USA Today Coaches Poll Out, Michigan #17
Michigan at #17
Other notables:
Alabama #1 (received 58 of 62 first place votes)
Ohio St #2
Notre Dame #11
Nebraska #18
Northwestern #22 (edit in)
Wisconsin #23
Michigan St: Just outside the top 25 in other receiving votes
August 1st, 2013 at 12:38 PM ^
Anyways, Michigan at #17 sounds right (I hope and expect them to be better at season's end but this is where I thought they'd be ranked pre-season). Many will see that Michigan loses a descent amount of starters from last year, but of course those that follow Michigan closely see we are replacing those we lost with very talented youth that did get quite a bit of playing time last year for being freshmen or sophomores.
August 1st, 2013 at 12:45 PM ^
Agreed except on the O-Line interior. Talented and physically gifted, for sure, but little or no game inexperience. Let's hope they are well-seasoned by the time November gets here.
August 1st, 2013 at 12:17 PM ^
August 1st, 2013 at 12:17 PM ^
August 1st, 2013 at 12:18 PM ^
care of*
August 1st, 2013 at 12:33 PM ^
August 1st, 2013 at 12:18 PM ^
Huh. I was expecting between the 10 - 15 range. This seems just a tad too low to me.
August 1st, 2013 at 12:19 PM ^
Nah. There are still question marks on this team, but most of us think they will be answered as the season progresses. M has the potential to be a top ten team and will be if they keep winning (obviously), but preseason 17 is just about right.
August 1st, 2013 at 12:26 PM ^
No there's not.
August 1st, 2013 at 12:30 PM ^
August 1st, 2013 at 12:32 PM ^
Brian Cook disagrees with you.
August 1st, 2013 at 12:21 PM ^
17 feels about right to me. I think we were in the 10-13 range if we pulled out the W against USC.
August 1st, 2013 at 12:18 PM ^
August 1st, 2013 at 12:20 PM ^
August 1st, 2013 at 12:29 PM ^
According to the movie 300, Spartans live around a bottomless pit; that's what Leonidas kicks that dude into while shouting "This is Sparta!"
The analogy was decent, but not completely accurate. In real life, the Spartans LIVE in the bottomless pit of East Lansing, not just around it.
August 1st, 2013 at 12:19 PM ^
I still think Ohio State's defense has a lot to prove before they deserve that #2 ranking.
August 1st, 2013 at 12:59 PM ^
Who do you move above them? It's the age old conundrum, can't just move one team down without moving another team up. I don't see anyone behind them that is coming off an undefeated season and/or returning significantly more firepower.
undefeated last season, 2nd year under urbz usually very successful, soft big ten (at least based on last season). they may not be the 2nd best team at then end of the year but now it seems hard to put them anywhere else as all that points to around #2 behind bama.
All great points. After looking at the top 25, there really isn't another team that I guess "deserves" to be there any more so than OSU. But they still have a lot to prove.
but it's really Bama and everyone else this year. They could even lose a game in the regular season and still make the NCG, just like last year. There is probably a lot of parity in 2-20 but everyone else is a step below them this year. Of course, crazy stuff happens like injuries and the NCAA... so... you never know.
August 1st, 2013 at 12:19 PM ^
is starting to grow.....
Boom......Boom......Boom.....Boom....
Boom.....Boom.....Boom....
Can't get here fast enough......
August 1st, 2013 at 12:22 PM ^
to me, beat ND we sore up to top 10, GO BLUE!
August 1st, 2013 at 12:27 PM ^
I have a soar on my leg.
August 1st, 2013 at 12:42 PM ^
Maybe you were stabbed with a soared.
August 1st, 2013 at 12:56 PM ^
it sworda hurts.
August 1st, 2013 at 12:22 PM ^
And I am serious.....this year's team will do the same thing....I have said it a few times and will again....QB DG will be one of the top 10 in the nation...the Oline with 2 great tackles and new studs interior will be very very good....RB will be great with green, Wrs will surprise and TEs will be exceptional...on defense, I think the line will be a big big improvement, James ross will be a stud and Countess will lead the secondary...I am SERIOUS...undefeated national champs THIS YEAR!!
there are 3 positions on the interior OL...2 will be given to Kalis and Braden (superstuds), yes the center spot might be weaker than them, but I still maintain it will be better than last year's center...overall the 3 of them will far surpass last year and be one of the best in the B1G. In terms of TEs....excellent point on the "youth", but actually that IS MY POINT...I would rather play talented players who are young and inexperienced than experienced less-talented players....check out college sports today, in general experience doesn't matter as much as it used too (e.g. Manziel)
Is that you?
August 1st, 2013 at 12:35 PM ^
- Junior QB ready to unleash his full potential
- RB who was injured and in a slump last year, eager to prove himself this year
- New receivers with high potential
- All-world left tackle
- A hungry defense eager to prove themselves, lead by an athletic DE
- Overrated Notre Dame team to face early in the season
- Weakened Big 10 to face
- Media writing us off at a #17 ranking
Is this 2006 or 2013.....
August 1st, 2013 at 12:37 PM ^
that describes MIchigan every 3 years
August 1st, 2013 at 12:41 PM ^
But we also had 5 losses in previous years, both times. ITS FATE I TELL YOU!!! #1 VS #2 MATCHUP GUARANTEED AT SEASON'S END!!
Of course, in that scenario, playing two weeks in a row we'll likely just obliterate each other right out of the national title picture
August 1st, 2013 at 12:36 PM ^
Carl Tabb'n it eh?
Not a bad place to start the season.
August 1st, 2013 at 12:36 PM ^
August 1st, 2013 at 12:42 PM ^
There are 5-7 teams below Ohio that are better than they are. Rankings should not include a perceived weak schedule. PRE Season rankings should only covr strength of the over all team.
Not confirming nor denying your first sentence, but you are absoultely spot on with...
"Rankings should not include a perceived weak schedule."
I'm amazed at how often people try to take schedule into account when debating rankings. A ranking is how good a team is perceived to be, not how well the team is predicted to fare.
Then why do they release a poll after the conclusion of the season?
August 1st, 2013 at 12:44 PM ^
Fun to talk about, but seeing the list of voters at the bottom of the poll just made me think...how much time do we really think these coaches have spent in the off-season paying any attention to other teams? The poll is more of a running average of success over the last 3 seasons or so. You'll notice the few "poll-crashers" from last year all dropped out. I have a hard time believing that Coach Hoke analyzed Northern Illinois, Vandy or Tulsa to determine whether or not they will have similar success this season.
August 1st, 2013 at 12:47 PM ^
August 1st, 2013 at 12:44 PM ^