Michigan Football: Season Review

As is the case for almost every college football season, there were plenty of ups and downs. Good wins, bad losses, exciting plays, and frustrating patterns, this season really had it all. I am here to unpack it all as well as provide a glimpse into next season and what it could hold for this team.

I would say that Michigan won all the games they should have this year. I never like losing, but I can at least understand how we lost to Wisconsin, Penn State, and Ohio State. Wisconsin had an outstanding defense that was keyed in to stop the run and let Patterson try to beat them, and they had the secondary and the pass rush to make life as tough as possible for him. Playing in a white out game in Happy Valley is arguably the toughest environment in football, and it was unfortunate we could not pull that win out. It came down to the fact that Don Brown allowed K.J. Hamler to beat us. The Ohio State game went as expected, we were straight up outmatched. They were a top-2 team in the nation when we played them, so naturally it is not surprising we could not quite hang with them. The team fought hard, but it just was not enough. I will credit this team for the fact that there were a lot of games that could have ended in bad losses, but they really gutted them out. Army, Iowa, and Illinois come to mind immediately. We had some very nice wins as well, including complete blowouts of Notre Dame and Michigan State that were just a lot of fun to watch. Overall, it was not a bad season for this team, especially considering the talent level we had, which I will get into now.

Offense

I said very early on that I was not excited about Shea Patterson being back for another season. He was solid last year, but far from spectacular, and I was ready to see what the younger guys in the quarterback room had to offer. I cannot blame him for not going pro last year, as I do not think he will make much of an impact at the NFL level, but it is frustrating that he ended up coming back. In hindsight, his draft stock was certainly higher after last season than it is now. He may not even get drafted at all. Watching him sputter against defenses that shut down the run and forced him to throw was very irritating, especially when Dylan McCaffrey came in and immediately led a drive down the field against a very talented Wisconsin defense that had embarrassed Patterson all day only to get a concussion and miss substantial time. I very much look forward to seeing McCaffrey at the helm of the offense next year, barring a crazy offseason development by Joe Milton. I will say that they both have looked good in garbage time of games, but that is, of course, garbage time. I have heard a lot of people question McCaffrey’s passing for some reason, which I do not understand. Every time I watch him, he just looks fluid and comfortable in the offense, both running and passing. I know that Milton is the more exciting prospect because he has an absolute cannon and has size and athleticism that brings back memories of Cam Newton, but I think McCaffrey is the more complete option at quarterback for next season.

Our running back room is very interesting. Zach Charbonnet showed a lot of potential with a number of impressive runs. He moves very well for his size, and I think if he could hit the gym and really transform his body into more muscle mass, he could become even quicker and be a real stud by next year. Hassan Haskins was a nice surprise, emerging as the best option to spell Charbonnet and give him periods to rest, but in my opinion, he is well behind Charbonnet in terms of overall talent. Tru Wilson and Christian Turner round out our top four backs. Wilson runs smart and just seems to know where to go with the ball in his hands. Unfortunately, he did graduate. Turner possesses a ton of burst and showed flashes of potential with some nice runs, but fell pretty far behind Charbonnet and Haskins on the depth chart. Next year, we will have two important names joining the running back room. One of them is Chris Evans, who sat out all of last season due to academic ineligibility. I am not thrilled about him being back, as I grew tired of him during the previous season. He never quite seemed able to rip off the long runs that one would expect from him, and he fumbled the ball a lot. The other name is incoming freshman Blake Corum. I love what this kid can bring to the team. His high school tape shows some real game-breaking ability, and that is something this offense desperately needs. Just look at some of the top teams in the country, and they all have a running back that can break off a long touchdown on any given play. LSU had Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Ohio State had J.K. Dobbins, and Clemson has Travis Etienne. A home run hitter is essential to a high-octane offense, and I think Corum, alongside Charbonnet, can really bring that.

Our wide receivers were a very polarizing group this season. Some of them played really well while others did not. Let’s start with the good. Nico Collins continued to dominate defensive backs with his size and crazy strength, and I am thrilled that he is coming back. Ronnie Bell also had a great season, leading the team in receiving yards despite having three more highly touted receivers ahead of him to start the season. I loved Bell more and more as the season went on. Yes, he did drop the game-tying touchdown against Penn State, but he was such a dependable target for us in so many other games this season that I am willing to forgive him for that. Like I said, I am more upset with Don Brown about losing that game. The three freshmen (Mike Sainristil, Giles Jackson, and Cornelius Johnson) really showed out when given the opportunity. I was calling for those three to get some playing time all season. Sainristil is a great route runner who made several diving catches on poor throws by Patterson. Jackson has the makings of the kind of player that you just give the ball to and let him run wild. Players like that can be a nightmare for defenses, and I am very optimistic Jackson can become that. Johnson played the least of the three of them, but with the departures in our receiving corps this year, he will need to step up, and I think he is up to the task. Now, as for those receivers who departed, Donovan Peoples-Jones and Tarik Black, I am not overly upset to see them go. I did like Peoples-Jones a lot, but in my opinion, he was never quite the stud that he had the potential to be. He would disappear for stretches of time and I question his overall route running. I have some great memories of him, such as his punt return against Air Force or his long touchdown against Michigan State in East Lansing, but ultimately, I am not too upset about seeing the next men up get some playing time. Now, Tarik Black is a different story. I was excited for him to come back after an injury-riddled first two seasons, but he never came back into any sort of relevance. In addition to that, there are reports about him not finishing routes or putting full effort into his blocks, and things like that are unacceptable. As of now, he is still in the transfer portal but once I started hearing about those things and seeing them for myself, I could not care less that he is gone. We also have two exciting freshmen coming in, A.J. Henning and Roman Wilson. I am particularly excited about Wilson, who is a burner. The sky is the limit for this group next season.

