1993 Michigan Football - 3 All Americans & Still 8-4?!
That 1993 had 3 All Americans, including an All American Nose Tackle, All American Corner (Law), a great RB (Wheatley), and a darn good QB who went on to play in NFL a long time (Todd Collins). A close loss to a decent Notre Dame (at home) could maybe be explained.
But how in the hell did that team lose 3 big ten games (yet stomped Ohio State 28-0)?
The past few seasons have been frustrating for sure but this 1993 team would have driven the fan base ballistic with that much talent and these results!
January 5th, 2021 at 8:50 AM ^
Yeah, like that time he threw deep on fourth and short and Grbac hit Desmond for the TD against ND. Open it up in crunch time, damn it!
January 5th, 2021 at 9:18 AM ^
Such a good memory...
But I was thinking more of the FSU game. Remember the first half? A fun shootout, but a couple of dropped passes hurt. The second half is when he shut it all down and forced runs to eat clock. He tried to slow down the game, and FSU kept it wide open. That game was a blowout, but Moeller had the offense to keep up - he just didn't use it. Something we've seen far too often...
Not saying we would've won that game, mind you. Probably not. Today, 18 years later, we are still not used to having a high octane offense, and still have no idea how to partake evenly in a shootout game. The Michigan tendency is to go conservative, to slow the game down and let the defense carry things.
January 5th, 2021 at 12:27 PM ^
This was one of the leading reason M fans wanted Carr to retire.
Played to win 23-21, became even more conservative with offensive play calling when he had a lead.
Ended up leaving the door open in the second half for the opponent, and too often they kicked it in.
January 5th, 2021 at 1:34 PM ^
This admittedly may be fuzzy, but my main gripes about those Bo/Carr/Moeller teams were:
Playing too conservatively, especially with a lead, leading to not always playing to the team's potential and frankly silly losses to inferior teams.
AND
Frustrating losses, often in bowl games, to teams that were more innovative / wide open than Michigan. The Michigan idea of "this is what we're going to do, see if you can stop it" was often beaten by "we're going to be creative and scheme to exploit your weaknesses and/or confuse your team".
These ideas, to some degree, have persisted to the present day. New blood is needed, assuming that new coach is given a fair shake and focuses on both sides of the ball.
January 5th, 2021 at 9:30 AM ^
And in the Carr years, that time Lloyd called a reverse to a primarily defensive player with an option for him to pass it, deep in the second half of a close Rose Bowl game. We forget that play because it picked up 9 yards. If it goes for a TD either running or passing, or it gets stuffed in the backfield, I suspect the narrative on Lloyd’s play calling changes a little for the better or worse.
January 5th, 2021 at 10:13 AM ^
Pretty sure that was Grbac’s call - not the call from the sideline.
January 5th, 2021 at 3:02 AM ^
Frustrating year. I was 12 and it was the first time I became ever so slightly numb to Michigan losing.
Then they looked absolutely unstoppable in their last three games: a vaporization of Minnesota at the Metrodome -- after Minny had somehow beaten Wisconsin -- plus the domination of Ohio State and the clinic in the bowl game. That was the team everyone expected going into the season.
Oh and that goalline stand against newly minted Big Ten member Penn State was pretty cool.
January 5th, 2021 at 8:39 AM ^
That goal line stand was fucking AWESOME!!!!
January 5th, 2021 at 8:39 AM ^
I was 11. I'm having a hard time placing many other memories from that season, but I can vividly picture those 4 plays on the goal line to stuff PSU. I then taunted JoPa through my television. Good stuff.
Oddly enough, I'm having a hard time placing many of the other games that year. I remember being bummed when Wheatley got hurt and wouldn't be able to win the Heisman. I don't even recall Ed Davis at RB.
I do feel bad for the OP...been hanging on to the disappointment of this season for over 25 years. You'd think the '97 team would have erased his venom, but apparently '93 cut him to the core.
January 5th, 2021 at 9:19 AM ^
I was only 7 but Derrick Alexander was my favorite player.
Really just piqued my interest so I looked on Wikipedia and saw Michigan had 3 All Americans. 3! Yet lost 4 games including to some weak teams!
It puts the past year in perspective and honestly, excluding the Ohio state blowouts, it makes me feel a bit better with Jim Harbaughs tenure. The 2018 team didn't have a Todd Collins at QB yet went 10-2... Likely would have been 11-1 with a better QB (non playoff bowls are so different now, its not apples to apples).
January 5th, 2021 at 3:10 AM ^
Well when you're coming off an undefeated season in your 3rd year, three consecutive Big 10 Championships (not including Bo's before that), a Rose Bowl Victory, and still beat OSU, fans tend to be more forgiving.
But when you're paid Nick Saban money and more than Urban Meyer only to get stomped by OSU every year, never win the Big 10, get stomped in Bowl Games, and don't even make Bowl Games because the team sucked so badly in your 6th year, fans are a bit less forgiving.
