Michigan football among 247Sports 2024 teams most likely to suffer setback
longhornswire.usatoday.comigan football was the first-ever Big Ten team in the College Football Playoff era to go undefeated and win the national championship. The Wolverines were the second team in the conference to win it all, but Ohio State went 14-1 in its 2014 championship run.
Though teams usually get a lot of love coming off of a national title, the maize and blue aren’t getting the same recognition as the Georgias or even the Florida States of the world after winning a championship. Part of that is losing head coach Jim Harbaugh, the other part is losing a ton of the starters from last year’s team.
Thus, as 247Sports put together the teams that could fall from grace, at least a little, the Michigan Wolverines make the cut. The maize and blue are still expected to be a good team, but the over-under in wins in 2024 is 2.5 less than it had last year in the regular season.
2023 Regular-Season Record: 12-0
2024 Projected Win Total: 9.5 (-2.5 Wins)
There is plenty of continuity at Michigan even amid a coaching change, and the 2024 campaign will test the solidity of the foundation Jim Harbaugh built before he bolted for the NFL. The primary concern around the Wolverines is their quarterback room, which has yet to produce a clear No. 1 option and is unlikely to replicate J.J. McCarthy’s production regardless of who emerges as the starter. Add Ohio State’s offseason surge and a difficult schedule — which features battles with Texas and Big Ten newcomer Oregon — to the mix, and another perfect regular season seems unlikely.
That said, Michigan was expected to lose at least to Ohio State last year, if not also against perpetual preseason darling Penn State. The expectations for the maize and blue have fallen short compared to reality each of the past three years. Could the Wolverines overachieve again next year? It will be harder, with Texas, Oregon, Washington, and OSU all on the regular season schedule.
