Why should we be optimistic about 2018 M football?
I am trying to stay positive about the 2018 football season. However, through no fault of my own, I was flipping around & came across BTN Football in 60 & they're showing the IU game from last year. OMG! This is a real stinker!
I have a gift for selective memory. I easily delete from my memory bad things. Which is why I have no memory of this game.
We are playing terribly. Terrible offense. Mediocre defense. Suspect coaching. We look confused, undisciplined, unfocused. There is only 1:05 to go & we are only up 3 to a bad Indiana team. We just committed another bad penalty. IU is driving on our "great" defense. They just tied it to go to OT.
So, with the brutal schedule this year, why should we be optimistic? Help me here. I'm always optimistic about our team but watching this game just have me a jolt! HELP!!
In 1987, Bo lost in that same stadium to IU and the following year won a Rose Bowl.
April 15th, 2018 at 10:15 AM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 10:25 AM ^
Indiana was decent in the late 80's. And they finished second in the conference standings that year.
Just to blow your mind some more; we were the underdog that night in 1987. Indiana was ranked #15, we were ranked #20. But we still should have won. IU got the winning score by recovering a blocked punt in the end zone in a driving rainstorm to win 14-10.
To see a much happier memory of Indiana football from that year, watch what they did to the Buckeyes in Columbus...
I'm optimistic that we can go 9-3ish again this year. 11-1 and a conference championship? Not so much. Harbaugh has yet to show that he can win tough games on the road, regardless of talent level, or that he can avoid losing at least one game he shouldn't.
April 15th, 2018 at 12:00 PM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 12:00 PM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 12:00 PM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 12:00 PM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 12:00 PM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 12:02 PM ^
wide receiver play, improved ol blocking and running attack. A lot to look forward to this year.
It's a Sunday monring in mid April, I'm staring at a layer snow/ice on the ground and it's 31 degrees. The Tigers haven't even played any warm weather games yet, not sure if spring/summer will ever arrive. And yet, I cannot wait for September 1st to get here and see what this team can do. Even with the schedule, this could be a magical season.
April 19th, 2018 at 12:59 AM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 10:04 AM ^
Followed by You Light Up My Life!
April 15th, 2018 at 10:12 AM ^
Because we're Michigan, that's why.
April 15th, 2018 at 10:23 AM ^
Forget optimism and pessimism. Just be hopeful and positive.
April 15th, 2018 at 10:26 AM ^
Because I'm a fan and I'll be optomistic if I want to dammit
April 15th, 2018 at 12:01 PM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 10:37 AM ^
I would advise you to not watch ANY Michigan/Indiana football game from this past decade unless you like stressful nail biters.
April 15th, 2018 at 12:19 PM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 10:38 AM ^
1. Looks like we upgraded the OL coach. So improvements should be made there.
2. A WR coach. We didn't have one last year and started two true frosh. Upgrade. We also have a former U of M WR as a grad assistant. That will also help.
3. QB play. Even if Shea isn't eligible, you would think that Peters would improve. If he hasn't then Dylan can game manage an offense that should be more effective and keep our D off the field longer. Let's not forget, Peters as a first year mid season starter had some positive moments..(when he wasn't getting his bell rung). Outside of OKorn's heroics and outlier performance against Purdue, Peters had some nice drives spreading the ball around. There were flashes of comptency. QB play will be improved...dramatically if Shea is eligible.
4. A better center.
5. We have to replace Mo, but the defense will be lights out this year. And I think we will have better LB and secondary play this year as well.
6. Harbaugh changing up his approach. We've already heard from players that the approach this year is different and I think we will see it move the needle forward. Our O-Line will practice more against outr starting D-Line (this will help immensely!)
7. New S&C team? I've always thought the team looked small compared to other top programs. I am betting the new staff makes improvements on that front.
8. Not sure the offense can get any worse than last year..we will improve on that front.
April 15th, 2018 at 11:09 AM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 12:00 PM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 12:58 PM ^
I keep hearing from co-workers who are NE fans. They all predict that a win at Michigan will be an achievable upset. I think our D will kill NE, no matter what our offense does. Frost is like a God to them and they are predicting themselves as west division winners next season.
April 15th, 2018 at 12:58 PM ^
I keep hearing from co-workers who are NE fans. They all predict that a win at Michigan will be an achievable upset. I think our D will kill NE, no matter what our offense does. Frost is like a God to them and they are predicting themselves as west division winners next season.
April 15th, 2018 at 11:35 AM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 11:49 AM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 11:59 AM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 11:59 AM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 11:59 AM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 11:59 AM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 11:59 AM ^
10-2 would be a great step in the right direction. Most of us knew the talent cupboard was bare due to the poor recruiting during the 2014 and 2015 seasons, so we knew 2017 possibly 2018 would be Harbaugh's lowest win seasons. 2019 is the year that Harbaugh should win the B1G and make the playoffs. And years beyond, expect at least 10 win seasons with more B1G titles and playoff games then we have seen in the last 11 seasons. Michigan football will be back to at least Bo standards.
April 16th, 2018 at 11:55 AM ^
Your statement ignores the amount of attrition from those classes. Not to mention some of the headliners were guys like Kalis, Green and Kugler.
Were the classes all time bad? No. Don't pretend like we had a roster on par with OSU or Bama though.
April 15th, 2018 at 11:37 PM ^
i hope, on 5 different levels
April 15th, 2018 at 12:02 PM ^
More Mature Team.
Number One Defense.
Beat Nd.
April 15th, 2018 at 12:04 PM ^
April 15th, 2018 at 12:26 PM ^
I love Michigan football. Will never change.
1. Coach Herbert, strength.
2. Coach Ed, offensive line.
3. Offensive line will improve, especially the interior.
4. Quarterback will be improved.
5. Defence will be deep and exceptional once again.
6. Coach Harbaughs first class will be upperclassmen.
Will see.
April 15th, 2018 at 12:31 PM ^
Reasons for optimism? Undefeated in 2018 so far!
I guess I will get downvoted for being realistic.
Seems like there are 3 guaranteed losses, and 2 more probable losses on the schedule. Not to mention the fact that some sort of upset is always possible. So it should be a 8-4 or 7-5 team this year. Possibly worse. There is simply nothing to suggest that the team will show significant development from the previous year. Maybe they pull like 9-3 if Patterson plays.
Can you please name me the three "guaranteed" losses? Holy smokes some fans have such blind pessimism.
You literally say that we may get upset by lesser teams, yet you claim that we have no ability to pull an upset with the unreal amount of talent our team has.
@OSU, @MSU, @ND. You're right. Guarantee is an exagerration. But it is unlikely that we win any of those games.
The two others I think we would drop are Wisconsin and @NW. But we could honestly win either of those and I wouldn't be surprised.
I bet we take down PSU this year. But you never know.
Unreal amount of talent? Yea Harbaugh recruits in talented guys, but they mostly do not exhibit "unreal talent" when they get here.
It isn't blind pessimism when the team hasn't won these big games over the past decades. It is simply setting up realistic expectations. 8-4, 7-5 is very realistic. We can talk about changing expectations when Harbaugh shows me something.