Post-Week 1 Predictions...REDO

11-1 Defense is much better Offense is what we thought it was Barkley, Jackson, Darnold Alabama, Michigan, Clemson, USC

1.  10-2... If they play like they did yesterday.  If they get more consistent QB play and the RT and CB positions come on strong, well.... then maybe better than that.

2.  Both.  It was disappointing to see Speight play like he did.  On the other hand, you can see the potential on that side of the ball if he gets his head on straight.  The run blocking has improved, and the backs look to be spotting the holes better.  Lots of receiving options.

3.  Better, and I thought they'd be really good anyway.  I feel like as long as Don Brown is here and the recruiting doesn't fall off a cliff, this is the kind of defense we're going to play.  They physically dominated a big, athletic offensive front for Florida.

4.  Way too early IMO.  Never been a big Heisman guy anyway (unless one of our guys wins it.)

5.  Alabama.  After that, it gets muddy.  I had FSU, but now they don't have a QB.  Too early to tell on Clemson.  OSU has the inside track, but Michigan or Penn State just might be able to catch them on the right day.  Oklahoma if they can upset OSU, but not betting on it.  Not sure I like anyone in the PAC 12 to run the table.

Gun to my head:  Bama, OSU, Clemson, Oklahoma (losing to OSU but running the Big 12 table to sneak in over the Mich/Penn State winner on basis of conference championship.)  PAC 10 will eat itself with no single team head and shoulders above the rest.

 

 

1. We are good enough to beat anyone on our schedule, and I'm much more comfortable with out depth across the board. Beat OSU and we are most likely in the playoffs. 11-1. 2. Pretty much what I expected. Speight is what he is. Mostly good, our best option, but definitely going to miss a few throws every game, some leading to catastrophic results. Black is a star and the TEs are deep and athletic. Isaac is a revelation and should probably be the starter based on pass protection alone. He was much improved on staying up on first contact compared to last season. 3. Better. Furbush and Gil played meaningful minutes, we didn't even need Mone, the CBs kept everything in front of them, and Solomon was getting pressure up the middle on almost every snap he was in. Bush is an absolute star on defense and did a great job spying Zaire on a couple plays in the second half. He will be an enormous asset v Barrett and company. 4. Hurts is probably the default leader just because he is on the best team. Love, Barkley, and Mayfield are in the mix, although it will depend on if their teams can stay in the playoff race. The Heisman seems more wide open than previous years. 5. Alabama, Clemson, Mich/OSU winner, and Stanford.

We made an SEC team look slow!

If Michigan gets good quarterback play, we have a legitimate chance to be in the playoffs.

~20 points were left on the board against all that SEC speed. That first second-half drive was professional quality. Cool and collected and the biggest barometer to me thinking of the season. I was excited going in because football yet now I'm confident.

1. Record - 11-1 - win the B1G East with a punch-you-in-the-face win vs OSU

2. Offense - Better - the OL had some solid schemes against a strong UF front 4, Chris Evans is slick, Isaac is a faster De'Veon, Speight can still improve and hit some of those gimmy throws (that sure TD to Black or Crawford on the sideline was a fantastic playcall and an audible groan of a miss) and the WRs will ascend. Perry had some sweet over the middle grabs

3. Defense - Better - Devin Bush is a DUDE; he'll be gone in three years. Best player on the field. Second year in DB's system will further internalize just how scary his formations and blitzes will be with 3rd year JH talent

4. Heisman - Don't know, don't care

5. CFP - Bama, UM, Trojans, Clemson now that Francois is hurt

I was extremely impressed with the defense and I hope my prediction is wrong, but I still see a couple losses on the schedule or at least a couple games where Michigan won't be favored. I thought 8-4 was the worst case scenario, now I think 9-3 is worst case. I think Michigan finishes 10-2 or 9-3. Penn State, Wisconsin, and Ohio State are still very tough games, I don't think Michigan loses them all.

As far as Heisman predictions, no one from Michigan will get the attention. No idea who will be picked, but my not very bold prediction is that it will go to a QB because this year has been dubbed "the year of the QB".

1) I want to say there's a loss somewhere, but I can't point to a single one.  Most likely would be OSU, but thats at home and UM, man...  They gonna want it!  Can't say 12-0, but can't see a loss.  I don't see PSU or UW standing a chance in hell if the defense keeps playing like that.

