What is your definition of success for Michigan football?

Winning the BIG and defeating Ohio.

For a single season, win the B1G Championship and go to the Rose Bowl. 

For our overall program, success is being able to do that consistantly, with ups and downs of course. A down year every once in a while is acceptable for a good program, ideally for us that means winning against only one of MSU/OSU and finishing second in the division. And those down years ought to be balanced out with years where we compete for National Titles. In the new format it shouldn't be unreasonable to expect a playoff birth every few years.

Annual B1G Title contender, winning it no less than once every 3 years

Competitive, back-and-forth rivalry with OSU, winning more often then not

Semi-dominant rivalry with Notre Dame, winning 2 out of every 3

Completely dominant rivalry with Michigan State, winning 4 out of every 5

I already hate the off season.

9+ wins, a shot at the championship, and a January 1st bowlgame.  And exactly two uniforms.

High character players and staff...moral high ground and all that...

Should win majority of ohio games.  MSU shouldn't mean anything.  Beat SEC usually.  In national title hunt in most years.  Winning the B1G 3 of every 5 seasons would be great too.

I expect to go to the Rose Bowl every year. And at the very least compete to go to the Rose Bowl.

The national championship.  Back when Bo was coach, the Rose Bowl was the best thing out there.  Now we have a 4 team playoff.

A home and road uniform,top 10 recruiting class and 9 to 11 wins.

10+ wins each year should be a given.  Beating Ohio and winning the Big 10 title.

into being ok with 8 wins a season, going to a mediocre bowl and winning. I thonk thats the difference in Bo's bowl record vs Carrs. Sure, Carr did win a NC, but it seemed either feast or famine. Bo's teams were playing Rose Bowls almost every year. I want to be a perrenial conversation at the end of every season. I have no doubt that we are heading that way, and also that Hoke's record when all is said and done will cast a big shadow over Carrs.

Beat OSU, MSU, ND. Win B1G Championship. Do all of that while trying to run the cleanest and most respectable program in the country.

Wins don't mean anything to me if you have to cheat or bend the rules to get them.

1. Beating Ohio State

2. Winning the Big Ten

3. 9 wins or more

4. Beating MSU

Winning the conference every year

Win the big ten title....sadly this means we haven't been successful in a decade. If you would have told be this would ever happen to Michigan football 20 or 25 years ago I would have laughed in your face.

The B1G title game, winning and going to Rose Bowl 3/5 years.

- Jan 1 (or later) bowl game

- 10 or more wins

- At least 2 wins against OSU, ND (or top-tier schedule replacement, when there), MSU

- In control of our own destiny for B1G div title when we play OSU

- Competitive in bowl game

- A minimum of major off-field incidents (such as drunk driving, assaults)

- Doing well in the classroom in terms of graduation

Every Fall I tell my football friends the same things (and I quote): "This is Michigan. I expect nothing less than a National Championship." 

Unrealistic as that may sound that is my starting point. While I was at Michigan (90-94) we won or tied for the Big Ten title 3 out of the 4 years I was there. It was probably the golden age of UM football. I suppose that would be a more realistic expectation.

Running a squeaky clean and morally upright program is assumed.

Major criteria:

• Beat OSU.
• Beat MSU.
• Win the conference.

Minor criteria:

• Win 10+ games.
• Win all home games.
• Win the division.

As a whole the 13 year span is impressive. But most agree that its a tale of two periods with the first through 2001when we won big games (beating OSU and winning Rose, Orange, and Citrus Bowls) vs. the end through 2008 when UM couldn't win the big game (like this season).

Everyone would take Carr's first 6-7 years, fans grumbled at the last 6ish years for not winning the big game and losing 4ish games a year.

To the OP's question. My ideal dream scenario would be:

• 9-11 win seasons. In the 13 game world we live in now this should be the norm. Esp when you consider how weak the B1G is. Btw a 9-4 record is 69% winning % so accepting 4 losses (or expecting 9 wins) isn't a stretch.
• At least a split between OSU and the Bowl game most years (3 out of 4 years). This is a tall order, but again this is my ideal. Obviously beating OSU is the priority vs. the bowl game. Losing the last two really just puts a bad taste in the mouth and hurts perception. Esp if the bowl loss is in a Florida bowl against the SEC #3-4 team. Years we lost both and win both offsetting would be nice. I'm assuming most years we split.
• B1G championship every 3 years. Those who stay will be champions. This sounds like a lot but like you mentioned Moeller and Carr won 8 in 18 seasons for a 44% B1G championship rate.  so its doable. Also, OU has won the Big 12 8x times since 2000...so there is a precedent in other conferences. I think the Big12 vs. B1G are good comps as well.

