SP+ rankings at the end of the regular season. Offense: #20. Defense: #10. Overall: #12
The number on offense is very encouraging considering the fact that it's a transition year and it was an abomination for about half of the season. The future is bright on that side of the ball. The defense will mostly be back next year and will be able to completely stone 9 or 10 teams on our schedule. We still need to figure out DT for the other 2-3.
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:09 AM ^
Not good enough when OSU is 4, 2, and 1 overall.
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:23 AM ^
Don't know why you got downvoted. Osu will always be the measuring stick. If we aren't higher or they don't fall lower, that's the definition of not good enough.
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:25 AM ^
He got down voted because people can't handle the truth.
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:27 AM ^
It's not that - it's that everyone knows "the truth" and bringing it up in every post is getting tiring.
Yes, OSU is better than Michigan. They have to get better. But this was still more encouraging than I expected.
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:48 AM ^
Online State U will fall back to earth sooner or later. Every dynasty does. It's annoying that it seems like it will go on forever, but it looked like that for Nebraska, Miami, USC, and now even Alabama is starting to show some (minor) cracks. Gravity exists in college football. Everyone comes back to earth eventually.
December 2nd, 2019 at 1:19 PM ^
I actually don't care about online courses all that much; Michigan has them as well, though in my limited experience they seem less common especially in more upper-level classes.
What gets me is the Chase Young-type stuff. It's Clemson admitting to giving people money and drugs and that not really mattering. It's schools that think they're smarter and better than everyone else because they just ignore rules and dare the toothless NCAA to stop them. And it bothers me Michigan and schools like them still cling to some of these seemingly-irrelevant norms. If Michigan loses to OSU because Ohio State is better run, that's one thing. But I want them to at least unleash their money cannon and all of their full resources and see if these colleges in South Carolina and Alabama can keep up.
December 2nd, 2019 at 1:26 PM ^
Will they though? And if they don't, then what? We just lose to them every year? Because I am not cool with that.
December 2nd, 2019 at 12:00 PM ^
Yes, very encouraging when you just got curbed stomped by your rival, back-to-back years. I can't wait for that bowl game that Michigan doesn't bother to show either. Maybe we should try to do what OSU does rather than glory in the past like anyone cares.
I'm curious when the staff takes these kids on tours of Michigan, do they talk about Bo, Crisler, and Yost the whole time?
December 2nd, 2019 at 1:25 PM ^
I feel immensely more optimistic about the future of the team offensively this offseason than last, and at some point when you give up 14 TDs on 18 possessions it's beyond schematic issues and just horrible luck.
But then again I'm an optimist, so I should probably not post around here for a week.
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:29 AM ^
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:12 AM ^
The future is exactly what it is... unknown... have a new QB next year in McCaffrey... and he is very injury prone so as far as we know it could be Milton (transfer risk?) or McNamara.
Still pisses me off to see how small our DL is, and seeing a bulked up OLB in Kemp playing DT... this is epic personnel fail, and everyone here saw that slow train wreck coming, after Solomon transferring.
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:20 AM ^
Agree regarding DT. At the very least, they'll be better. The exact same starters will be back, except they'll be a year bigger and a year stronger. We'll also have another year for Jeter to (maybe?) live up to his athletic potential. The big wild card will be the current true freshmen. If Nua can develop them and they can take over the starting jobs by the end of the season, I'll like our chances much better.
December 2nd, 2019 at 12:44 PM ^
So many people talked shit about how Solomon was a loser and the team didn’t need him. Stupid homers.
December 2nd, 2019 at 3:21 PM ^
Solomon is a loser. But the coaches had him on campus and had a chance to get more out of him. Guy had 1st round NFL potential. It wasn’t just a failure to keep him in the team, it was a failure to improve his attitude. Of course that ultimately falls on Solomon himself.
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:23 AM ^
DT and CB give me concern. DT should be better next year with the kids being a year older. CB is really scary. If you look at OSU wide receiver recruiting, you see why we have problems. I still enjoyed the season. The kids improved during the year which was nice to see. Depending on departures we should be a Top 10-15 outfit next year.