2) About the same.  Thought Speight would be more consistent, got worried when JOK was in there.  Thought both Crawford and DPJ would have more impact, but Black...  Lawdy, man is a dude!  The RBs looked fantastic, with Isaac being a revelation - where did that game come from!  The TE's are deep, athletic, talented, and will be a monster group this year.  McKeon and Eubanks - how do you cover them?

3) Better!  I mean, I thought they'd be really effin' good, but also thought I'd see some rookie mistakes all over the field.  Nope.  Veteran looking all over - few mistakes, great coverage, utterly DOMINANT DL (well, front seven)...  Good luck scoring on these guys all year.  Bush might get himself into next years Heisman talk if he keeps that up!

4) Heisman?  Lets wait a few games to see which QB and RB are leading the nation in yards and TDs...

5) Bama, Clemson, Oklahoma, UM/OSU winner.  Lets see what FSU can do with thier backup QB.  Was sorry to see Francois go down, but I don't think he's good enough to get FSU home - especially with that OL they have (without losing Peppers at gametime, I think UM wins that game fairly easily).

1. Same record as I thought before the year, 11-1. Loss at Wisconsin, but maybe 12-0. 2. Offense, Wilton needs to be better, but we have about 5 weeks to figure it out. A positive was his reads were correct he just threw poor balls. RT play must improve, but remember that was a grown up d line. 3. D is exactly what I thought they would be, more athletic, but they will make more mistakes. 4. Too early for hiesman buzz, I can tell you it won't be a Florida QB. 5. Michigan, Auburn, Bama, Oklahoma St.

This defense could be better than last year. Our kicker is money. If we can work out the handful of kinks in the offense and stay healthy we could win any game we play. Not making a prediction but I'll just say I'm optimistic for the season.

1. 10-2, was 9-3.  Nordin bailed us out yesterday and O'Korn was an unsung hero IMO.  If not for those two guys, I feel like we would've been looking at Iowa 2016 yesterday.

2. Offense is where I expected.  They will improve as the freshmen and sophomores get more experience.

3. Defense is where I expected.  Don Brown coaching a team full of players he, Durkin and Harbaugh recruited?  Yes, please.

4. Three finalists?  Darnold, Mayfield and Lamar Jackson.

5. Final four: USC, Oklahoma, Alabama, OSU

I'd say 10-2/11-1.  I do not think we lose any of the games in which we are favored, and no way do we drop to each of Wiscy, PSU and OSU.

Offense will end the season better.  OL will end up as good as or better than last year, and it is clear already that the RB and WR will be better.  Yes, Butt, but damn did our TEs look good, and that is without Gentry getting much PT.  WS did a nice job rebounding from a rocky start, and he will put up numbers against our lesser opponents.

Depth/injuries the key issue here; great to see so many people get meaningful PT.  Looks like we wil handle DL depth by going to more sets in the 3-4, which is encouraging on that front.  Hard to gauge how good the secondary was against the dreadful FL QBs, but they looked to be stride for stride, and there were as more "wow" plays than whiffs.  

Don't care about Heisman -- I will go out on a limb and pick the QB/RB from a top 10 team with the gaudiest stat line.

Bama makes the playoff; that's about all I'm sure on.

 

 

1. What's Michigan's regular season record this year?

1 loss

This Michigan offense is better/worst/as you expected

Running: better, Passing: worse (SP8 has hit his ceiling and he is the best we have right now)

This Michigan defense is better/worst/as you expected?

Run defense: much better / Pass defense: about what i expected- we have real issues here and a great passer may do real damage to us. Florida had a terrible passing game. PSU could be a real concern

Who are Final 4 for in you College Football Playoff? (at the end of the season)

Alabama, maybe UM (but we won't win it with SP8's level of passing unless he has a "lights out" game)

The QB at PSU scares me with his accuracy. If it was him vs. the secondary we lose. Thankful we have a d-line that can throw him off his game. This is the game I'm most concerned about at 11-1

JT Barrett still can't throw- I like our chances here.

I don't do heisman guesses.

Bama and three others

1)10-2

2)About the same. Wide receivers will improve during the season and hopefully certain OL too. RBs are solid. Expect similar perforamce to last year; we will crush the weak and sputter against good teams. 

