Jim Harbaugh will make his official debut as Michigan’s head coach Thursday at Utah. Stephanie Sokol/The Pit
[dropcap]J[/dropcap]im Harb … err, sorry, COLLEGE FOOTBALL is upon us!
Michigan football has not played a game in over nine months and is coming off a 5-7 season that saw its fair share of embarrassing moments. However, if you have paid attention to college football this off-season, you’d know that Michigan has been the biggest story across the country. And it is all because of the hiring of one man – head coach Jim Harbaugh.
While the Harbaugh hype has annoyed quite a few opponent fan bases – including the Utah Utes, Michigan’s first opponent – Wolverine fans haven’t had this level of excitement since the original “Game of the Century” vs. Ohio State in 2006.
While it is yet to be known whether Harbaugh will be the “savior” that many Michigan fans expect him to be, one thing is very certain – the Wolverines have a long way to go to achieve the elite status they held for so many years.
The road to returning to that elite status will be bumpy, but it all begins on Thursday, September 3.
OFFENSE
Michigan Head Coach Jim Harbaugh watches as QB Shane Morris attempts a pass during the spring game in April. Publicly, no word’s been given on who Michigan’s starting quarterback will be, but the recently released depth chart had senior-transfer Jake Rudock or the junior Morris listed. Damien Dennis/The Pit
Nobody knows for certain who the starting quarterback will be when Michigan takes the field for its first possession this season, but the consensus bet all summer is that it will be Jake Rudock (transfer from Iowa). While Rudock won’t dazzle you with arm strength, he is known for being an accurate passer that does not turn the ball over – exactly what Harbaugh wants in a starting quarterback. Expect Shane Morris to be the primary backup all season, but Michigan could be in serious trouble if he has to take any significant amount of snaps.
The offensive line returns four of its five starters (Ben Braden, Graham Glasgow, Kyle Kalis and Mason Cole) from last year’s team and – this will surprise many – should be a strength of the Michigan team in 2015. The biggest influence for this year’s offensive line should be the addition of new offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Tim Drevno, who was instrumental with Harbaugh in turning around San Diego, Stanford and San Francisco’s offensive lines.
Running back should be an intriguing position battle all season long for the Wolverines. There are plenty of pieces to the puzzle – De’Veon Smith, Derrick Green, Ty Isaac and Drake Johnson – and it will be up to Harbaugh to figure out how to fit those pieces into building a strong running game. While Smith is listed as the starter vs. Utah, it would be surprising if Harbaugh did not give Green and Isaac plenty of carries, too, in order to gauge where each player stands.
While the tight end position is very solid with Jake Butt, the wide receiver group needs somebody to step up and shine in 2015. Butt has a very good chance of being the best tight end in the Big Ten and one of the best in the country, but relying solely on a tight end – especially to stretch a defense – is not a great position for an offense to put itself in. Amara Darboh is the biggest name at wide receiver as of right now, but he has not shown the ability to take the top off of a defense. The name being talked about a lot the last couple of weeks has been Drake Harris. Yes, the same Drake Harris that put on a dazzling show at Ford Field in the state championship game his junior year of high school, but has yet to play a snap since then due to hamstring issues. If Harris can stay healthy and live up to the talent he showed in 2012, he could be the answer the Michigan passing game needs.
DEFENSE
The Michigan defense swarms QB Shane Morris during the spring game in April. Stephanie Sokol/The Pit
Not starting this section with the linebackers would be unfair to that position group. The Wolverines return three starters (Desmond Morgan, Joe Bolden and James Ross) and at the end of the season could have one of the top linebacker units in the country. The three starters have combined for 529 tackles in their career.
The defensive line has very solid depth, but it is unknown how talented this group can be. All but one player – Lawrence Marshall – listed on the depth chart has playing experience, but none have made a significant impact in the past. While Michigan has strong talent in the back seven of the defense, it will be vital for them to create havoc at the line of scrimmage to disrupt offenses – especially against teams with good quarterbacks (BYU, Michigan State, Ohio State). One player to watch this season is defensive end Taco Charlton.
Despite popular belief, Michigan cannot play its entire season with just Jabrill Peppers in the secondary and expect to be OK. Although he was one of the most highly touted recruits in 2014 and had to miss most of the season due to injury, he can only play one position for the Wolverines – well, two if you consider he will bump from safety to cornerback in nickel situations. Luckily for Michigan, they have plenty of good, experienced players to put in the secondary with Peppers – Jourdan Lewis, Channing Stribling and Jarrod Wilson (all returning starters from 2014). New defensive coordinator, DJ Durkin, has made it known all season that he wants his cornerbacks to play physical man-coverage. If the secondary can show they can be successful with this style of play, it will allow Durkin to bring more pressure from the front seven. That could make a top 10 defense in 2014 downright terrifying for opponents in 2015.
SPECIAL TEAMS
This unit should terrify Michigan fans. As of right now, the depth chart shows that Kenny Allen OR Blake O’Neil will handle the punting duties and Kenny Allen OR Kyle Seychel will handle the place kicking duties. Allen and Seychel have combined for no collegiate field goal attempts.
If Michigan fans thought the kicking game was poor during the Rich Rodriguez, they may want to close their eyes during field goal attempts this season.
On the flip side, Michigan could have a very strong return game – especially if Peppers is the return man. While Peppers will have his biggest impact defensively, he could become a dangerous weapon returning kicks … kind of like a former Michigan defensive player. If only I could remember his name.
PREDICTION
Harbaugh will turn the Michigan program around. My long-term prediction is that he will have Michigan competing for the Big Ten championship in 2017 and a national championship in 2018. But, I know all you care about is how his team will fare in 2015. It will be better, but this team is not ready to compete with Michigan State and Ohio State.
Michigan will finish 8-4 with losses to Utah, Michigan State, Penn State and Ohio State.