This is Michigan fergodsakes.  We shoot for the national championship.

Everyone gets a pony.

I think about this question and realize that we have a pretty high bar when it comes to what the program has averaged since 1969. Our average seasonal record would translate to 9-3, we average 2nd in the conference, and when included in the final rankings in the AP and Coaches Poll, we actually average a Top 10 position in both. That's probably something few other programs  could use as a baseline measurement in a nearly 45-year span.

That being said, from a summary standpoint, anything within one standard deviation of those numbers is really a pretty successful season numerically, in this case meaning 8-10 wins, somewhere in the top three in the conference (which means being in the discussion for the BTCG if not in it most years). That would mean a Jan 1st or later bowl most of the time. I could take that as a typical expectation statistically as well as from the standpoint of being a fan - in the new system, the odd playoff appearance would be a great addition as well.

In the modern era, the 90's should be regarded as the gold standard for us. This is what we achieved in the 90's:

94-26-3 Overall (.782)

61-17-2 Big Ten (.783)

7-3 in Bowl Games

3-1 in BCS Bowls

2-1 in Rose Bowls

7-2-1 against Ohio State

4-3-1 against Notre Dame

6-4 against Michigan State

5 Big Ten Championships

1 National Championship

2 Undefeated Seasons

2 Heisman Trophy Winners

If we can duplicate that, I'll be happy. There were other teams that were perhaps more dominant in the 90's (Miami, Nebraska), but we had nine good seasons, one perfect season, won a handful of conference championships, and produced two Heisman Trophy winners, all without any rampant misbehavior or trouble with the NCAA. No other program can claim that. 

''Our goal is to win the Big Ten Championship...''

-Brady Hoke

I hope we, in the next 5-10 years, become THE rock-solid B1G team. I believe that means:

• Getting out of the non-conference schedule undefeated (will be interesting once Arkansas is a football team again)
• Drubbing who the low-end B1G teams
• Handling the average and above average B1G teams
• Always being competitive with Ohio
• Not having "empty cupboard"/ Angel of Death scenarios (2007 to 2008)

So with those bullets I'd be satisfied with 10 wins on the season and playing for the B1G championship. After that, start worrying about the national title.

To me the minimum is an 8 win season and a bowl appearence in "rebuilding" type years (Minimum) ala you're starting a new young QB, you lose a ton of guys to graduation or the NFL, or you have a new coach.  The expectation should be 9 wins, winning 2 of 3 from ND, MSU, and OSU, in the running for the division title, and a New Year's Day bowl (Baseline).  Success is a 10 win season, a B1G title, and a Rose Bowl appearence (Success).  Anything more than 10 wins is gravy with a 1 loss or undefeated season once a decade or so when all the cards fall our way (It Happens).  

This is a process, we've gotten the monkey off our backs with MSU and OSU, we've gone to a BCS bowl and had a 10 win season already, and we haven't had less than 8 wins yet.  So far I'd say we're on track and assuming we break through with a B1G title within the next 3 years and never drop under 8 wins.

Pre-2007:

• 10+ wins
• BCS / Rose (minimum)

Post-2007:

• Winning Season
• No active NCAA investigation
• All recruits qualify and stay through 1st year
• Competitive vs. Ohio / MSU / ND

Talk about a huge reset in expectations.

vvv

when jadeveon clowney hits you.

success!

I'm pretty realistic about Michigan's spot in the college football universe, and I realize that our chances of being the flagship program in the B1G all but went kaput the second OSU snagged Urban Meyer.  I also think it's reasonably established by now that to be consistently in the hunt for the MNC, a program has to outright cheat or at the very least play fast and loose with moral grey areas (oversigning, abusing medical hardships etc).

