Preseason Coaches Poll: Michigan ranked #14
In a break from all the Urban news, the pre-season coaches poll was released. Preseason polls are dumb, and the coaches poll is dumb, but here we are. Link.
Rankings of note:
1. Alabama
2. Clemson
3. OSU (votes made before Urban stuff came out)
4. Georgia
5. Oklahoma
7. Wisconsin
9. Penn St.
11. ND
12. MSU
13. Stanford
14. Michigan
No other B1G teams are ranked, but NW and Iowa are receiving votes
This is good. High enough that if we beat who we need we are in good shape, but not so high that we aren't hungry. Also glad MSU is ranked higher than us so they don't have that Disrespect power.
Yes...this is great! Michigan plays 5 top 12 teams this year...3 on the road ? Hope Patterson is a baller.
I noticed we have 5 of our 12 games against top 15 teams, that is 41% of our games against the top 15, that is brutal. But if you take a closer look at these teams youll see that they are all in our own conference. MSU and OSU as well as PSU face the same thing. They potentially have WIS on their schedule assuming WIS wins the west and they make it to Indy.
If we beat ND that first game our schedule isnt any tougher than the other teams in the East, so while at first glance it seems daunting on second glance,the east is going to be a battle royale lol. Go Blue!! Beat ND!
Disrespekt*
Should be a Battle Royal in the B1G East
I believe this is exactly where we were to start the season in 1997, facing off against a top-10 ranked Colorado team in the home opener.
Yes, you are right.
Yes...but we also had an experienced QB coming off a season where he had won in Columbus...and we had this guy named Charles Woodson.
Whhaaaaaa?! There were things that were different?! Whoa.
We also had an offensive line with huge holes at two big question marks on the offensive line, a good but not great thunder and lightning RB committee, a really good defense with one transformational player and a lot of NFL talent, a coach being maligned for not meeting expectations and coming off an 8 win season, and a team that no one outside of the locker room believed in.
Just win!
Damn the no edit option. *two huge holes on the offensive line.
Close, Michigan was ranked 13th in the coaches poll before the '97 season. 1.) Florida, 2.) PSU, 3.) Washington, 4.) FSU, and 5.) Tennessee. OSU was #9 and ND was #12.
Good, we suck, nothing to see here opposing teams, a rebuilding year, don't worry about us, easy win on your schedule.
Sparty is probably pissed about this. They can’t use the Michigan is ranked higher than us again disrespect card.
It's the old Lou Holtz hustle, remember the week leading up to every game he would talking about how terrible his team was and how many issues they were having and simultaneously damn the opposing team with exaggerated praise.
Well by game time that'll probably change.
Watch them throw the game the week prior to restore their shoulder chips just in time for an unbeaten Michigan team to roll in to EL.
You're right about the "ranked higher than us" card, but they'll still say we're overrated coming off an 8-5 season, Harbaugh has never really won anything, the defense is overrated, etc.
Never underestimate MSU fan.
Please, guys, help me understand...
Your earnestly-held beliefs include:
a) MSU is pissed about its ranking in a pre-season poll, because the team's ability to motivate depends specifically on being underrated vis-a-vis Michigan, and
b) MSU would strategically tank one of its 12 regular season games in order to reacquire the mythical "chip"?
Do you guys fucking read what you write before hitting save? These things strike you as plausible?
Also, if b) is true, consider the 3-9 2016 season our mega-tank; chip is officially recharged for like a decade. SO SORRY.
I dunno man. I get why we're ranked here (based on our performance last year). But aside from Bama and OSU, I think we have the most talented team in the country. Yes, our O-line is an injury away from being essentially what it was last year... not good. But we have to be given benefit of the doubt with our QB situation now, right? I'm not saying we should be number 3. But top 10 at least?
Also, when I was looking at rationales for why some folks ranked us in the teens, I was upset to learn "their schedule is tough" as one of the reasons. Having a tough schedule should have no bearing on where you think a team should be ranked in the preseason. The ranking should be how strong you think a team is, not a prediction where they will end up.
That Clemson D-line is really scary. I like ours, no doubt, but going against that with our O-line I would be quite worried.
