Tons of talent and experience returning in 2018

Submitted by Duval Wolverine on

Michigan will go from one of the youngest teams in the country to one of the most experienced teams in CF by next year.  The returning contributors:

Offense                                                             Defense                            

D. Peoples-Jones                                             T. Kinnel

J. Bushell-Beatty                                              J. Metellus

C. Ruiz                                                             R. Gary

B. Peters                                                          A. Solomon

T. Black                                                            D. Bush

G. Perry                                                           K. Hudson 

S. McKeon                                                       D. Long

Z. Gentry                                                          L. Hill

C. Evans                                                          N. Furbush

K. Higdon                                                         C. Winovich

M. Onwenu                                                      B. Mone

B. Bredeson                                                    B. Watson

K. Walker                                                        A. Thomas

I. Bunting

T. Wheatley

E. McDoom

K. Crawford

 

The experience and struggles these players endured this year will help them next year.  Plus year three for this D. Brown defense that will have everyone back minus McCray and Hurst has a chance to be light years better than what we saw this year.  I think Peters has a chance to be a great quarterback, and will get better with experience and timing with all the receivers coming back next year.  

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BroadneckBlue21

November 19th, 2017 at 8:17 AM ^

This is the exciting part of what I’ve seen in all the games. People box in the team to singular game performances, unable to project talent development. All year long commentators have clichely been amazed by the young defense. Hill and Long are the best young tandem we have had in all my years of watching. Usually, we see more burns than we have with these two young guys. Both have upper echelon futures as DBs. If Thomas fills in as skillfully as he does at KR, we have threats at all phases of special teams and at all three levels of defense. Tarik, DPJ, Gentry and McKeon make a young and now experienced set of WRs. With experience comes a quicker development of an offensive identity. I expect a lot of redshirt ms to compete next fall, but also a lot of growth.

Joined: 01/12/2015

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btn

November 19th, 2017 at 8:33 AM ^

That Wisconsin team that ended the game running the same running plays over and over for 8 yard gains isn’t losing many players on offense. PSU and OSU will lose key players, though OSU has no problems beating Michigan with a young team. Coming back with the same team next year isn’t going to magically solve this team’s problems.

Joined: 09/21/2014

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chunkums

November 19th, 2017 at 10:45 AM ^

That Wisconsin team couldn't move the ball at all for almost the entire game. Them moving ball was absolutely a result of their defense (which loses 6 to graduation and possibly more to the NFL) shutting down an inexperienced offense with its third-best quarterback on the field, leaving our gassed defense on the field when they knew there was no hope of us scoring again. Regarding OSU, their program is well-established at this point with Meyer now in his sixth year. No need to panic.  

Joined: 06/30/2008

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bacon

November 19th, 2017 at 9:32 AM ^

This is dead on. We are not beating top 5 teams this year with our third string qb and without our top receiver or top cornerback. Being close at halftime speaks really well for the future of this team. They look so much better than they did early on in the season, but the competition has increased in quality and playing on the road in college is really challenging compared to high school. And we were in this game until peters (playing in his first real road test) got hurt. Given the injuries and losses from last years team, this is close to the ceiling. Players in college get much better from year to year. Think about peppers in year one (before his injury) vs year two. The interception by Bush shows tremendous growth in his first year as a starter because at the beginning of the year he was not that aware. So people can ahead and write off these guys and coaching staff this year if they want, but don’t be fooled into thinking this won’t be a team of superstars (even next year). Remember how badly we destroyed psu last year and what they did early on this year. And realize the big ten is stronger than it used to be. We’re on a good track.

Joined: 01/04/2009

MGoPoints: 18646

LSAClassOf2000

November 19th, 2017 at 8:24 AM ^

Although I will say that returning a shit ton of starters rather than losing them to graduation and / or the pros is much preferred, the 2018 schedule includes MSU and OSU on the road plus a few other gems and I am curious to see what the learnings are on offense, what the identity will be next year. 

If we were honest with ourselves, I think many of us predicted back in August that this might be an up and down year for a lot of reasons, but I also think some may have underestimated how much more work there might be to do in some respects (which I think ties back to us not knowing how bad things may have been at the end of 2014). Maybe that's crazy of me to say. 

