Urban Meyer had every reason to enjoy Michigan’s misery, but even he looked disturbed watching the Wolverines blow a 14-7 halftime lead in a 20-14 loss to Minnesota. Three turnovers, an offense that could barely cross midfield, and Bryce Underwood getting battered behind a unit giving him almost no help. Meyer watched Michigan unravel right in front of him and finally broke his silence. But this was not just a former Ohio State coach taking another shot at Ann Arbor.

The connection between Meyer and Kyle Whittingham dates back more than two decades.

“I normally could give a damn about that place, but I do now,” Urban Meyer said on The Triple Option. “I got five or six former players, coaches on that staff. It’s an enigma right now. What in the heck is going on?”

Kyle Whittingham was Urban Meyer’s DC at Utah in 2003 and 2004. When Meyer left for Florida after Utah’s undefeated 2004 season, he famously passed his whistle to Whittingham in a symbolic endorsement of his longtime assistant. 

Kyle Whittingham went on to build a lengthy tenure in Salt Lake City. So when Michigan hired him, Urban Meyer was hardly skeptical. He called the move a “no-brainer” and believed his friend could compete for a national championship in Ann Arbor. Now, five games into the experiment, the former Ohio State coach is looking at a team that has him scratching his head.

“They had three turnovers, bang, bang, bang, right in front of me,” Urban Meyer said. “You can blame Bryce Underwood all you want. I don’t see any explosiveness on offense. I see a quarterback getting hammered.”

And that pretty much captured Michigan’s afternoon. The Wolverines’ defense actually gave them every chance to escape with a win.  Nathaniel Staehling took an interception 79 yards for a touchdown, putting the Wolverines up 14-7 before halftime. But the offense never got going.

Michigan got past midfield only twice. That tells you plenty. The Wolverines finished with 180 yards and 11 first downs on 49 plays. Bryce Underwood went 10-of-21 for 101 yards, threw two picks and took three sacks. Then came the turnover sequence that turned a shaky afternoon into a full-blown collapse.

Andrew Marsh muffed a punt early in the second half, handing Minnesota possession at the Michigan 17. The Wolverines held the Gophers to a field goal, but Bryce Underwood threw an interception on Michigan’s next series. Another red-zone stand limited Minnesota to three points.

Michigan still led 14-13. Then Bryce Underwood was hit while attempting an RPO. The ball floated directly to Zack Harden. Three plays later, Minnesota scored the touchdown that put the Gophers ahead for good. For a Michigan team already coming off a 20-19 loss to Iowa, it was another game where the margin for error disappeared under its own mistakes.

Minnesota reclaimed the Little Brown Jug, beating Michigan for the first time since 2014 and hoisting the trophy in front of its home crowd for the first time since 1977. The Gophers improved to 4-1, while Michigan fell to 3-2 and 0-2 in Big Ten play. Kyle Whittingham acknowledged afterward that he is still trying to figure out exactly what is going wrong with his team.

“I’m still trying to figure that out,” he said. “I’ve been in this profession 40-some years, and this is the biggest challenge I’ve had. I promise you we’re going to figure it out.”

Urban Meyer was even more blunt.

“First of all, they’re 2-3,” he said. “The record is not 3-2. I have not said this yet. It’s a train wreck right now. I stood right there and watched it.”

The bigger issue now is what happens during the bye week. Michigan has two weeks to figure out what went wrong before Penn State visits Ann Arbor on Oct. 17.