3)The D will probably be really good by the end of the year and the athleticism is impressive. Hurst! Bush is ahead of schedule, he was like a missile out there. I think people might be getting a little carried away though in how excited they are in terms of performance. Florida was 88th in S&P+ offense last year, which ranks them near teams like Central Michigan, Troy, Maryland, New Mexico St and Idaho. And they're missing their 2 best playmakers and starting a freshman QB. Their offense has been and continues to be a tire fire. So...yeah, top 10 defense, but not quite as good as last year. Too early to say on the secondary but at the same time, PSU/OSU are really the only teams before the bowl that can maybe exploit that.

4)Jackson, Barkley, Darnold, Mayfield, Guice

5)Alabama, USC, Clemson, Ohio State

Gameday will be at PSU when we come to town and thrash the Nittany Lions.

1) Either 9-3 or 10-2. I don't care if you think PSU or Wisconsin are overrated. Those are extremely difficult places to play. OSU lost to PSU last year and barely made it out of Wisconsin alive. If I had more confidence in Speight and his consistency I'd consider 11 wins, but sadly I don't. 2) Ask again later. The offense as a whole looked much better than I expected yesterday. Wideouts got separation, running backs had room to run, tight ends were extremely productive, and the OL was opening lanes and buying Speight some time. But I'm concerned about the most important piece of that unit: the QB. the first pick six was not all on him (Crawford should've been able to hold onto that ball), but the second one was all on Speight. The same problems that were there last year are still there this year after a full offseason. Overthrowing wide open receivers. That will cost them a game eventually. Cost Michigan the Iowa game last year. 3) Been one game, ask again later. But I LOVED what I saw so far. Defense was fast and flying all over the field. However, let's not forget that Florida's offense is a dumpster fire. Consistently their own worst enemy. We'll know more about how good the defense is when they go to IU or PSU. 4) Mayfield, Barkley, and not sure who else at this point. I think USC is wildly overrated and will drop at least a game or two, so I doubt Darnold makes it, and while I thought about an Alabama RB, the fact is they have too many of them for one to truly stand out. Maybe Jalen Hurts or Calvin Ridley. 5) 1) Alabama 2) Sigh....OSU 3) FSU 4) Oklahoma. They might get clobbered by OSU next week but even if they do, as long as they win out in what should be an extremely weak Big XII outside of OU and OK St, they're in. And the Big XII gets a championship game back this year. I give OU the edge over OK State right now.

1. Sky is the limit, but we have two tricky 3 game stretches. MSU. @Indiana, @PSU....and @Maryland, @ Wiscy, OSU. Two scrappy away games before two tough road games (@ Indiana before PSU and @Maryland before Wiscy), as well as two separate rivalry games in each of those stretches. We are a young team, but its going to be a mental grind to get up for every game in those two strecthes, as well as lack of game preparation in those games. Moreover, this is Big Ten football. Let's see how they react in poor weather conditions and in a hostile environment. After seeing Speight's performance, teams will stack the box against us and force him to beat us. I think we lose one out of those 6 heading into the OSU game with one loss. We win the Game and beat an undefeated OSU. 11-1 and make the playoffs. However, Speight REALLY needs to improve or we could easily be 9-3.
2. Worse. I thought with a season under his belt, Speight would show more improvement. He is going to need to step up or teams will stack the box and force him to beat them. This is our achilles heel. 
3. Better. The D looked formidable. They will be truly tested though when we play a team with a QB who can drop back quick and throw a slant (as well as the back shouler). Let's be honest, all the rumors that Florida had QB troubles were true, but its premature to say how good the D is until the secondary is really tested. We dominated the line, but we are going to see better offenses due to better QB play. Teams will have to get the ball out quick against us though. I love Don Brown!
4. Way too early, but Barkley, Jackson, and whoever has the better game and their team wins next week Mayfield or Dobbins.
5. Bama, MIchigan, OSU, Clemson (their path just became easier after Francois went down). I like Stanford, but Clemson has the far easier schedule after next week.

I am excited after yesterday but I must say I am worrierd.  Purdue looked pretty good.  Maryland looked pretty good.  Indiana looked pretty good.  I don't think any of those teams are the type that you just automatically count as a "win" - This is after 1 game.  Will of course need a bigger sample size.  My point is that there are not any easy games on the schedule except one......Rutgers will still be "who we thought they were"

9 - 4. I realize that this will be unpopular, but we are very young in the back. Teams that can throw are going to cause us problems. I also dont know if the Speight we saw yesterday is who he is now. Florida might lose 6+ games.