LMAO, most talented?? Top 10 talent, I'll give you that, but no way do we have more talent than 'Bama, OSU, Clemson, Georgia, and arguably other teams like Oklahoma, FSU, Miami, PSU, Stanford have very similar talent levels.
Michigan might not be in the top 10 most talented teams based on recruiting rankings anymore. They were 7th last year and brought in the 21st ranked class.
Our OL could be what it was last year without an injury. Runyan/JBB/Hudson should be a better group than last year's version of those three, but they aren't (which is very possible) we are in a shitty spot.
No man, we don't deserve to be number 3... Patterson is coming off an injury and has never played a down of Michigan football. We don't even know how the OL will fit. Just wait and see the ND game and THEN come back with your thoughts.
ND at #11 so we won't get a top 10 road win. I respect the move, coaches poll.
We were ranked No. 9 going into last season.
these rankings don't matter, only rankings that matter are when the playoff rankings come out during the middle of the year. But 14 is about right.
False
care to explain why its false? because its definitely not false
I think it matters to the extent you don't have a schedule like Michigan's. Alabama and Wisconsin both played trash schedules last season and both had one loss (Wisconsin got their loss in the Big Ten Championship, while Alabama didn't even make it), but because of pre-season bias, Alabama was a playoff team and Wisconsin was not.
Central Florida is another example. If they had started the season in the top ten, they would have went to the playoff.
Even with our hard schedule, an early loss on the road would knock us down to 10th or 11th if we were ranked three to begin the season, whereas an early loss now could knock us out of the top 25 altogether.
But yeah, if you win all of your games, it doesn't matter. It's when you lose one, where preseason ranking is just as bit important as strength of schedule.
Eh, preseason polls matter. Easier to stay #1 than to displace #1. It's bullshit, but it matters.
If Alabama loses their first game, they won't even drop of out the top 5. If Michigan wins our first game, do we get into the top 5? Probably not.
Personally, I don't think that any polls which could determine playoff/bowl game appearances should happen until at least week 5, but that's just me.
Cool. NW might be ranked when we play them.
Did skipping 6, 8 and 10 really save you any time?
Every other game is a top 12 team. Cool Cool Cool
Yes, as others have pointed out, this is EXACTLY where we were ranked in the 1997 preseason poll. Notre Dame was also ranked No. 11 in the 1997 preseason poll. EERIE!
Actually, we were 14 in the AP and 13 in the coaches. Here's the link to all the week-by-week polls from that season. LINK.
I was thinking about 1997 too, as many others have pointed out. In 1997, Michigan had 4 teams on their 11 game schedule against teams ranked above them, and 3 others in the top 25. In 2018, Michigan has 5 teams on their 12 game schedule against teams ranked above them, with no one else in the top 25. In 1997, Michigan had a dominant defense. In 2018, Michigan looks to have a dominant defense.
We'll see.
Feels about right.
Outstanding. Let's go beat 5 top 15 or even top 10 teams!
Seems about right. ND at 11 is too high. We haven't beaten a ranked team on the road since 2006, that ND game is a great chance to end the streak.
Yes...this is great! Michigan plays 5 top 12 teams this year...3 on the road ? Hope Patterson is a baller.
Ugh....when will editing be available?!!
Well at least strength of schedule will will not be an issue for Michigan this year.
I'd argue that the strength of the schedule is a major issue this year.
If you complain about it more, it makes the developers work faster, which means less bugs and better code. #science
Well it is possible that ND MSU and PSU are overated a i little. Wis and OSU will be pretty tough and we get Wisco at home. This poll is meaningless, lets just concentrate on beating ND right now.
I'm a little surprised by the PSU ranking. Not only did Barkley leave, but I believe they had a lot of other players leave too. They do have a heck of a schedule....home vs osu, wisky and msu.
I get last year shouldn't matter as much as this year, but Penn State was probably the best team in the Big Ten last year. Lost two games by a combined 4 points. Destroyed everyone else except at Iowa (in which they gained over 500 yards of offense and only scored 21 points).
They've recruited exceptionally well and have the best QB in the league.
I agree. I think they take a step or two back this year. Also lost OC Joe Moorhead and no more Gosieki to chuck up 50/50 balls. A lot of weapons lost on that offense. I think they finish the year outside of the top 13 teams.