The 1978 Michigan Wolverines football team was an American football team that represented the University of Michigan in the 1978 Big Ten Conference football season. In their 10th season under head coach Bo Schembechler, the Wolverines compiled a 10–2 record (7–1 against conference opponents), tied for the Big Ten championship, outscored opponents by a total of 372 to 105, and were ranked No. 5 in the final AP and UPI polls. The defense allowed only 94.6 passing yards per game and ranked second in the country in scoring defense, allowing an average of only 8.75 points per game.

The Wolverines sustained their only regular season defeat against in-state rival Michigan State, but defeated rivals Notre Dame (the first game in the Michigan–Notre Dame football rivalry since 1943) and Ohio State (the last game in The Ten Year War between coaches Schembechler and Woody Hayes). The Wolverines then lost to No. 3 USC in the 1979 Rose Bowl, following Charles White's famed "phantom touchdown".

The team's statistical leaders included senior quarterback Rick Leach with 1,283 passing yards and 72 points scored, tailback Harlan Huckleby with 741 rushing yards, and wing back Ralph Clayton with 546 receiving yards. Leach won the Chicago Tribune Silver Football trophy as the most valuable player in the Big Ten Conference, finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting, and was selected by the American Football Coaches Association as a first-team All-American in a tie with Chuck Fusina.

Eight Michigan players received first-team honors on the 1978 All-Big Ten Conference football team, including Leach, fullback Russell Davis, offensive tackle Jon Giesler, defensive tackle Curtis Greer, linebacker Ron Simpkins, and defensive backs Mike Jolly and Mike Harden.

Schedule

Season summary Preseason The 1977 Michigan Wolverines football team compiled a 10–2 record and was a Big Ten co-champion. Key players returning from the 1977 team included quarterback Rick Leach, running backs Russell Davis and Harlan Huckleby, and linebacker Ron Simpkins. Others not returning included offensive linemen Mark Donahue, Walt Downing, and Mike Kenn, linebacker/punter John Anderson, and defensive back Dwight Hicks.

The 1978 recruiting class included tailback Butch Woolfolk, offensive tackles Bubba Paris and Ed Muransky, and defensive back Brian Carpenter.

Illinois

On September 16, Michigan, ranked No. 4 in the pre-season polls, opened its season with a 31–0 victory over an Illinois team led by Michigan's former defensive coordinator, Gary Moeller. The game was played before a crowd of 104,102 at Michigan Stadium and gave coach Schembechler a 10–0 record against the Illini.

Quarterback Rick Leach led Michigan's option offense, passing for 75 yards and rushing for another 125 yards (96 net yards after accounting for sacks) and two touchdowns. The offense was stymied in the first quarter, but an interception by Mel Owen gave Michigan good field position and led to a Gregg Willner field goal early in the second quarter. Leach also scored on an eight-yard touchdown run, and Michigan led 10–0 at halftime. The Wolverines scored another 21 points in the fourth quarter. Roosevelt Smith scored on a three-yard run, and Leach's second touchdown followed a fumble recovery by walk-on middle guard Jim Humphries at Illinois' 31-yard line. Backup quarterback B. J. Dickey scored the final touchdown with 34 seconds remaining in the game.

On defense, Michigan limited Illinois to 177 yards and came up with two turnovers, both leading to Michigan scores. The defense was led by linebackers Ron Simpkins with 12 tackles (eight solo, four assists), Jerry Meter with 10 (nine solo, one assist), and Tom Seabron (six solo tackles).

Notre Dame

On September 23, Michigan defeated Notre Dame, 28–14, before a crowd of 59,075 at Notre Dame Stadium. The first meeting in the Michigan–Notre Dame football rivalry since 1943, the game matched the schools' "duelling quarterbacks" Joe Montana and Rick Leach. Montana had led the 1977 Notre Dame team to a national championship.

Russell Davis fumbled on Michigan's first play from scrimmage, and Notre Dame recovered the ball at Michigan's 17-yard line. With only a minute and 53 seconds off the clock, Notre Dame took an early lead on a six-yard touchdown pass from Montana to Dennis Gridinger.

In the middle of the second quarter, Leach led the Wolverines on a 70-yard drive ending with a four-yard touchdown run by Leach.

After Michigan's touchdown, Montana led a 59-yard drive capped by a four-yard touchdown run by Vagas Ferguson. The first half ended with Notre Dame leading, 14–7.

In the third quarter, Leach led a 72-yard drive ending with a five-yard touchdown pass from Leach to Doug Marsh who was wide open in the end zone.

Near the end of the third quarter, Jerry Meter then intercepted a Joe Montana pass near midfield and returned it to the Notre Dame 34-yard line. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Michigan then capitalized on the turnover when Leach threw a second touchdown pass to Marsh, this one covering 17 yards. Gregg Willner missed the extra point kick, and Michigan led, 20–14.

A short time later, Mike Harden intercepted a Joe Montana pass near the Michigan's 42-yard line. Michigan again capitalized on the turnover as Leach threw a 40-yard pass to Ralph Clayton. Clayton was knocked unconscious by a hard tackle in the end zone but held onto the ball for the touchdown. After the touchdown, Leach was sacked on an attempt to pass for a two-point conversion.

Near the end of the game, Curtis Greer sacked Montana in the end zone for a safety to extend Michigan's lead to 28–14.

