Michigan Fans Rip Jim Harbaugh's Offense in 31-10 Win vs. Indiana

The No. 4 Michigan Wolverines survived a tough road test against the Indiana Hoosiers on Saturday to remain undefeated, but UM fans took aim at head coach Jim Harbaugh for holding back quarterback J.J. McCarthy.

Michigan scored a 31-10 win in a game that was tied 10-10 at halftime, but that wasn't exactly the result Wolverines supporters were hoping for against an Indiana team that entered the game 3-2 and struggling against the pass.

The two teams were either tied or within one score of each other for most of the game until the fourth quarter, and part of the reason for that may have been conservative play-calling on the part of Harbaugh and Michigan co-offensive coordinators Matt Weiss and Sherrone Moore.

McCarthy's overall numbers for the game look solid at 304 yards, three touchdowns and one interception through the air, plus four carries for 26 yards, but he was mostly kept in the pocket and tasked with making short throws.

The sophomore's average of 8.4 yards per attempt on the day was somewhat pedestrian, especially against an Indiana defense that was torched for 10.0 yards per pass attempt against Nebraska last week and allowed Cincinnati quarterback Ben Bryant to throw for 354 yards and four touchdowns the previous week.

Fan after fan got on Harbaugh with their comments on social media Saturday, questioning the conservative play-calling and why McCarthy wasn't allowed to challenge the Hoosiers down the field:

Michigan running back Blake Corum entered the game having eclipsed 100 rushing yards in each of the previous two games, plus he carried the ball a combined 59 times.

He was the focus of the offense again Saturday, compiling 124 yards and one touchdown on 25 carries.

It can be argued that Harbaugh made the right decision since the offense was able to grind down Indiana and put the game away with two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, concluding drives that were primarily orchestrated by the running game.

The Wolverines will likely need to make more big plays in the passing game at some point in order to contend for a Big Ten title and a national championship, however, which may explain the unhappiness of a portion of Michigan's fanbase.

Conservatism didn't come back to haunt Michigan since it largely shut down the Indiana offense, but a similar game plan may not fly next week against No. 10 Penn State.