE

The Buckeyes of Ohio State are so close to perfection they can taste it. Naturally standing between them and the best hope for 2012 they could've possibly mustered is the much hated Michigan Wolverines. Michigan, while eliminated from the Big Ten Leaders Division championship race, could still very conceivably play their way into BCS at large bowl consideration with a win on the road in the hostile confines of Ohio Stadium.

In order to asset how things might play out this Saturday afternoon, we take a look how these teams matchup objectively from a statistical perspective. A few quick odds and ends from what we noticed from this exercise:

  • Ohio State's pretty clearly got the much better offense. It's not a total surprise, but given how much Michigan's struggled in run defense (as well as getting to the quarterback), that could play a pretty pivotal role in deciding how this game plays out.
  • In spite of their inability to get to the quarterback on a pass rush, Michigan's tackles for a loss are pretty daunting cumulatively. If they can stay true to their numbers on Saturday, it could be a long afternoon for Braxton Miller, Carlos Hyde, and the Ohio State offense.
  • Remember when Ohio State was good at punting? /le sigh
  • Devin Gardner's been an absolute beast on third down conversions, but even before he took the reigns, the Wolverines were extremely efficient in that regard. If Ohio State can force the Wolverines into punting situations (and keep them from living up to their billing from that standpoint), it'll go along way from determining the outcome.

Without further adieu, here are how the Michigan Wolverines and Ohio State Buckeyes stack up:


Michigan-wolverines_medium
http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/1663653/b1g.png Osu_icon_medium
Advantage Conf National Actual Category Actual National Conf
Rank Rank Rank Rank
Blocko_medium
5th 36th 194.55 Rushing Offense 245.45 9th 2nd
Michigan-wolverines_medium 6th 97th 200.5 Passing Offense 180.8 103rd 8th
Blocko_medium
5th 68th 395.1 Total Offense 426.3 45th 3rd
Blocko_medium
3rd 47th 30.8 Scoring Offense 38.2 17th 1st
Blocko_medium 6th 52nd 151.36 Rushing Defense 116.82 17th 3rd
Blocko_medium 7th 29th 116.6 Pass Efficiency Defense 116.1 28th 6th
Michigan-wolverines_medium 1st 1st 152.1 Pass Defense 250.1 8th 11th
Michigan-wolverines_medium 3rd 12th 303.5 Total Defense 366.9 39th 7th
Michigan-wolverines_medium 3rd 17th 18.1 Scoring Defense 23.0 34th 5th
Blocko_medium
10th 99th 15 Sacks 26 30th 3rd
Michigan-wolverines_medium 4th 53rd 65 Tackles for Loss 57 79th 8th
Blocko_medium 10th 94th -6 Turnover Margin +1 55th 5th
Blocko_medium 5th 54th 9.29 Punt Returns 10.87 28th 2nd
Michigan-wolverines_medium 4th 52nd 22.25 Kickoff Returns 19.67 91st 7th
Michigan-wolverines_medium 3rd 49th 41.59 Punting 38.78 105th 8th
Michigan-wolverines_medium 1st 16th 11 Sacks Allowed 25 90th 11th
Michigan-wolverines_medium 1st 7th 52.08% 3rd Down Conversions 43.45% 45th 4th