Alright full disclosure: I’m a dyed in the wool Michigan fan; however, I do not find myself to be the “OMG GO BLUE!!1!!!1 everyone else suxzores” type of obnoxious fan that B2 alluded to, perhaps I am mistaken, do inform me if need be.
I am biased, but I will do my best to explain my points of view on the team and back them up with [gasp] reason and logic [/gasp].
You won’t see me creating national title shirts prior to a season (AHEM like a certain Michigan blogger who shall remain nameless but deserves to have a plot in the Steve Bartman HOF).
Disagree with something I have to say?
Comment away dear reader, comment away.
One thing the media will harp on that is ridiculously off base – Wooo boy, what WON’T the media harp on and in an off-base fashion?
If it has the words “Rodriguez” “Offense” and/or “Spread” in it, then it’s likely off-base, and it will likely be beat like a drum to the tune of “CRAIG KRENZEL TAKES MOLECULAR GENETICS!!!!
DREW HENSON PLAYS BASEBALL!!!!!
THE SSSSS EEEEE SEEEE IS AMAZING!!” type of level.
You’ve been forewarned… oh oh and West Virginia in any context will likely be mentioned ad nauseum.
Also, if I have to hear one more time about how the entire offense won’t work because Threet doesn’t run a 4.4 40… I may snap.
There’s a bevy of topics to pick from here, and even the harshest critics have to admit that Michigan certainly is the most intriguing storyline in the Big 10 right now.
This naturally means way too much exposure and way too much focus that will undoubtedly carry through the season.
You’ve been warned.
One thing the media will completely ignore that is integral to this team's success – Well so far that would be anything that has to do with the defensive side of the football.
You won’t hear the media harp on the returners on the D-line or our two stellar corners who are returning, nor will you hear about the talent stepping into more prominent roles in the line-backing corps (Ezeh will become a much more familiar name by the season’s end).
For something as cliché and well known as “defense wins championships” the defense that’s assembling in Ann Arbor hasn’t gotten a lick of a mention thus far.
Here’s a little secret, they’re going to be good.
The second part of this is talent.
All we’ve heard about thus far is how much Michigan lost on the offense… and hey, no bones about it, we lost a lot, but uh, guess what, there’s more to come and step into those vacated roles.
The Wolverines haven’t been slacking in the recruiting department, and solid classes from the past several years will be joined by a heck of an incoming freshman class where a number of guys will likely challenge for playing time right away.
No one has mentioned how much IS there.
The team will be young, but it still rolls out more talent than every team in the Big 10 save for one… count the number of times THAT gets mentioned this year.
Most Michigan fans will tell you that the issue has not really been talent over the years, it’s been how that talent has been utilized… and that will most assuredly change heading into this season.
Most important contributors on each side of the ball – Without a doubt this is the offensive line.
I know, I know, DUH, but I have to go with them here.
If Michigan is going to have success offensively this season, then the offensive group up front will have to gel quickly and give Threet some time and the stable (and holy cow what a stable) of running backs some lanes to run in.
It’s hard to imagine that Michigan would lose the number one pick in the draft and actually become better, but I don’t think they’re going to lose as much ground as some make it out to be.
Aside from the excellence of Long, the rest of the line was decidedly “MEH”.
The other losses aren’t going to be as big of an impact as outside observers are assuming, and the way things are shaping up, Michigan will roll out 4 red-shirt juniors on the line… not exactly a rag tag bunch of green-horns.
On the defense I have to go with Brandon Graham.
Graham has the ability to become a LaMarr Woodley type of player on the D-line and could be one of the keys to an experienced front four getting consistent pressure and creating mismatches at the line of scrimmage.
Destroyer of backfields
Area that scares you as an opponent – The unknown.
Every Michigan opponent this season is getting a team they have never seen before.
This isn’t going to be the “first down draws to the left behind Long 80% of the time and not kill you with its offensive weapons until they absolutely must”
or the “throw the 2-yard WR screen on 3
rd and 7” type of Michigan team that opponents have counted on year after year.
The game-planning will be different, the play-calls will be different, and oh, oh yes, the players themselves will be different.
Count me as a member of the “eeeeeeee Barwis!” club, I cannot wait to see these guys take the field come the fall: speed, speed, and more speed.
The thought of Michigan’s talent with space to operate is a scary proposition indeed, and Rodriguez will undoubtedly bring a level of aggression that this team (depending on whom you talk to) may or may not have been lacking over the past several seasons.
Watch how much they try to get guys like Matthews, Stonum, Brown, Minor, McGuffie (droooooool), Shaw, and others the football in space… Michigan will have a number of real burners that will likely get the ball in much better shape than Steve Breaston could’ve ever dreamed of.
Area that makes you salivate as an opponent – Youth.
Michigan’s QB will be someone who has never taken a collegiate snap as a starter.
The receiving corps is also young, the line will feature new faces in new positions, and there will be freshmen getting significant playing time at various spots across the field.
There will be miscues, there will be freshman mistakes, and there will be head-slapping moments.
The way that teams are going to play the Wolverines early, and the way I’d game plan for them right now, would be to stack the line and force the quarterback to make plays by bringing pressure, if Threet crumbles or the o-line is anything resembling the version we saw against the Buckeyes last year, then you’ll see many Michigan fans screaming eeeek and covering their eyes.
Random factor that you think will come into play this season – I’m taking liberty here and mentioning a few… first and foremost is the D, I love how it looks right now, it could become a force, but I will be stunned if it is anything short of very solid.