There is not much to talk about with our tight ends. Sean McKeon is graduated, and Nick Eubanks is coming back for one more year. I am not particularly excited because Eubanks struggles with blocking, but who knows maybe he will get better. I hope to see a lot more of Erick All next season, who got very limited playing time this year, but I think can really turn into a threat in the receiving game.

Our offensive line is going to look very different from last year. Jon Runyan, Ben Bredeson, Cesar Ruiz, and Michael Onwenu all either graduated or left for the NFL draft. The only returning starter we have is Jalen Mayfield. It is going to be interesting which of the rest of our linemen emerge as the starters. Two younger guys I am personally interested in are Nolan Rumler and Trente Jones, who were incoming freshmen this past year. Ultimately, as long as the guys that play can dominate a defensive line, I do not particularly care who ends up winning the starting jobs.

Defense

Our defensive line was okay last year. The problem is that they would get pushed around by some of the bigger offensive lines, like Wisconsin and Ohio State. I was actually really impressed with how they played against Iowa, because they also really had some men up front, including one of the top prospects in the NFL Draft, Tristan Wirfs. Aidan Hutchinson and Kwity Paye played well off the edge, although I do wish they would generate a bit more pressure. Michael Danna was also good off the edge as a rotational player, but he did graduate this year along with Josh Uche, who was possibly our most electric pass rusher. Carlo Kemp is a bit small to play defensive tackle, and that was evident against any team with strong interior linemen. He essentially was rendered useless against those teams. Michael Dwumfour played alright but battled injuries all season. The guy I was excited to see get some playing time was Chris Hinton, the freshman. He already came in with the size to play tackle and I think he is going to develop into a force on our defensive line alongside Mazi Smith, another freshman from last year. We are really going to need these guys to step up next year if we want to make any real noise on a national level.

My newfound favorite player, Cam McGrone, was the star of our linebacker room since he stepped on the field. He made plays left and right and was consistently our best playmaker on defense. I firmly believe he is a star that can play at the same level that Devin Bush did when he was here, maybe even higher. Our other linebackers were underwhelming at best. Jordan Glasgow was okay, but far from spectacular, and Khaleke Hudson kept making bad plays. One example is that he continually would dive in on run plays, allowing the running backs to bounce it outside for big gains. It happened time and time again against Jonathan Taylor and J.K. Dobbins and it was extremely frustrating. Josh Ross was our starting middle linebacker until he got hurt, clearing the road for McGrone, but he is a solid player that I still think can make an impact. It is hard to know for sure what will happen with this group moving forward. With McGrone firmly planted in the middle spot, who will now play outside? I assume Don Brown will still try to implement the “Viper,” which is what Khaleke Hudson played, essentially a big safety playing in the box. Will he plug in one of our incoming freshmen such as William Mohan as the Viper or will he choose to play a more traditional linebacker out wide? It is hard to say for sure, but my guess would be he will still try to make the Viper work. As for the other outside linebacker spot, there are a ton of options. Josh Ross and Devin Gil are two returning players who have started for us before, but we also have younger guys yet to see the field in Anthony Solomon and Michael Barrett as well as talented freshmen Kalel Mullings, Osman Savage, and Nikhai Hill-Green. There is a ton of exciting potential in this group, and it will be very interesting to see who ends up earning the playing time.

As exciting as the linebackers are, the secondary is every bit as exciting. Yes, we are losing Lavert Hill, our number one cornerback, but there are a lot of other guys ready to step up. Ambry Thomas and Vincent Gray are two good-if-not-great cornerbacks that I feel pretty good about to start. I am far more excited about the other younger players we have, though. Jalen Perry and DJ Turner II are two guys who came in last year with a lot of hype, but ultimately were not really needed last year. This year they may get their shot at it. We also have incoming freshman Andre Seldon, who has lit up every camp he has been to and seems to really have the makings of being a shutdown corner. I cannot wait for him to see the field, personally. We have another freshman coming in named Darion Green-Warren, who committed during the All-American Bowl, that is worth keeping an eye on. At safety, it is going to be an interesting season as well. Josh Metellus graduated, and I am not upset at all to see him go. He was a hard-working player that was willing to lay out a ton of punishment to opponents, which I loved, but his coverage skills were so bad that it really caused a huge problem for us. There were plays where he was turned around the complete wrong direction as the ball flew right over his head. He was a fun player to watch in some respects, but I have been long ready for someone new. The other two safeties who got a lot of playing time last year, Brad Hawkins and Daxton Hill, are both coming back. I thought they both had good seasons, but of course with Hill being the highly touted freshman that he was last season, I was always more interested in him. There are a ton of young safeties waiting in the wings as well. Last season we brought in Quinten Johnson alongside Daxton Hill, and this season we signed Makari Paige, Jordan Morant, and R.J. Moten. It is nearly impossible to say for sure how it will shake out behind Hawkins and Hill with all this talent, but I do know that it is going to be a fun group to watch.