January 5th, 2021 at 3:26 AM ^
OP ownage
January 5th, 2021 at 8:40 AM ^
Yeah, Michigan totally didn't make a bowl game in 2020 because they were bad.
You're 100% locked in to reality. Neat.
January 5th, 2021 at 11:42 AM ^
Covid or not, I think there is reason to believe the team quit after losing to PSU.
No other big ten team missed 3 games in a row due to COVID and PSU didn't have an outbreak after playing us.
January 5th, 2021 at 3:28 AM ^
The Illinois loss was maddening and the MSU loss was one of those “uh oh, here we go” games from the gun back when MSU beat us every three years like clockwork no matter how mediocre they were.
The ND and Wisconsin losses were no shame at all. ND should have won the national title (the BC kick!) and Wisconsin was, it turned out, really good. We just didn’t know it at the time, with their history of bad football up to that point. Roughly the equivalent to Indiana winning the B1G now; you’d be surprised.
And yet, as you note, the team was loaded.
January 5th, 2021 at 3:45 AM ^
Yeah but Twitter wasn’t around in 1993
January 5th, 2021 at 5:13 AM ^
Defeated OSU and shut them out too!!!... full stop!
Unbelievable,... the Harbaugh slappies still don't get it.
No wonder we're in this predicament!
January 5th, 2021 at 5:26 AM ^
But still 8-4. Probably the most common record in this program's history, no matter the coach.
It is the people who expect Michigan to be something they aren't is what the issue is.
11 wins. 5 times. History of the program. OSU has lapped that in the 2000's alone.
January 5th, 2021 at 5:35 AM ^
Defeat OSU = You Keep Your Job!... Period!
Check why John Cooper was eventually fired.
January 5th, 2021 at 7:51 AM ^
Moeller was (essentially) fired after the next season. Yes, an off-field incident was the ostensible and perhaps primary reason for his firing. However, most who were around then felt that back-to-back 4 loss seasons (preceded by a 3 tie (!!) season) were at least a small contributing factor. If he was coming off of back-to-back 10+ win seasons, his rope likely would have been longer.
January 5th, 2021 at 8:55 AM ^
Well it took OSU 13 years to finally realize that. So, I guess Jim still has some time to turn this around.
January 5th, 2021 at 5:38 AM ^
What about this is hard to understand?
- The largest halftime deficit at home since Michigan Stadium opened in 1927 (28-0 against Wisconsin)
- Michigan 1-3 for the first time since 1967
- First time in at least 20 years, leading rusher did not run for more than 22 yards in back-to-back games
- MSU 21 pt favorites - upset
- 0-3 at home, against trash teams
But I'm sure we'll hear how the Covid season doesn't count, even though Harbaugh was pushing hard to play a "meaningless season." Surprised the same posters are not saying the basketball season is meaningless. I guess it only becomes meaningless if Michigan sucks.
January 5th, 2021 at 5:45 AM ^
Some folks just accept defeat (or less say mediocrity to be kind).
Jim had his chance, 6 yrs is more than enough. Time to move on.
January 5th, 2021 at 7:17 AM ^
Preach brother preach! Harbaugh apologists want to put an ASTERISK next to the abysmal 2020 results! If we had a good year and won the B1G, no one would want to put an asterisk next to 2020 results, can't have it both ways!
OSU, Indiana, Northwestern, and Iowa are not doing that, why should this fanbase do that???
January 5th, 2021 at 8:41 AM ^
Found Salvatore's sleeper account...
January 5th, 2021 at 12:15 PM ^
I see your point and I tend to agree with it. Especially with how it means Michigan over the last 20 years hasn't matched OSU.
But OSU in the 2000s has had the opportunity to play 14 or even 15 games in a season. up until the mid '00s Michigan only had the opportunity to play 12 games in a season. Winning 11/12 is more impressive than 11/14 in my opinion
January 5th, 2021 at 5:27 AM ^
Fortunately back then, the armchair quarterbacks, as well as the conspiracy theorists, could only scream out their windows.
January 5th, 2021 at 7:41 AM ^
Well, the more adept armchair quarterbacks could log onto their Prodigy or CompuServe accounts, spend about $100 searching for the appropriate forum that had maybe five members and a sysops with an agenda, post a message, and then do what everyone else did and spend another bit of change on a porn search.
January 5th, 2021 at 8:41 AM ^
This is gobbledygook.
What's a CompuServe?
January 5th, 2021 at 9:20 AM ^
Hey, come on! I was a student employee of ITD at the time. We were past compuserve. Usenet was a thing, and the porn searches were done in Netscape or Mosaic.
