2018 Michigan Wolverines College Football Preview
Head Coach: Jim Harbaugh
2017 Record: 8-5; 5-4 Big Ten
2017 Bowl: Outback Bowl, 19-26 loss to South Carolina
Odds to win Big 10: +450
Odds to win Big 10 East: +295
Odds to win National Title: +1800
Offense
Michigan lucked out in a major way when QB and Ole Miss transfer Shea Patterson won his appeal to the NCAA for immediate eligibility. Patterson is a major talent and threw for 2,259 yards last year with 17 TDs in seven games before suffering injuries. If the Wolverines can manage to get adequate protection for Patterson, his arm could be the difference maker in a passing game that finished just No. 110 last year with only 150.1 yards per contest.
The interior of the OL will feature Ben Bredeson, Cesar Ruiz, and either Mike Onwenu or Stephen Spanellis. Michigan still has to figure out what it will do at its tackle positions, though, and neither its experienced players nor its upcoming talent offers a ton of hope at this point.
Kiran Higdon will be the No.1 running back and he had a monster season last year as a junior. Combined with Chris Evans, the Wolverines could make big strides in its rush game, which was hardly bad last year anyway (No. 49, 177 yards per game). At WR, Tarik Black and Donovan Peoples-Jones are both wildly talented options, and TEs Sean McKeon and Zach Gentry should see plenty of looks as the pair finished in the team’s top-4 receiving yardage last year.
Defense
While there are some unanswered issues in the Wolverines’ offense, there are few to none in its stellar and strong defensive unit. Its defense was among the nation’s best last year, and amazingly, also one of the nation’s youngest: That is to say, it should get only better and more impressive in 2018.
Chase Winovich and Rashan Gary are the best defensive end duo in the country now, and the pair was already tops in the Big Ten. Michael Dwumfour will slide in at DT and Aubrey Solomon is ready to breakout at the nose tackle position.
Devin Bush Jr. returns after leading the team in tackles last year, and hybrid LB Khaleke Hudson will flank him, as he had 17.5 tackles and eight sacks last year in his own right.
The weak side will feature either Devin Gil (a high school teammate of Bush’s) or Josh Ross who saw special teams play opportunities last year. Noah Furbush is going to be the SAM linebacker when Michigan utilizes its 3-3-5 defensive scheme.
In the secondary, CBs Lavert Hill and David Long will excel. Michigan had the nation’s best pass defense last year, giving up only 150.1 yards per game via the pass. Ambry Thomas and Brandon Watson will get nickel snaps as backups, while safeties Tyree Kinnel and Josh Metellus both excelled last year in their respective first seasons as starters. Michigan will be absolutely dominant defensively, and it is absolutely unparalleled in one of the toughest defensive conferences already.
Special Teams
Quinn Nordin hit 19 of 24 field goals and had a long FG of 55-yards last year. Brad Robbins will punt, and he averaged 40.4 yards per punt last year as a freshman. Donovan Peoples-Jones can be one of the best punt returners, but he has to be a little smarter and take fewer risks.
Final Word
Michigan had so little experience last year, and it was still a bowl team. It now has a much better QB, and there is a lot of talent really even in the offense, which was hardly good last year (25.2 points per game). Michigan was poor on the road, and improving that is a focus for the team—a Big Ten title is not out of reach, but there are some lingering issues in the offense to be addressed before one could bet will a ton of confidence, even at +450 to win the Big Ten.
Prediction: 10 wins
