The Michigan Wolverines football team headed into their bye week at 4-2 with a 2-1 conference record. This seems like a disappointment for some fans, while for others, it feels on track with what they predicted. Whether you thought this team was going to finish 8-4, better or worse, there have been a lot of question marks surrounding Michigan and the future of this program that have been built this season.
Is there anything left to salvage this year for Michigan, or should fans and the coaching staff be looking to the offseason to get this team back on track?
A Coaching Review
Head coach Sherrone Moore came in with sky-high expectations this season and has failed to meet them. What many thought could be a team competing for its fourth-straight Big Ten title is now on the outside looking in.
Replacing the talent left from the 2023 national championship team would always be an issue. Michigan only retained a handful of starters from last season. However, replacing much of that talent has turned into a disaster.
This, compounded by the need for better playcalling from coordinators Kirk Campbell and Wink Martindale, has created enormous issues for the offense and defense. Both units have become one-dimensional and opened glaring weaknesses for opponents to exploit, whether it be because of personnel or style.
Player development has also been an issue this season. While Michigan has been praised for player development over the past three seasons, this year seems to be the opposite. From the 2023 recruiting class, Michigan has only seemed to have found four impact players.
Jyaire Hill, Semaj Morgan, Fred Moore, and Evan Link are the only starters from the class. Also, not one of their top (top-300) offensive lineman recruits from the 2022 or 2023 recruiting class has been a starter. For a team that prides itself on offensive line play, they have struggled at that position this season.
On a positive note, Michigan continues to find unranked talent, which is a credit to the coaching staff. Marlin Klein, an unranked three-star recruit who grew up in Germany, has shown great flashes this season as the tight end of the future.
Meanwhile, the aforementioned Morgan, Moore, and Link were unranked three-star recruits. They have all been starters for this year’s team. The talent for player development is still there, but the benefits the team can see is entirely dependent on the coaching staff in these next few years.
The Struggling Offense
There is no way around it, but the quarterback play for the Michigan Wolverines has been a complete disaster this football season. A position group already shaky to start the season is on their third starting quarterback this season.
Jack Tuttle, who came in after Alex Orji and Davis Warren were benched, received his first shot at playing time in Week 6. While Tuttle has looked the best out of the three, he made some mistakes in the game against Washington that were inexcusable for a seventh-year senior to be making.
The step-down from J.J. McCarthy to this season has been heavily felt. According to Sharp Football, Michigan has the second-least efficient passing offense from the Power 4 conferences, only ahead of Iowa, who are quarterbacked by former Michigan quarterback Cade McNamara.
At this point, Michigan should be looking for a solution to their quarterback struggles for 2025; and fans will expect a massive improvement from this season. However, it’s always easier to solve a problem before it happens rather than watching it fail in real time. Whether it’s a highly-rated freshman, Jadyn Davis, or a transfer, Michigan has to have a plan for a quarterback by January. If they don’t, this coaching staff may not last very long at Michigan.
On the offensive line, a unit that once won two back-to-back Joe Moore awards has struggled this year. A unit that used to be able to bully opponents in the run-and-pass game has struggled to attain that level of dominance in the 2024 season.
With five new starters, it could be expected that they would not be as good, but the drop-off has been far worse than imagined. While strong at times in the run game, they have struggled mightily in the passing game. Sherrone Moore and Grant Newsome can get this unit back on track, but it needs to be fast.
The receiver group has struggled in one specific area – separation. While the quarterback play has not been good, it is much harder to develop a rhythm when wide receivers aren’t getting open. A part of this is playcalling, as Kirk Campbell needs to recognize weaknesses and put the receivers in better positions to succeed. Players like Semaj Morgan and Tyler Morris will need to be better if this team expects to have a second-half turnaround.
On a positive note, Colston Loveland is the best tight end in the country. He has been dominant in a struggling passing game and is often the only reason that unit can move the ball.
On top of that, running back Kalel Mullings has been extraordinary this season. A converted linebacker has been one of the best running backs in the country. He single-handily won the game against USC and is cementing himself as a top running back prospect. While Donovan Edwards started the season relatively slow, he has been quietly improving weekly and could see a huge second half with his improvement.
Deciphering Michigan Wolverines Defense
There is a lot less to be said about the defense. They have improved throughout the entire season and boast immense talent. The defensive line is one the best in the country, and the secondary has been improving each week, particularly redshirt freshman Jyaire Hill, who has become a dominant force opposite Will Johnson.
The issues that stem from this defense come from the playcalling and missed tackles. While fans believe this team blitzes too much, it has an average blitz rate this season. The issues stem from simulated pressures and a lack of discipline on third down.
Michigan is 72nd in the FBS in opponent third-down conversion rate at 40.66 percent. This is because they struggle to get off the field on third and long due to bad penalties and leaving the secondary out to dry.
While loaded with talent, the secondary has struggled at times this season. By sending simulated pressures, coaches are taking away valuable help in pass defense. Michigan has one of the best defensive lines in the country, so to taking those players out of the pass rush and putting them in coverage is poor coaching at times.
Michigan also has had a vast missed tackle issue, making it difficult for them to get off the field. According to PFF, the team has 47 missed tackles, which ranks 11th in the Big Ten. For reference, in the regular season in 2023, Michigan had just 62 missed tackles. This year’s team is on pace for 94.
The Michigan Wolverines defensive unit has immense talent, but the lack of discipline on third down and tackling has prevented the group from reaching its full potential in college football games.
Can this Season be Salvaged?
From an optimistic perspective, if Michigan wins out, the Wolverines likely clinch a college football playoff spot. A tw0-loss team with ranked wins against Illinois, Indiana, and Oregon should bode well for their chances. However, how confident can fans feel about this happening?
Injuries have ravaged the team, partly due to the loss of long-time strength and conditioning coach Ben Herbert. The bye week will help this team get healthy, but how long can they stay healthy?
Michigan must also become less one-dimensional on both sides of the ball. The Wolverines need to figure out how to throw the ball on offense and defense; they also have to get off the field on third down. The team has allowed the second-most completions of 10+ yards in FBS.
Optimistically, the Michigan Wolverines football team can save their season by winning out and improving from struggling position groups. However, it will take a lot of hard work, and they need to take it one game at a time.