Special Teams

I think it goes without saying at this point that I want Giles Jackson doing any and all returns. The guy is just electric. Another name to keep in mind would probably be Roman Wilson, who as I mentioned before is also blazing fast.

Quinn Nordin is coming back for another season despite being told his NFL outlook was promising, particularly after drilling a 57-yard field goal against Alabama in the bowl game. I am a little disappointed because I do like Jake Moody better for his accuracy, but I have to give Nordin credit because he finished strong last season. I just hope Harbaugh sticks with one guy. No more two-kicker games, barring injury, of course. It will once again be a battle to watch this offseason.

Closing Thoughts on the Season

If you would have told me beginning of the season we would go 9-4, looking at the fact that Shea Patterson was still our quarterback, and seeing a schedule that included games at Wisconsin, at Penn State, plus Notre Dame and Iowa at home and a bowl game against Alabama, I probably would have taken that. No, I am not content with a nine-win season in the slightest. It is disappointing that we could not do more, but again, I think looking at the roster changes it is not that surprising. We lost our best running back in Karan Higdon, our top two defensive players in Devin Bush and Rashan Gary, in addition to an underrated cornerback in David Long. I was very worried about this team, especially after getting blown out against Wisconsin. I remember seeing the possibility of us losing five more games this year. We did lose two of those, against Penn State and Ohio State, but we gutted out a win against Iowa and destroyed Notre Dame and Michigan State.

I am sure some of you are wondering what my thoughts are on losing to Ohio State again. The fact of the matter is they are the better team right now, and they have been for quite a while. I do not think there is a ton of shame in losing to a team better than you. I mean just look at position-by-position comparisons between the two teams, does Michigan even win any of those? I feel like it has to be said as well that no, I do not want Jim Harbaugh fired. If I wanted any big firing, I would be way more inclined to say Don Brown. He has shown an inability to stop Ohio State’s offense, and I think that has been the biggest problem. Then again, I cannot even dog him too much for that because Ohio State’s offense put up 30+ points on everyone except Penn State (28) and Clemson (23). Their defense was also crazy good this year, Michigan actually put up the second-highest point total against them all season (27), barely behind Clemson (29). Let’s just say Ohio State made the playoff for a reason, they were a very good team, and it is not the end of the world to lose to them.

I am not particularly upset about losing the bowl game either. Yes, it was disappointing to watch us lose, again, but I feel like it was the most likely outcome. If you think about it, Alabama would have probably also been in the playoff if not for Tua Tagovailoa’s injury. I have to credit Mac Jones, who played well in his spot. Alabama just had a more talented roster than us. Plus, as I already mentioned, they simply stopped the run and forced Patterson to beat them through the air, and he just could not do it.

Highlight of the Year

I think it would have to be crushing Notre Dame under the lights. It was a messy game in the rain that was a lot of fun, and it was nice to get some revenge on them that will last for the next 13 years.

Top Plays of the Year

My original plan was to mention one play, but I quickly realized something. It is so hard to pick just one play in particular, so I am going to just list off a bunch of them. The strip sack to end the game in overtime against Army came to mind first. That was a game that should not have gotten to that point, but it was one of the biggest adrenaline rushes of the entire season. The two blocked punts, one against Illinois and one against Michigan State, also came to mind quickly. Donovan Peoples-Jones had an insane touchdown catch against Indiana where he dove backwards to come down with it. Giles Jackson had his kick return for a touchdown to start the game against Maryland. Khaleke Hudson destroyed a Michigan State player over the middle (I still have that picture as my desktop background). Daxton Hill also lit up Rutgers’ punt return man who did not call for a fair catch. There are surely many, many more that are not mentioned here but these were just the ones I thought of off the top of my head.

Overall, this season was about what I expected. As always, it was a lot of fun watching the team. As for next season, it will come down to the quarterback play and people stepping up on defense. Whoever starts will have to really show up in a big way if we want this team to go anywhere. I think if McCaffrey starts and plays up to what he has shown us so far, we could definitely be looking at a potential double-digit win season. Is that my expectation? It is a little too early to say for sure, but I think this team has a lot of playmakers, and if they can put it all together, I think next season could be a great one.