| 1991 Michigan Wolverines football | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Big Ten Champions | |||
| Rose Bowl, L 34–14 vs. Washington | |||
| Conference | Big Ten Conference | ||
| Ranking | |||
| Coaches | #6 | ||
| AP | #6 | ||
| 1991 record | 10–2 (8–0 Big Ten) | ||
| Head coach | Gary Moeller (2nd year) | ||
| Defensive coordinator | Lloyd Carr (5th year) | ||
| MVP | Desmond Howard | ||
| Captain | Erick Anderson | ||
| Captain | Greg Skrepenak | ||
| Home stadium | Michigan Stadium | ||
Seasons
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| 1991 Big Ten football standings | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| #6/6 Michigan † | 8 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 10 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| #10/10 Iowa | 7 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 10 | – | 1 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ohio State | 5 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Indiana | 5 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 4 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Illinois | 4 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Purdue | 3 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Michigan State | 3 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 8 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wisconsin | 2 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northwestern | 2 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 8 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Minnesota | 1 | – | 7 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 9 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| † – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll / Coaches' Poll |
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The 1991 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1991 college football season. The team's head coach was Gary Moeller. The Wolverines played their home games at Michigan Stadium. The team was undefeated in the Big Ten Conference and was led by Heisman Trophy-winner Desmond Howard, Butkus Award-winner Erick Anderson and national statistical champion Elvis Grbac. The team won the fourth of five consecutive Big Ten Championships.[1] The team lost to national champion Washington Huskies in the 1992 Rose Bowl.[2]
Contents |
| Date | Time | Opponent# | Rank# | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 7, 1991 | at Boston College* | #2/NA | Alumni Stadium • Chestnut Hill, MA | W 35–13 | 32,071 | |||
| September 14, 1991 | 3:30 PM | #7/NA Notre Dame* | #3/NA | Michigan Stadium • Ann Arbor, MI | ABC | W 24–14 | 106,138 | |
| September 28, 1991 | 12:00 PM | #1/1 Florida State* | #3/3 | Michigan Stadium • Ann Arbor, MI | ABC | L 51–31 | 106,145 | |
| October 5, 1991 | 3:30 PM | at #9/7 Iowa | #7/8 | Kinnick Stadium • Iowa City, IA | ABC | W 43–24 | 70,220 | |
| October 12, 1991 | 3:30 PM | at Michigan State | #5/6 | Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, MI | ABC | W 45–28 | 80,157 | |
| October 19, 1991 | 12:30 PM | Indiana | #4/4 | Michigan Stadium • Ann Arbor, MI | ESPN | W 24–16 | 106,097 | |
| October 25, 1991 | at Minnesota | #4/4 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome • Minneapolis, MN | W 52–6 | 32,577 | |||
| November 2, 1991 | Purdue | #4/4 | Michigan Stadium • Ann Arbor, MI | W 42–0 | 105,401 | |||
| November 9, 1991 | Northwestern | #4/4 | Michigan Stadium • Ann Arbor, MI | W 59–14 | 102,087 | |||
| November 16, 1991 | at #25/25 Illinois | #4/4 | Memorial Stadium • Champaign, Il | W 20–0 | 66,757 | |||
| November 23, 1991 | 12:00 PM | #18/18 Ohio State | #4/4 | Michigan Stadium • Ann Arbor, MI | ABC | W 31–3 | 106,156 | |
| January 1, 1992 | 4:30 PM | vs. #2/1 Washington* | #4/3 | Rose Bowl • Pasadena, CA (Rose Bowl) | ABC | L 34–14 | 103,566 | |
| *Non-conference game. Homecoming. #Rankings from AP Poll / Coaches' Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time. | ||||||||
Desmond Howard surpassed Anthony Carter's 11-year old conference single-season record of 14 touchdown receptions by totaling 19, which continues to be the conference record.[3] During the season, he extended his consecutive games with a touchdown reception streak to 13 games, surpassing Carter's 9, set in 1980, a record that still stands.[4] J. D. Carlson established the current Big Ten record for consecutive successful point after touchdown conversions at 126.[5]
Grbac won the first of his back-to-back passing efficiency NCAA Division I FBS championships.[6] He also won his second of three consecutive Big Ten passing statistical championships (177.8 passing efficiency in conference games and 161.7 in all games).[7] Desmond Howard was the repeat Big Ten receiving yardage champion for all games with 82.1 yards per game and he won his only conference games yardage championship with a 90.1 average.[8] Howard was also the scoring champion with a 11.3 points per game average in conference games and an 11.5 average overall.[9]
The team led the Big Ten in rushing offense both in conference games (264.6 yards per game) and all games (231.9 yards per game).[10] They also led in passing efficiency for both conference games (166.5) and all games (154.7).[10] They were the conference leader in total offense both for conference games (453.6 yards per game) and all games (419.8 yards per game).[11] They were also the Big Ten scoring statistical champions for conference games (39.5 points per game) and all games (35.0 points per game).[11]
The team earned the second of four consecutive and six 1990s Big Ten rushing defense statistical championships for all games by holding opponents to 105.4 yards per game.[11] The team also earned the first of five consecutive and six 1990s Big Ten rushing defense statistical championships for conference games by holding opponents to 102.0 yards per game.[11] The team led the Big Ten Conference in scoring defense for conference games (11.4 points per game), while Iowa led for all games.[12] They led the conference in turnover margin (+1.13) in conference games and (+0.92) in all games.[12] They led the conference in punt return average in conference games (16.3 yards per return) and all games (14.7).[13]
Grbac posted his second (a school record that he would later extend) and the school's fifth 4-touchdown performance against Florida State on August 28. His season total of 25 touchdown passes surpassed his own school record of 21 set the prior year. His junior year total of 54 touchdown passes set a new school record, eclipsing Rick Leach's total of 48 set in 1978. He also tied Jim Harbaugh's 1986 single-season completion percentage record of 65.0, which was surpassed the following year by Todd Collins. On September 14, his 20–22 performance against Notre Dame established the current single-game completion percentage, ecplising his own September 16, 1989 17–21 performance against Notre Dame.[14] On September 7, Howard became the third Michigan receiver to post a 3-touchdown reception performance and on October 19, he became the first two do so twice (a feat later matched by David Terrell and Braylon Edwards). The following season Derrick Alexander would become the only Wolverine to post a 4-touchdown reception performance. Howard also tied Carter's record of three consecutive 100-yard receiving games, a record tied by Marcus Knight in 1999 and eclipsed by Edwards in 2003 who posted four.[4]
The following players were claimed in the 1992 NFL Draft.
| Player | Position | Round | Pick | NFL Team |
| Desmond Howard | Wide Receiver | 1 | 4 | Washington Redskins |
| Greg Skrepenak | Tackle | 2 | 32 | Los Angeles Raiders |
| Mike Evans | Center | 4 | 101 | Kansas City Chiefs |
| Erick Anderson | Linebacker | 7 | 186 | Kansas City Chiefs |
| Brian Townsend | Linebacker | 11 | 181 | Los Angeles Rams |
| Matt Elliott | Center | 12 | 336 | Washington Redskins |
The individuals in the sections below earned recognition for meritorious performances.[16][17]
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