Michigan has won the first three games of the Kyle Whittingham era, but the new coach is still seeking greater consistency and focus from his young team.
The 18th-ranked Wolverines needed a fortunate replay review to outlast Western Michigan in their opener, rode their defense past Oklahoma in Week 2 and overcame two early turnovers to pull away from UTEP 52-17 on Saturday. Whittingham on Monday said he was informed Michigan's roster had the youngest average in the Big Ten, which he thinks has contributed to erratic play.
"We're still working on the culture and getting things instilled that way and the expectations," Whittingham said. "When things get tough, that's when you really need to rise up and up your game and not get a deer-in-the-headlights look type of thing. We're making progress in that regard. It's just when things get hard and you get in difficult situations and face adversity, that's when you need to really rise up with the emotion and the energy and not just put you in a funk, so to speak."
Whittingham noted that Michigan has had three "really poor halves" in three games -- both halves against Western Michigan and the first half against UTEP, which led 14-7 midway through the second quarter. Michigan ended up scoring twice before halftime and shutting out the Miners 35-0 in the second half.
"Don't have a lot of those fourth- and fifth-year guys," Whittingham said. "We do definitely need to be more consistent with our enthusiasm, passion, energy. It seems to ebb and flow a little bit.
"We've got to find a way to get that passion and energy at a high level from start to finish."
Michigan opens Big Ten play Saturday when it hosts No. 17 Iowa, which leads the FBS in both fewest points allowed (4.3 per game) and fewest yards allowed (176.7 YPG). Whittingham said Michigan's offense had its most productive performance against UTEP, adding that quarterback Bryce Underwood "obviously played his best game of the season."
Starting running back Jordan Marshall has a nagging injury that Whittingham called "a concern," but the junior is expected to continue playing through the issue.