Joined: 01/07/2011

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GordonG

November 19th, 2017 at 8:34 AM ^

..don't forget ND and NW both on the road

probably a 1-1 split at best, possible 0 - 2

if we go 2 - 2 in our MSU, OSU, ND, NW major road tests that would be wonderful.

...looking like another 3 or 4 loss season in 2018 or worse...

plain hard fact is JH has yet to prove he can take a

Mich squad on the road in the B1G and win a big game.

...bring in Mike Leach please !!!

 

Joined: 11/13/2016

MGoPoints: 2969

1VaBlue1

November 19th, 2017 at 8:51 AM ^

Mike Leach?  Really?  Bring in the owner of middling teams everywhere he goes?  A guy that runs an offense more unfamiliar to Michigan's current personnel than Rich Rod's was back in 2008?  You're an idiot.  A pure, fucking idiot.

Go follow WSU...

Joined: 01/31/2016

MGoPoints: 127291

Don

November 19th, 2017 at 12:23 PM ^

"JH has yet to prove he can take a Mich squad on the road in the B1G and win a big game." — If you define a big game as being against truly good opposition, this is true so far.

".bring in Mike Leach please !!!" — this is complete lunacy.

Joined: 06/30/2008

MGoPoints: 148384

corundum

November 19th, 2017 at 10:10 AM ^

Dude launches 35 yard laserbeams right at the return man from deep in our own territory, and boots 50 yard bombs into the endzone when we are 5 yards outside of FG range. He did field some shit snaps, though. He has that going for him. Maybe we can line him up at TE/WR since he can actually catch.

Joined: 05/10/2012

MGoPoints: 47323

Michansas Wolverback

November 19th, 2017 at 8:54 AM ^

So because we lost by 4 to Sparty this year with JOK and a -7 TO margin we just can’t beat MSU?

What makes you say ND will be better next year? They lose 10 starters, including guys all over their vaunted OL. We’ve performed well in all season openers and bowl games under this staff.

OSU in Columbus will of course be tough and I’ll grant you skepticism there, but quit being such a whiny b****. Returning 20 starters. Next year we’ll have the goods. Just like we thought in 2015 we would in 2016.

Joined: 12/16/2010

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chunkums

November 19th, 2017 at 2:20 PM ^

Sparty games are always going to be tight regardless of the situation. Two very inexperienced teams played in awful conditions and one of them had to win. We fumbled three times and they did not. I would love to get another crack at them right now with Peters at QB. 

Joined: 06/30/2008

MGoPoints: 29029

MW147

November 19th, 2017 at 3:32 PM ^

That's exactly how I see it. The D will conservatively be top 10, more likely top 5. The receivers should be much better, DPJ and Black having the experience (I actually think Crawford and McDoom are the most disappointing players on the team but that's another discussion). Peters has shown enough to be very encouraged that he is the answer at QB. So it all comes back to the OL. We lose 2 starters. Ruiz should be as good or better than Kugler. Natural progression from Bredeson and big Mike is reasonable. JBB is a strength on the run, he needs to get to adequate on pass pro. Who is the left tackle? You can hope for Newsome but that seems unlikely. I'm thinking they may have no choice but to slide Bredeson out there and hope Filiaga is ready at LG. If not then Runyan. How does this group do? That's what is going to determine how the season goes. There are questions, legitimate ones. But the sky is not falling.

Joined: 11/14/2017

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ST3

November 19th, 2017 at 1:43 PM ^

On the three sacks that are being shown in the highlights, one is on Bredeson, one is on Ruiz and one is on the QB for not realizing they were rushing X+1 guys against X blockers. JBB can't block 2 guys at once. He was good enough to be given a chance at LT last year and the run game improved immensely when he was inserted into the lineup this season. As a 5th year senior, returning starter next year, I predict he will be a strength of the offense.

