Zarniwoop

July 12th, 2016 at 3:23 PM ^

Link?

Hasn't this already been posted?

Is that a pokemon over there (no, I don't play) but I'm finding it hilarious watching my co-workers).

Lancer

July 12th, 2016 at 3:29 PM ^

There are worse picks to win the B1G. They lost a lot to the draft and graduation, but they are loaded. I think they get rolled in Oklahoma and do really well in league play. Hope we can come out with a win in Columbus.  

turtleboy

July 12th, 2016 at 6:28 PM ^

Well in a like for like comparison, Indiana always seem to give the buckeyes serious problems, and Oklahoma is a little better than Indiana. One recent postseason Oklahoma absolutely handled Alabama. It could turn into an interesting game.

Sopwith

July 12th, 2016 at 3:29 PM ^

I mean given how it seems every star they've lost the past few years seems to get replaced by an even better dude, yeah, Alabama and OSU are the epitome of reloading over rebuilding. Hard to drop either one out of the top 10 even if they're replacing all 22 plus a few assistant coaches. Sad but true.

maize-blue

July 12th, 2016 at 4:02 PM ^

I heard Steele on an interview recently and one of his main reasons for picking OSU is that they've had the #1 recruiting class in the conference for five straight years. Even though they lost what would set back most teams, they should have enough to keep rolling.

In my own opinion, I think it's possible to beat them this season. If the situation was reversed, a young UM team vs. a mostly veteran OSU team, we'd expect a beating. This may be the best recent chance to take them down other than the Fickle year. If we lose again this year, I think we're probably waiting couple more seasons to get to their level. 

SpikeFan2016

July 12th, 2016 at 4:15 PM ^

I think we should always expect to be able to at least be competitive. 

 

All throughout the 1990s OSU was consistently higher ranked in both recruiting and in the games of that season itself, but we often won anyways. 

In 2004, that was reversed when they took us out. 

Hell, Brady Hoke's crappy team was inches away from taking them out in 2013. And bad UM teams were competitive in 2009 and 2014 as well. 

 

I think we need to beat them. Now. We can't wait anymore. 

From 1985 to 2000 Michigan went 12-3 against Ohio State (with a tie at OSU in 1992). From 2001 to 2015 Ohio State has gone 13-2 against Michigan. So they're one game ahead of us in the last 30 years, but we cannot let this modern reign continue. 

Not with Harbaugh in year 2. Not with Urban reloading everything and us returning nearly everything. We need to win The Game this year. It doesn't matter that it's in Columbus. It will be highly disappointing if we lose, almost no matter the circumstance. 

Michology 101

July 12th, 2016 at 4:57 PM ^

Yeah, during our 12-3 dominate period over them, we were actually beating a lot of very good OSU teams. I'm not sure if even one of those wins came against a terrible OSU squad. They've beaten a couple of really good teams that we had over the last 15 years.

Though they've pretty much enjoyed their reign of dominance through the worst period of Michigan football history. I know it doesn't matter at the end of the day. A win is a win. Hopefully we can change things around.

SpikeFan2016

July 12th, 2016 at 5:01 PM ^

We certainly have won more games as the lower ranked team over the past 30 years than they have. 

The only games that they've won despite being ranked lower were in 2001 and 2004, at the beginning of the switch between our dominance and theirs. 

 

They've won more games against crappy Michigan teams than we have won against crappy Ohio State teams. But, unfortunately there have been a lot more crappy Michigan teams than OSU teams in that same span. 

MGoStrength

July 12th, 2016 at 5:18 PM ^

I'd give OSU the benefit of the doubt if I was an unbiased person on the outside.  I agree they have a ton of talent and will reload and that game will not be an easy one for UM.  However, as a UM fan, assuming there are no major injuries, I'd probably give UM a slight edge due to experience and age.  If any team is going to go into Columbus and knock off the Buckeyes it will be a 4th and 5th year laden Harbaugh team with a big, strong, experienced line on both sides of the ball.

 

Personally, I'd prefer we be a slight underdog.  I think it's usually easier to perform as an underdog as there is less pressure.

denardogasm

July 12th, 2016 at 4:05 PM ^

If we played them at home this year I think we'd be a near lock to go undefeated. That said, I don't think they go into the game undefeated this year and hopefully will have just an ounce less motivation than us.

stephenrjking

July 12th, 2016 at 4:17 PM ^

People dog on Steele a lot, particularly in the past few seasons when he has been down on MIchigan (correctly, as it often turned out). Like anyone, he is not perfect, and I hope he is off here with the "I believe in Urban Meyer" pick, but he's not an idiot. 

And this is not implausible. OSU has a lot of talent in the pipeline, talent we would have liked to have ourselves. Now, we have more experience this season, but OSU has 11 games to get things figured out before we play in Columbus. A stadium in which our last win occurred before Tom Brady had started an NFL game.

So by picking OSU 6th and Michigan 12th, he is, basically, picking OSU to beat us in Columbus, finishing something like 11-1. It's not implausible at all for us to go 10-2 with a Columbus loss.

I hope he's wrong. But he's not being ridiculous here.