The ABC broadcast crew named Rick Leach and Jerry Meter as the Chevrolet Offensive and Defensive Players of the Game. Michigan tailback Harlan Huckleby also rushed effectively in the second half, finishing the game with 107 yards on 22 carries. In addition to the two interceptions, Michigan also blocked a punt and a field goal and recovered three Notre Dame fumbles for a total of five turnovers. Notre Dame linebacker Bob Golic played a great game, setting a school record with 26 tackles in the game.

Duke

On September 30, Michigan defeated Duke, 52–0, before a crowd of 104,832 at a rainy Michigan Stadium. It was Duke's worst defeat since 1966.

Michigan's offense gained 478 yards of total offense, including 390 rushing yards. Michigan played its second-string backfield in the second half, and its rushing yardage was spread among several backs, including Harlan Huckleby (84 yards and two touchdowns), Rick Leach (72 yards and a touchdown), Roosevelt Smith (66 yards and a touchdown), Russell Davis (64 yards and a touchdown), and Lawrence Reid (58 yards and a touchdown). Backup quarterback B. J. Dickey threw an eight-yard touchdown pass to Ralph Clayton in the fourth quarter.

The defense held Duke to 76 yards of total offense (including six yards in the second quarter). The Blue Devils crossed midfield only once, and even that drive was pushed back into Duke territory by the defense. Quarterback Mike Dunn, the third leading rusher in Duke history, was held to minus 18 rushing yards, and four of his passes were intercepted (two by Mike Jolly). Dale Keitz also recovered a fumble at Duke's one-yard line to set up Huckleby's touchdown run.

Arizona

On October 7, Michigan, ranked No. 3 by the AP and UPI, had to come from behind to defeat Arizona, 21–17, before a crowd of 104,913 at Michigan Stadium. Michigan took the lead on a two-yard touchdown run by Harlan Huckleby in the first quarter, a score set up by Tom Seabron's recovery of a fumble at the Arizona two-yard line. Arizona then scored 17 unanswered points in the second quarter to take a 17–7 lead. Arizona's touchdowns were set up by Michigan turnovers – a fumbled punt return by Mike Harden recovered at the Michigan 19-yard line and then a fumble by Rick Leach on a pitch-out at Michigan's 21-yard line. The Wildcats out-gained the Wolverines in the first half by 206 yards to 123.

Arizona fullback Hubie Oliver gained 80 yards in the first half but was held to 19 yards in the second half. Michigan scored on a 30-yard touchdown pass from Leach to Doug Marsh late in the second quarter. The winning score was a one-yard touchdown run by Russell Davis with 5:25 remaining in the game. An earlier attempt by Michigan to take the lead was thwarted when Leach's pass from the one-yard line was intercepted in the end zone.

Huckleby had 104 rushing yards on 18 carries, and Davis had 76 yards on 19 carries. The defense was led by linebacker Ron Simpkins with 13 solo tackles and three assists.

Michigan State

On October 14, Michigan, ranked No. 5, lost to Darryl Rogers' unranked Michigan State Spartans by a score of 24–15. The crowd of 105,132 at Michigan Stadium was the largest crowd to watch a Michigan–Michigan State game up to that point. The Spartans were on NCAA probation that prevented them from playing in a bowl game.

Freshman placekicker Morten Anderson, later inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, opened the scoring with a 38-yard field goal in the first quarter, and fullback Lonnie Middleton scored two touchdowns in the second quarter to give the Spartans a 17–0 lead at halftime. Michigan State quarterback Eddie Smith completed 20 of 36 passes for 248 yards and two touchdowns, and the Spartan backs rushed for an identical 248 yards on 43 carries. Flanker Kirk Gibson caught five passes for 82 yards. Michigan State's total of 496 yards (307 in the first half) was the most allowed by a Michigan team since 1961.

Michigan quarterback Rick Leach, who had only one interception in Michigan's first four games, threw three in the first half. Tailback Harlan Huckleby rushed for 98 yards to lead the Michigan offense, while linebacker Ron Simpkins led the defense with 15 solo tackles and an assist.

Wisconsin

On October 21, Michigan defeated the previously unbeaten Wisconsin Badgers, 42–0, before a record-setting crowd of 80,024 at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin. Quarterback Rick Leach ran for 82 yards and two rushing touchdowns and completed four of seven passes for 101 yards, including a 65-yard touchdown bomb to wingback Ralph Clayton in the third quarter. Clayton also scored in the first quarter on a 27-yard wingback reverse with Leach holding the ball behind his back for the exchange with Clayton. Harlan Huckleby rushed for 98 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries. In his first game, freshman Butch Woolfolk played the second half in place of Huckleby and gained 32 yards on six carries. Michigan out-gained Wisconsin by 477 yards to 227. The victory was the 12th in a row for Michigan against Wisconsin and the 600th overall in Michigan football history.

Minnesota

On October 28, Michigan defeated Minnesota, 42–10, before a homecoming crowd of 105,308 at a sunny Michigan Stadium. One year earlier, Minnesota had upset Michigan, then ranked No. 1 in the AP and UPI polls. The Wolverines reclaimed the Little Brown Jug trophy in 1978.

In three quarters of play, Michigan quarterback Rick Leach completed nine of 13 passes for 143 yards and three touchdowns (two to Ralph Clayton, one to Doug Marsh). He also rushed for 62 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries. With his performance in the game, Leach set a new Big Ten record with 39 touchdown passes and a new Michigan record with 209 pass completions. Freshman tailback Butch Woolfolk, in his second game and first start for Michigan, gained 131 rushing yards on 23 carries, including a 49-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. Woolfolk also turned the ball over on a run play from the Minnesota four-yard line. Michigan out-gained Minnesota by 455 yards to 211.

Iowa