Joined: 09/11/2010

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B1G Winning

November 19th, 2017 at 8:34 AM ^

Michigan had its most talent and experienced team in a decade last year (11 players in the NFL) and lost their only 2 tough road games. One against an Unranked Iowa squad. Next year they go to Notre Dame, MSU, Northwestern & OSU. That's 3 rivals on the road, all who will probably be ranked. Then we have ranked Wisconsin and PSU coming into The Big House. Our recent history against good teams on the road makes next year worrisome. As does our current record against rivals, our record against top 10 teams, our record in prime time games....our record against .500 teams in the past 400 days. You are right though, the roster will have lots of talent that will have a full year of experience (at least) behind them, including a QB who has shown clear progression here at the tail end of 2017. Just be careful of expecting too much of a breakout season in 2018. I hate the mantra as much as everyone else, but I think we will be saying "wait until next year" in 2018 as well, because 2019 couldn't set up any better for us. Our OL will have a full year to gel, and Harbaugh's classes will finally be upper classmen. That being said, it's time for this team to start win a game they "shouldn't." The performance in big games is what is most disappointing for me so far. Part of what made Harbaugh's Stanford career so memorable was the "What's your deal?!" USC game. In 2009, that Stanford team was unranked and beat ranked Washington, USC, and Oregon teams.

Joined: 11/08/2013

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SalvatoreQuattro

November 19th, 2017 at 9:05 AM ^

have much luck with QBs. Rudock did earn a win vs MSU in ‘15 but the thing happened. That one loss is looms large in any discussion of big game failures. It was a choke for the ages. But since UM has started a guy Harbaugh did not recruit, a transfer taken to compete and depth at the position, and a redshirt freshman. Not exactly the recipe for success. But then Speight did have UM in position to win the OSU game last year before the defense inexplicably could not stop OSU in the fourth. Late game failures by the defense have proven costly as well. Regardless, the entire program needs to look at what they are doing and I am positive that is what will be done. Clearly, drastic improvements need to be made because UM has a trend of melting down in big games.

Joined: 11/30/2010

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uminks

November 19th, 2017 at 8:35 AM ^

but we will still be a young team. Dylan or  Brandon will be our QB but I just hope our OL can improve. The schedule will be tougher than last year, so we may still be 8-4 to 10-2 depending on how some of those road games go.

Joined: 11/10/2009

MGoPoints: 32049

apandran

November 19th, 2017 at 8:36 AM ^

I agree competely. Plus we will get 5 OL bodies which will help us in depth. Jeter, Vilian and top LB's who are redshirting will give us meaningfulminutes.

There are two improvement michigan has to do this up coming year:

1. Peters/Wr's needs to work on his long pass timing and get stronger phsyically and mentally

2. Our DL needs to get bigger, stronger and quicker.

If we somehow pull the ND victory it will be an interenting year.

Next year team is going to be very talented and athletic as well.

Joined: 01/15/2011

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KC Wolve

November 19th, 2017 at 8:37 AM ^

They need a big win or more next year. They should have had at least one by now. As I mentioned in another thread KState took a walking wounded into Stillwater yesterday and beat number 13 at their house. They played their 3rd string redshirt freshman QB and had several other players out. Michigan needs wins and not excuses.

Joined: 10/09/2010

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SalvatoreQuattro

November 19th, 2017 at 9:00 AM ^

and they also are not as young as UM. Plus Okie State plays no defense. UM has inexperienced roster and that was compounded by injuries. The crappy OL recruiting revealed itself fully this year. How in the world you expected a big win when UM had QB and OL issues boggles the mind. That is flat out irritational.

Joined: 11/30/2010

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KC Wolve

November 19th, 2017 at 9:24 AM ^

I didn’t “expect” a win yesterday. It just boggles my mind that people make up all of these excuses and basically say “welp, they are young and had some injuries, may as well not watch”. This is fucking Michigan and the coach is Jim Fucking Harbaugh. Wisconsin is going to get shit kicked in the playoff most likely. People would lose their minds if UM even interviewed one of KSUs current coaches. They are absolute garbage. Yet, with a ton of injuries and a Redshirt freshman QB they came up with a plan and went into hostile territory and punched a top 15 team right in the mouth and won the game.

Joined: 10/09/2010

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KC Wolve

November 19th, 2017 at 10:00 AM ^

Road game, lots of injuries, redshirt freshman QB, etc. Not the exact same situation but similar. The point I was making was that they need to win a game like this. Not that they should win. Go back and look at the predictions yesterday. I bet there wasn’t one ESPN, Fox, etc talking head that picked KSU or even gave them a chance. Look at the spread on that game. Yet, they went in and won. Again, it can’t happen every time but at some point the excuses need to stop and the staff needs to put in a plan that is executed and UM comes out with a win.

Joined: 10/09/2010

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