Obviously, I'd hate for my school to be engaging in those kinds of activities, so my barometer of success is very simple: have a top ten-ish type season (11-2 with OSU and BCS wins is dandy to me).  Or, absent the quantifiable victories, just be more exciting/entertaining than frustrating/predictable.  Having a ten win season against this year's schedule would have been a really tall order, but the second half against OSU, the Bellomy fiasco and the sheer degree of Bama destruction were enough for me to file '12 under "not successful."

I'd put Hoke at one out of two so far, and my pointless speculation is that this is about what I should expect for the near future.

Bo revived the standard, but Fielding Yost set the standard. 

These are my goals (under current conditions):

1.  Win the Leaders 5/10 years.

2.  Win the B1G 3-4/10 years

3.  Beat OSU 50%+ of the time.  Bo did it.  Mo did it.  Lloyd was doing it until the wheels fell off the wagon from 2001- 2007.  He should have retired two years earlier and kept the 50%+ streak going.

4.  I'd include Notre Dame but they don't really matter anymore.

5.  Beat MSU 70-80% of the time.  UM only lost once in the 70's, twice in the 80's and three times in the 90's.  Three losses should be the limit for any decade.

6.  Play in NYD bowl games (Gator or better) in 7/10 seasons.

If you throw all of those things together, you're probably looking at primarily 9-3 or 10-2 regular seasons most of the time.  I'll always "take" 11-1 or 12-0.  Four losses are OK for "rebuilding"  years.  It's hard to call five or more losses a "good" season.  2012 was only the third times they've lost five or more games since the Bo era began (excluding the RR years) along with 1984 and 2005.

I'd love to win X number of games and go to X bowl game X number of times and beat the rivals X number of times, but what I really would like to see is the team manhandle the teams that they should manhandle on a regular basis.  I know "lesser" teams get fired up to play a big name like Michigan but I'd like to not have to stress out about a game against lesser opponents.  (e.g. easily cover spreads)  I don't need the extra stress from something that is supposed to be fun to watch.

Oh, and I'd love to see a player like Denard/Desmond/Woodson on the team on a regular basis - someone that makes you think magic can happen every time they touch the ball.

Being competitive nationally.  I never cared about beating OSU or playing in the Rose Bowl; given the state of the B1G, that really isn't an accomplishment.  But when UM can walk into a BCS bowl game against a top-notch team from a power conference and win, that's a great season.  Beyond that, a generally good season is 9 wins, with a couple against quality opponents.  I rather have a consistent winner with some peaks than the wild swings you see at places like Auburn, USC, etc. where you win 11 games one year and then crater the next couple.

I want Michigan to be one of the best teams in the country. A team that people watch and admire for its skill, quality, and dominance in an average game. It should be one of the leading programs every year, even in years where it's not the best.

A lot of people are talking about beating OSU and combining that with various other goals. Remember, OSU is good and a good OSU is good for us; 50% is a good number in a top rivalry, and I want Michigan-OSU to have national implications every year. That may mean we lose some OSU games when we have a great team, but in those seasons we still ought to be BCS bowl contenders or, at worst, Cap One/Outback Bowl winners. Say, 10-2, Cap One bowl, beat Texas A&M 35-24.

But that should be a "meh" year. Maybe not rebuilding, and in the top ten, but setting us up for a bigger season ahead. 

Because Michigan should be a playoff contender every year. 

This "win the B1G, make it to the Rose Bowl" stuff has to stop. That's pansy stuff. I know it's important to win the B1G and make it there, but the goal should be to WIN the Rose Bowl and WIN the national championship. 

I don't know about you, but making the Rose Bowl wasn't good enough for me in 1986, or 1989, or 1991. It wasn't good enough for me in 1997 either, and I wasn't particularly happy with how the 2003, 2004, and 2006 seasons ended.

I want Michigan to be a winner.

Numbers:

More than 2 losses in a regular season is unacceptable, except for one rebuilding year every five years.

Beat OSU 50% of the time.

B1G championship game 50% of the time (if we're in OSU's division; quite possible to lose to them and still make the game).

Win the B1G championship game 2/3s of the time when we're there.

Playoff berth every 3 or 4 years. Win a national championship at least once in 10 years.

BCS Bowl (Rose or otherwise) 2/3s of the time.