Bruce Feldman says Michigan football most intriguing team this offseason
This time two years ago, coming off a 2-4 COVID-19-shortened season, Michigan football appeared headed nowhere. Pundits and fans alike deemed the Jim Harbaugh era a failure, and it appeared the Wolverines would be starting a new era in short order.
Two wins over Ohio State, two Big Ten championships and two College Football Playoff appearances later, the narrative has fully changed.
Writing for The Athletic, Bruce Feldman, who also serves as a sideline reporter for Fox Sports, called the maize and blue the most intriguing team this offseason, given multiple storylines and the returning talent.
Spring football is always a good time to check in everywhere. There are interesting quarterback battles; many compelling ones are unfolding right now. There are new coaches trying to establish cultures at Nebraska and Wisconsin. There’s Deion Sanders at Colorado. To me, though, the most intriguing program in the country right now is Michigan. The roller-coaster ride of Jim Harbaugh is unlike anything else in the sport.
Feldman notes the 180 from 2020, all of the talent that Michigan has, the influx of transfers at key positions this offseason, Harbaugh’s history (he points to Stanford and the turnaround he did there) and the recent uptick in recruiting in Ann Arbor of late as reasons Michigan should have the focus of the college football world.
He notes, however, that Ohio State is still Ohio State, and Penn State appears to be on the rise after a Rose Bowl win and Drew Allar taking over at quarterback. But if the culture continues its uptick inside the program, there’s no reason Michigan can’t reach the mountaintop.
Finding the right balance in how hard a team grinds can be a tricky thing, and it’s critical when you’re coaching college players. It’s much like a team’s chemistry; it’s a living, breathing thing that changes from year to year, or even week to week. What I do think can — and will — be invaluable for Harbaugh is the trust he can have in those team leaders. In 2019, when LSU had its magical season, a big reason wasn’t just Joe Burrow’s performance on the field, but his leadership off of it. Ed Orgeron trusted Burrow enough to lean on him because he had the pulse of that locker room, so he knew exactly when to push and when to pull. That was why that team kept getting stronger during the season and was able to do things no one initially thought it could.
Jim Harbaugh has a terrific chance to do that this year with this team.
The culture aspect will likely remain the same, but it remains something of a mystery considering Jim Harbaugh’s consigliere, Biff Poggi, departed the program this offseason to take the Charlotte head coaching job. Still, if the crossroads of talent, development, coaching and culture all meet this season, there’s no reason to think the Wolverines can’t be the sole team left standing at the end of 2023.
Read Feldman’s entire article here. ($)