January 5th, 2021 at 5:35 AM ^
Just some things I remember from the 1993 season: Powers fumbled away the Illinois game and I believe the Wisconsin game as well. Collins threw 3 picks in the ND game in what was his first big start. As we all know, turnovers are the great equalizer in this game. The games vs Penn State and Ohio State showed just how good they could have been when they took care of the football.
January 5th, 2021 at 12:46 PM ^
I had high hopes for Powers as a freshman but seemed he got worse each year. I remember him as a bigger Chris Evans. After his freshman year, I thought he could play on Sundays. Or Sunday nights, Monday nights, or Thursday nights.
January 5th, 2021 at 6:01 AM ^
It was a disappointing season but when you had a history of winning a lot of games in both the years before and after, it was more of just a "flukey" type year than anything else. Compared to our recent history, we are no longer as confident in the program and when the losses start happening, our patience with it is slim and our frustrations run deep.
January 5th, 2021 at 9:23 AM ^
‘93 we won 9 games. 94,95,95 we won 8, 9, and 8 again.
today people would be writing here and pontificating on podcasts.
January 5th, 2021 at 6:23 AM ^
I see we're bored whining about the present so now we're reaching into the past to do it?
January 5th, 2021 at 7:25 AM ^
If we went 1-7 this year with a win over OSU I would have been happy.
January 5th, 2021 at 7:36 AM ^
OP: Wheatley, Law, and Collins were all obviously good players, but it's never a great idea to cite an "All American" from that era. Remember Erick Anderson? All American linebacker. Must've been a high NFL draft pick and had a long career, right? Well, no:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erick_Anderson
Steve Morrison? Similar. He has had an interesting coaching career:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Morrison_(American_football)
Meanwhile, Miami and Florida State were playing in the future with "team speed."
January 5th, 2021 at 7:47 AM ^
Being a great college player has never meant it will automatically translate into being a great pro player. See David Molk.
January 5th, 2021 at 8:51 AM ^
Anderson and Morrison were incredibly slow. Florida State pretty much showed the whole program was slow prior.
January 5th, 2021 at 8:55 AM ^
Not sure how this pertains to the OPs discussion of the college program
January 5th, 2021 at 11:05 AM ^
Don't know about Miami since they are a private school but pretty sure they were doing the same thing fsu was at the time. Somewhere around 60 players on fsu's roster were minimum qualifiers, academic exceptions classified as learning disabled and only had to carry 6 credit hours to be eligible at this time. By today's standards you are only allowed to have a few players on your roster with this rule. This was also a huge issue in sec, ie graduating players with a degree that couldn't read or write.
January 5th, 2021 at 8:17 AM ^
This will hurt some feelings. The mentality was if you lost one game in the Big Ten, you had no shot to win the national championship. No matter what, the Big Ten Champion would not play the #2 or #1 team in the country unless it came from the PAC 10. After that first loss, they basically quit on the season. Ohio State would always enter that game thinking Michigan really was as bad as their record and that was never the case. They just wouldn't get up for games after the first loss.
January 5th, 2021 at 10:53 AM ^
I don’t think that thought process is particularly accurate (certainly no more than any other team in the nation; this is before the SEC was all-conquering. Recent history was enough to prove otherwise, too—that 1990 loss to MSU was Michigan’s second loss of the season and they had *already* climbed back to #1 after losing to Notre Dame like 4 weeks earlier) and it certainly wasn’t a cause of teams playing poorly after the first loss.
January 5th, 2021 at 8:35 AM ^
FIRE MOELLER!
UNACCEPTABLE!
DEAR GOD IN HEAVEN! IF HE GOES 8-4 AGAIN HE SHOULD BE FIRED AND WE SHOULD CLEAN HOUSE! WITH OUR TALENT THIS IS SIMPLY MEDIOCRITY! UNACCEPTABLE!!! WE SHOULD BE COMPETING FOR NATTY'S EVERY YEAR!!! ANYONE WHO DISAGREES IS SIMPLY SETTLING!!!
January 5th, 2021 at 9:08 AM ^
He actually did go 8-4 again and got fired (although it was because of the incident at the restaurant).
January 5th, 2021 at 9:17 AM ^
Yes, sorry, I was being tongue in cheek.
I was in my second year there at the time I believe. I remember my Dad thinking Moeller basically got railroaded out by a University administration that was too tight laced; he really felt that way a bit later when Berenson was arrested for drunkenly peeing in Public. I told him that Red got some slack being a Hockey player.
people sometimes forget our biggest run of success was arguably under Carr; and that our normal isnt, what they think, not is the current environment Somehow the same or easier than the past.
January 5th, 2021 at 11:22 AM ^
It would have been a passing blip at OSU.
But here in Michigan the Freep would have written about it twice a day every day for years.
January 5th, 2021 at 8:43 AM ^
Things will turn around in 1994 though. Colorado coming to The Big House. We got this!