Kornacki: Rudock Turns Question Mark into Exclamation Point
11/7/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
Nov. 7, 2015
By Steve Kornacki
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- There was a question mark next to Michigan quarterback Jake Rudock's name headed into Saturday's (Nov. 7) game with Rutgers.
How would he feel after coming out in the fourth quarter at Minnesota with injuries resulting from getting crunched in a high-low hit by a pair of defenders?
How would his bruised ribs hold up after taking the first good hit from the Scarlet Knights?
And would Wilton Speight, who came off the bench to engineer the winning touchdown drive last Saturday night (Oct. 31), need to come to the rescue again?
Rudock put all the questions to rest in a 49-16 win over Rutgers by passing for a career-high 337 yards and completing 18-of-25 passes with two touchdowns.
He practiced on a limited basis during the week but never doubted his ability to play at a high level.
"I knew I was going to give it everything I've got to be able to go," Rudock said. "There wasn't a question in my mind. Our coaches did a good job of understanding how much to rest me, which allowed me to be ready and understand the game plan even with less reps."
The question mark got replaced by an exclamation mark.
Rudock's now completed 68 percent of his passes, and that figure would be the Wolverines' single-season record for quarterbacks attempting at least 100 passes in a season.
Any thought that Rudock, a 6-3, 203-pound graduate student, might need to play it safe was dispelled on his four-yard touchdown run that gave Michigan a 14-3 lead with 15 seconds left in the first quarter.
On third-and-goal at the four-yard line, Rudock scrambled up the middle out of the pocket. Seeing defenders in his way to the goal line, he scampered around the left end. Rudock found resistance near the sideline, and so he decided to go all out and put his body on the line to score. He dove and hit the pylon with the ball in his outstretched right hand.
Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh rushed up to Rudock as he jogged to the sideline and shouted encouragement to him.
"He was pumped," Rudock said of his coach. "They covered us well on that play, and I just felt how to move. You don't want to throw it away or take a sack on third down, but I just felt it. As a little kid, you always dream of diving to the pylon. So, it was pretty cool."
And what did Harbaugh tell him on the sideline?
Rudock said, "He said, 'I don't know how the hell you did that! But great play.' I said, 'Okay, thanks!' He was happy, really happy."
Rudock with Coach Harbaugh
The accuracy of Rudock's throws was one thing, but a quarterback putting himself on the line one week after being knocked out of the game and scoring is another thing.
"The touchdown was a great athletic play and a great courage play," said Harbaugh. "You know everyone's coming at you, and there's going to be a big collision at the pylon. He stuck his nose right in there, and toughness earns respect. Jake Rudock has the respect of all his teammates and coaches."
Strong safety and offensive weapon Jabrill Peppers said, "I didn't know he had that much wiggle."
Tight end Jake Butt added, "Jake just has a knack for making plays like that. It's kind of weird. I was joking with him that he's not a pocket passer and is a scrambler. On the touchdown, Jake just extended out and made a great, game-changing play."
Rudock has run the ball only 38 times this season but is second on the team with four touchdown carries. He scrambled later on a two-point conversion play to score again. Rudock only ran twice -- neither time by design -- and both produced points.
"I'm not Mike Vick, though," noted Rudock. "I'm never going to be like that."
Still, it was his arm, rather than his nifty feet and nose for the goal line, which meant the most.
Rudock had seven passes of 20 yards or more, and the abundant chunk plays were something lacking from the offense of No. 17 Michigan (7-2, 4-1 Big Ten) all season long. The Wolverines had exceeded 200 yards passing only once, and that was 279 in 43 attempts at Utah.
However, Rudock averaged 13.5 yards per pass attempt and 18.7 yards per completion against Rutgers.
The eight-yard touchdown pass to Amara Darboh on third down at the end of the first half was a big-time throw. Darboh found tight one-on-one coverage in the right corner of the end zone, but Rudock fired a crisp pass that Darboh hauled in by walling off free safety Anthony Cioffi.
"We had the man coverage," said Rudock, who added that Jehu Chesson's route running on the play was critical. "I knew where (Darboh) was coming out, and I could throw it before he was ready. He just snapped his head around and was fighting for the ball.
"Jehu also ran a great route, and the three of us are connecting well because we have such a great understanding of one another."
Rudock got Michigan on the scoreboard first by hitting Chesson on a slant route for a 13-yard touchdown.
"It was a fake sweep (to Peppers)," said Rudock, "and it wasn't exactly how we thought it would be. But Jehu did a great job of understanding where to go, and I was able to get him the ball with good protection. Nobody was in my face, and so I didn't have to worry about that at all."
Rudock didn't get sacked, and Michigan rambled for a season-high 487 yards total offense.
Left: Jehu Chesson // Middle: Amara Darboh // Right: Jake Butt
"Those guys did a great job of putting up the wall up front," Rudock said of his blockers. "That allows you to survey the field and go through your one-two-three progressions. You've got to give the big guys up front credit."
While the touchdowns went to his split receivers, Rudock also utilized his running backs and tight ends very well in hitting 10 different targets. Butt had a career-high 102 yards on four receptions, including a 56-yarder.
"He's developing so well at the position," Harbaugh said of Rudock, "and learning the system and making a really good connection with Jake Butt, Jehu Chesson and Amara Darboh. Today, he was very accurate and making the appropriate throws all game long in very windy conditions (15-20 mph winds)."
Rudock completed screen passes of 28 yards to Drake Johnson and 31 yards to De'Veon Smith in the first quarter to loosen up the defense.
"The screen game today was outstanding," Harbaugh said. "It's always been a deficiency for me. I'm not a good screen coach, and those guys are overcoming me because they were effective today.
"We got some big chunk plays and long-yardage situations."
The Scarlet Knights (3-6, 1-5 Big Ten) have one of the conference's most porous pass defenses. They rank 12th in yards allowed per game (298.9) but also are a decent fifth with eight interceptions. However, Rudock didn't get picked off and has only been intercepted once in the last four games. He'd been picked off six times in the first five games.
Rudock has completed .677 of his passes this season, and that would set a school single-season accuracy record should it stay above the record .653 set by Todd Collins in 1992. Close behind that are Harbaugh (1986) and Elvis Grbac (1991) at .650.
This is Rudock's one and only season at Michigan after transferring from Iowa, and he's beginning to show what he's capable of doing.
"Jake came from a different school and building chemistry is something that takes time," said Butt. "Each week, he's gotten a little better and gained more confidence.
"He had a hell of a game today and was clicking everywhere."
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