Secondly, Threet (or whomever will be the QB, some seem to think Feagan may have a shot, I am not one of those people) won’t have to win games on his own.
Much will be made about the lack of experience on offense and the “new system” being brought in.
What will be missed is that Rodriguez will tailor the system to the players he has.
You won’t be seeing a Pat White offense next year.
You’ll see one that maximizes the talents of the players that are on the field, Michigan will run the football and they will use their mix of receivers to spread the field to open it up for the backs.
I think you’ll see a return of the screen (something we used to run to perfection) to the attack, and a lot of plays designed to give Threet easy and simple reads (think Tom Brady when he first started with the Patriots).
Michigan simply needs the QB to be able to manage the football game and not make huge mistakes.
The Wolverines are flat out LOADED in the backfield and will once again bring a number of solid receivers into the mix.
They will not have to fling the football all over the field to move the chains, nor will they have to score 40 points a game to have a chance to win.
For all of the hyperbole about how bad the offense could be, it won’t have to be a showstopper for the team to have a shot, and for the most part I think that is something that many out there are overlooking right now.
Michigan has recruited VERY well over the years, the names won’t be as familiar, but you’ll know them by the end of the fall.
Overall Record – Yeegads, anyone who knows me knows that I HATE predicting my own team’s record… you always get blasted and there is no middle ground.
This team could legitimately cover quite the spectrum… they could be downright terrible or they could be surprisingly good, and none of us has any iota of a clue what they will look like when they tee that ball up for opening kick come late August.
Naturally this means predicting the records at this point is even harder than usual, that is to say it’s impossible.
First clue to our random guessing game would be to examine the road contests: these include trips to South Bend, Penn State, Purdue, Minnesota, and oh yeah, a little date in Columbus at the end of the year.
Penn State will be frothing at the mouth… again… like always… but as long as JoePa is at the helm in Happy Valley, I’m going to be confident heading into that tilt.
Purdue actually scares me a bit, don’t laugh.
They will return a number of players and they have given Michigan FITS in West Lafayette recently.
Although I didn’t see a whole lot in the Boilermakers last year that has me trembling about this upcoming season, I think they’ll be more than ready when Michigan heads to Ross Ade.
The Buckeyes stand every chance of being a ridiculous football team this year, and that game in Columbus will be a MONSTER of a challenge, to count on a win there would be sheer lunacy, but anyone who knows this series at all knows that Michigan will be ready to play come November 22nd.
I don’t think it’s completely unreasonable to see the Wolverines coming out of their road schedule with a record of 3-2.
Home tilts feature Utah (not quite the creampuff you might want to see in the opener… of course after last year, nobody is a creampuff… sigh), Wisconsin, Illinois and those pesky Michigan State Spartans.
Michigan hasn’t dropped four games at home since 1967, and since 1995 has put up a decent record of 74-12 (that’s a pretty solid 86% clip).
Michigan Stadium might not be a decibel beast, but the Wolverines have defended their home turf rather well over the years and so I’m going to lean hard on home field advantage here.
Michigan’s defense will keep this team in games this season, and there just aren’t many offenses on the schedule that give one pause when staring 5 or 6 months down the line.
I’ll set the bar on the higher end and say 6-1, giving us an overall record of 9-3.
Final Big Ten Standing – This one is tough, I have to put a chill in my heart and count the Buckeyes as the better football team, so there’s one…
Illinois and Michigan State are the “punchers chance” teams that we’ve already discussed thus far, but with both games coming at home I think Michigan will be able to take care of business.
Wisconsin will be solid again and I’m calling that a toss-up and likely our toughest home game on paper right now, but it is the Big 10 opener, where Michigan has been otherworldly good over the years, so keep that in mind.
Somewhere in those three games Michigan might stumble, so we’ll go with one L out of those 3.
Penn State fans are already beating their chests about this upcoming matchup, and that’s laughably premature, the Nittany Lions will likely be favored at home, but keep an eye on that October 17
th tilt.
Penn State has more questions than they’d like you to know about and losing Sean Lee is a big blow to that defense, me thinks Michigan hangs tough in Happy Valley, JoePa has yet to prove that he can game plan against the Wolverines and I don’t expect that to change suddenly now.
A defensive battle favors Michigan whether Bob Nittanylion fan thinks so or not.
I don’t know why, but the Purdue game seems to be the one lurker to me that bugs me.
It follows on the heels of the Penn State and Michigan State games and just seems to be the kind game that might jump up and bite a young team… call me somewhat concerned there.
After all that jabbering, I’ll go 5-3 in the Big 10; good enough for a possible top 3?
Opposing Big 10 teams are licking their chops now, but I’m telling you that many are going to get a lot more than their fans are bargaining for at this point in time.
The defense will give the young offense ample time to find its feet and keep the pressure of having to score every time it touches the ball far away.
Rich Rodriguez CAN coach, the guy knows what he’s doing, and despite the pedantic defamation of the guy’s character by many (I’m sure all are well versed on the situation and its various intricacies), I don’t see a whole lot of people out there questioning his coaching ability.
Bowl Game Destination – 9-3 would bring another New Year’s Day bowl of lesser distinction and be a colossal upset to the Kirk Herbstreits and Beano Cooks of the world… and a tremendous smile across the face of yours truly.
Optimistic?
You bet your ass, but that’s how I roll.
GO BLUE!
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