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After three victories against woefully overmatched opponents to begin the season, No. 4 Michigan finally got tested on Saturday in a 34-27 win over Maryland. The visiting Terrapins recovered from a cringeworthy special teams blunder on the game's opening play to take a 13-10 lead in the first half, and they pushed the Wolverines all the way until the end.
Ultimately, the Michigan defense delivered in a key moment when R.J. Moten intercepted Maryland quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa with 5:55 remaining. From there, Blake Corum's a 47-yard touchdown run with 3:31 left helped the Wolverines gain some separation. Corum finished with a career-high 243 yards rushing on 30 attempts with six runs for 10 or more yards.
Even after Corum's final scoring run, the Wolverines needed to recover an onside kick with 44 seconds remaining in order to clinch the win. Maryland racked up 23 first downs in the game as Maryland quarterbacks Tagovailoa and Billy Edwards Jr. combined to hit 10 different receivers.
Maryland hosts Michigan State next week while the Wolverines play at Iowa in a game that could have division title implications on both sides of the Big Ten.
Here are some takeaways from Michigan's win over Maryland on Saturday.
Michigan's mortality
Michigan's 3-0 start came against Colorado State, Hawaii and UConn, teams that ranked Nos. 113, 125 and 126, respectively, in our CBS Sports 131. With the Wolverines outscoring those opponents 166-17, expectations for this team may have become over-inflated. While a victory against a previously unbeaten conference foe is nothing for the Wolverines to complain about, Maryland did expose some of Michigan's imperfections. In fact, the Terrapins played Michigan dead even after a muffed kickoff on the first play led to a Wolverines touchdown just eight seconds into the game.
J.J. McCarthy shaky in pivotal start
When Michigan torched Maryland 59-18 last season, its aerial attack led the way with Cade McNamara at quarterback and McCarthy getting reps in the game as the backup. But in McCarthy's first game against a Power Five opponent as the starting quarterback for the Wolverines on Saturday, it was the running game that stood out for the Wolverines.
Though Corum stole the show, McCarthy performed well, for the most part. He finished 18-of-26 passing for 220 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. The sophomore never threw consecutive incompletions at any point, and was sacked only twice. However, one of those sacks was particularly costly as it caused a fumble that led to the field goal that put Maryland ahead in the second quarter.
Maryland's QB situation
Tagovailoa exited the game briefly in the middle of the third quarter after taking a big hit and was replaced by backup Billy Edwards Jr. for a third-and-9 play that led to a punt. Tagovailoa returned for Maryland's next possession and led a touchdown drive in the fourth quarter.
Tagovailoa was absent on Maryland's final offensive possession as Edwards returned to lead a 14-play, 75-yard touchdown drive that cut the score to 34-27. Edwards' 5-of-9 performance through the air combined with the speed he showed on a 23-yard run was an encouraging display for the Terrapins. Tagovailoa took several big hits on Saturday, and if there any lingering injury issues, Edwards looked more than capable as a backup.