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:28 AM ^
Ambry should be back, and we can help with the CB's if we are able to get a rush. Preferably with 4 so the LB's can spy and play underneath coverages. I don't care how good corners are, if the QB has all day to survey the field.
December 2nd, 2019 at 12:08 PM ^
CB and DT are definitely a concern moving forward. The DT situation is as bad as Hoke's QB situation or Drevno's OL situation. Huge mistake by this staff, and rather inconceivable they would overlook this.
My biggest concern moving forward is the continued trend of lack of execution. How many wide-open players did OSU have on offense that resulted in big plays? Michigan apparently had been working on switches and crossing routes all year, but it looked like the same team as last year. The attention to detail on this team is missing. Is coaching to blame? The players? Michigan has been a poorly coached team the last three years and doesn't speak highly of this staff.
December 2nd, 2019 at 12:56 PM ^
If the attention to detail hasn’t improved by year 5 I don’t think it’s improving. It is what it is now under Harbaugh.
December 2nd, 2019 at 1:55 PM ^
The shitty thing is that it improved immediately in year 1 from Hoke's shit teams. It's just began to revert back.
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:30 AM ^
Actually I found those numbers to be surprisingly good when you take into consideration the OSU and Wisconsin games.
Right now, I can’t even think about next year. Let’s just find out who and where bowl game is and win that.
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:35 AM ^
With how good OSU's offense looked, it's easy to forget that they had the number 1 SP+ defense. Other than the red zone fumble, the offense straight up shredded them in the first half.
December 2nd, 2019 at 12:04 PM ^
Except football is 2 halves.
December 2nd, 2019 at 12:06 PM ^
Sure, but the dynamic changes when you fall into a big hole. It affects your playcalling. In our case, it also allowed OSU's DL to start teeing off.
December 2nd, 2019 at 12:37 PM ^
And it became evident why they were the #1 defense: they kept Michigan from doing anything except make more mistakes.
December 2nd, 2019 at 12:07 PM ^
This is the point I've been trying to make. Even the best defenses give up yards and points in today's game. Especially in rivalry games where the opponent had been scouted to death. Look at the score of the Iron Bowl between two good defenses as another example.
I don't care who we have as our DC or lining up at DT or CB next year. The game against OSU will be a shootout no matter what and our offense needs to be ready.
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:30 AM ^
Considering where the defense started per everyone's thoughts, it finished pretty good. We all knew it would take a step back, with most putting it around a top 25 defense, or so. I think Brown did an outstanding job getting them to play as well as they did.
Offensively, I still believe the last few games are what it is going forward - without the drag of the first 5 games. I feel good about it, even with a new QB and no Nico next year.
What still worries me is the DT and CB position groups. Hopefully, Smith and Hinton will show up, and some of the corners will step up. Recruiting needs to improve in those areas, specifically. And quickly.
December 2nd, 2019 at 1:01 PM ^
"Hopefully, Smith and Hinton will show up..."
Considering that the playing time Smith got was a few ST snaps against MD, we have no idea whether he'll "show up."
Of all the player personnel decisions Brown and his defensive staff made, the refusal to play Smith at a position of real need is the most puzzling to me. Either he was injured, or he was significantly unprepared to play at this level. If the latter is the case, then his high recruiting ranking is in question.
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:43 AM ^
Sounds about right where we should be based on recruiting. 247's team talent composite has us at #11 (and OSU #2). I guess the coaches are doing what they should, unfortunately just not beating anyone more talented than us as we lost to both teams on the schedule more talented than us (OSU & PSU (barely)).
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:46 AM ^
They're not doing what they should if the talent gap is that wide. Recruiting is everything in college.
Why the hell is our DL so small? And did someone forget to recruit CB's for next year?
These roster holes are killing us, just in a different way each season.
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:56 AM ^
One thing I hadn't considered until recently was the timing of the DT transfers in 2018. 4* Deron Irving-Bey transferred unexpectedly in August 2018 and Solomon transferred unexpectedly in December 2018. Those are two late transfers that really screwed us because there wasn't time to build relationships with replacements. You should recruit true DTs every year, but 2018 is at least somewhat more forgivable with that in mind. What makes absolutely no sense is picking up zero DTs again in the 2020 class.