Danwillhor

July 12th, 2016 at 4:49 PM ^

but maybe the most talented. They'll be right there at the end and I'd bet on them if a betting man. I don't like it but reality is reality.

markusr2007

July 12th, 2016 at 5:31 PM ^

Yes, he has nuked Big Ten opponent recruiting from orbit since he's been in Columbus, and most Power 5 teams would just kill to have his 3 deep roster at any position.

But could 2016 might be one of those "off" years?

By "off" I mean 9-3 or 10-2 instead of 11-1 or 12-0?

The Buckeye schedule looks tougher this year with 10 opponents who made it to post-season, including 5 ranked teams.

That matchup at Oklahoma (11-2, with 9 starters back on offense, 7 starters on defense) is going to be the toughest regular season non-conference foe Urban Meyer has ever coached against - and I'm including his coaching stints at BGSU, Utah, Florida and Ohio St.

@Oklahoma, @Wisconsin, @MSU @Penn State

Home games vs. Indiana, Nebraska, Northwestern and Michigan

Their offense will not be an issue. If anything is going to bring Ohio St. down in games this year it might be defensive performance. Despite low game experience, that is one talented defensive unit regardless.

SBo

July 12th, 2016 at 7:01 PM ^

Fuck Ohio State. We have Jim Fucking Harbaugh as our head coach. We are better than them in every way and will continue to be because this is Michigan. They have an inferiority complex as significant as sparty's.

Wolfman

July 12th, 2016 at 8:33 PM ^

you're really taking liberties with that cart, don't you think?  There is only one active coach that comes close to Urb as to winning pct and that is Chris Peterson whose success has dipped a bit in his two years at WA. Urb has had double the number of jobs and at every stop he has been able to produce dramatic improvement respective to the prior fortunes of each respective school. So I, like you, believe Harbaugh has something very special that will prove to be his equal, I think that announcement can only be made on the football field. 

With that said, the way Urb has recruited at OSU is definitely good but the danger in sending players to the NFL so fast is being able to get equally sought after recruits the amount of experience needed to jump right in and produce at the level of their predecessors. 

He does, however, have the most important piece of that puzzle returning in Barrett, which should make the transition easier.  If he had started all year last season, they probably would have another NC in their trophy case. The group he just sent to the NFL though was ridiculously good, perhaps the best collection of talent on a college team in the past decade. The only question for OSU, I think, is how fast he can bring this group together. They should be OSU by mid season, possibly with one loss. 

I believe the questions for UM will be answered by Brown's crew and if, indeed, they are able to - in OSU's case it would be neutralize the run, not completely stop it - I think Jim's offense, in its second sesaon, will be able to put up more points than the Buckeyes. He has a lot of returning chain movers, and if he is able to get his qb playing at a Rudock level or beyond, I would think chances are good for UM's first championship in years.

If that occurs, the following year could set up nicely for UM, with OSU breaking in a new qb and UM's schedule this season allowing the wolverines go into 2017 with a young but very experienced team. As big as the game is normally, it's even bigger this season for those reasons. 

bacon

July 12th, 2016 at 8:07 PM ^

Yeah. OSU has a lot of talent, but lost more to the draft. I'd say they take a step back this year. Meanwhile, we finished the year ranked 12, return the whole team more or less and he thinks we take a step back. It's possible, but it seems unlikely. We played a lot better at the end of the year despite some key injuries, and while we lost to osu, that team had a historic number of draft picks taken just a few months later. I know they have a ton of talent, but think about that and tell me it makes any sense. I guess we'll see, but michigan is in a much better position to win the conference and make the playoffs than anyone else and its up to them not to mess it up.

Wolfman

July 13th, 2016 at 1:12 AM ^

For some reason, the link doe not show up on my page and I did not have access to Steele's reasoning. I did not know he anticipated we take a step back for this season. Now, he could be thinking we will have problems replacing Rudock and as good as he played, that would be logical. However, given the fact that had he stayed at IA, he would have merely graduated, enrolled in grad school and began studying to become a doctor and what Harbaugh's intervention accomplished changed our season and the young man's life should indicate to him we are probably going to be alright at that position, so like you, I would have problem with this logic. 

Walter Sobchak

July 12th, 2016 at 8:45 PM ^

I really don't get all the OSU love. They lost a TON of talent, and to just assume that the newcomers will just step in and not miss a beat seems a bit premature.

Chadhenne123

July 13th, 2016 at 1:51 AM ^

They just had a mass exodus to the NFL and only return 6 starters and we return 17.  Yes they have a lot of talent as usual but how are those young guys going to fair when they have to go to Norman, or Madison, East Lansing, or when they play us when we're just as bit as talented and more experienced and better coached?

SpikeFan2016

July 13th, 2016 at 8:53 AM ^

We are not "just as bit as talented" or "better coached" than Ohio State. Slightly less talented and just as well coached would be more accurate. Our big edge on them this year is experience. 

I think by 2018/2019, once Harbaugh's recruits have fully rotated in, we may even up the talent disparity, but they still have outrecruited us for pretty much all of the past cycles. 

I think we should be the favorites to win the conference, but I understand why people are high on them. In the last 4 years they've only lost ONE regular season conference game. And it was by 3 points on a last second field goal in a very bizarre game against the eventual conference champion. 

Urban had very young teams in both 2012 and 2014, but that didn't stop him from going undefeated in the conference. The Big Ten is better now than it was then, but teams like Michigan have a lot more to prove.