December 2nd, 2019 at 12:06 PM ^
The transfers out of the program are a big problem in general. I know the traditional way of looking at it is there must be something wrong with the player, but when so many highly rated and recruited players are leaving, maybe we should figure out why.
Like they say, if you meet an asshole today, ok you met an asshole. If everyone you meet today is an asshole, you're the asshole.
December 2nd, 2019 at 12:12 PM ^
Harbaugh's biggest failing has been recruiting. Sadly, that isn't a one year fix, but a 3-4 year thing to flush system. It's also much better than it has been the decade prior to him arriving, and on par with the historical average for Michigan. You want to hire a coach who will break rules to get on an even playing field with OSU? I'm not ready to go there, but YMMV.
December 2nd, 2019 at 12:20 PM ^
We don't necessarily have to break rules, but we sure as hell can bend them. Or happily look the other way while boosters break them.
The other option is having Harbaugh and Warde shout from the mountain tops that OSU is cheating. But we better get some evidence on tape and make sure our own house is spotless before that happens.
December 2nd, 2019 at 3:26 PM ^
Yeah I’m not sure why Harbaugh doesn’t call out OSU cheating. It could be because they know some uofm players get paid from outside sources such as boosters or shoe companies? I say just go all in and orchestrate a pay for play at uofm. Maybe they are just waiting for the new rules and plan in exploiting them ? That’s my only hope.
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:45 AM ^
Certainly encouraging with how the year started. To be elite right now, you have to have a high powered offense and it looks like whatever emerged in State College might be our answer to that.
Of course OSU is better, but we can only work on what's in Ann Arbor and we continue to trend in the right direction even if it's slower than we'd hoped for
December 2nd, 2019 at 11:51 AM ^
So much hinges on the growth of Hinton and Mazi next year. Would love a graduate transfer to help at DT.
December 2nd, 2019 at 12:44 PM ^
And the offense is trending up. The defense is doing well.
Maybe the path to the playoff is to beat everyone else on our schedule and play OSU tough enough that the committee can't ignore us. It's either that or hope OSU gets a little worse, because right now they are an unstoppable death machine.
December 2nd, 2019 at 1:45 PM ^
No, the defense is not doing well. I don't give a fuck how good it is against Maryland and Rutgers.
OSU is all that matters.
December 2nd, 2019 at 1:56 PM ^
This. Overinflated numbers by beating bottom feeders. Defense isn’t “good” when you get collectively blown out the last two years and they still couldn’t stop Wisconsin.
December 2nd, 2019 at 1:10 PM ^
I think we are poised to make the CFP next year or the next year. Harbaugh is just getting his guys up to speed, and is working tirelessly to get together the resources to round out his support staff. Coach H is leading us into the future and it looks bright. Anyone else support a lifetime contract before he gets scooped up by the NFL? If we can lock in his accomplishments without fear of another coaching change, I think that will cement our trajectory towards multiple championships, but would take a hit if we had to seek a second rate coach in place of the accolades we have become accustomed under Harbaugh as a perennial top 15 team.
December 2nd, 2019 at 1:54 PM ^
How many years do you have to keep saying that? History says nothing you say is going to happen. Please list his accomplishments since he’s been at Michigan.
December 2nd, 2019 at 1:20 PM ^
And that’s what Michigan is. Perennial top 10 or 15 team. With a rival that is perennial top 3.
December 2nd, 2019 at 1:29 PM ^
Never felt like #12
December 2nd, 2019 at 1:52 PM ^
Like it’s cool I guess to look at this objectively but it still doesn’t fix 9-3 and 5th in the Big Ten which actually matter unlike where the offense is ranked in SP+.
December 2nd, 2019 at 3:11 PM ^
I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that improving on offense makes it less likely that you will lose games in the future. I would love to play Wisconsin and Penn State again right now with our improved offense.
December 2nd, 2019 at 5:33 PM ^
Thanks for sharing this. Very encouraged to see each of these. I know everyone is still stinging from the loss to OSU, but this team is trending, collectively, in the right direction.