Michigan Football, the 2020 Abbreviated COVID Season

[lineygoblue]

I watched that Texas v TCU game, and the Longhorns just totally whiffed on that game. No excuse for them losing it. They had the ball first and goal on the 3 yard line, and promptly fumbled giving the ball back to TCU. Horrible.

I'm expecting about a 6-3 season for Michigan, (at best), and quite possibly 5-4.

That includes the guaranteed loss at Columbus, and a loss to one (or both) of Penn State and/or Wisconsin, and probably a loss in the crossover, especially if its at Iowa. If there is a bowl season, it will be back to Florida. Just another participation trophy year for the Wolverines, which is now the accepted standard on State Street.

I don't care if they don't care.

They're always going to be my team, and I want them to win, and I want them to contend for championships. But there's nothing I can do to change the mindset on State Street right now, so I don't fret about it anymore. Its the price of being a Michigan fan.

[Mike]

Liney, I’m working myself into midseason form, too. Pissed if we lose, mad if we don’t win good enough.

[lineygoblue]

Running Back Christian Turner has opted back in for the 2020 season. He originally opted out due to concerns over the corona virus. He has returned to the team and is working out with them.

He rejoins a fairly crowded RB room with returners Zach Charbonnet, Hassan Haskins and Chris Evans, among others. True freshman Blake Corum has also drawn praise from Harbaugh.

https://247sports.com/college/michigan/Article/michigan-wolverines-football-christian-turner-opt-in-2020-152340679/?utm_source=247Sports%2520Newsletter&utm_medium=Newsletter&utm_campaign=201003_135512_MichiganWolverines&utm_content=Image

[Hannibal]

He needs to switch to CB. Or at least somebody does.

[WM Wolverine]

Daxton Hill is our savior at corner.

[WingsFan]

Joe Milton is the next Cam Newton! Chris Evans catching 5 yard swing passes should keep us under 100 pt loss vs osu and Hutchinson is the next Bosa.


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[Jeff Buchanan]

I do like Web but still ......pffft.

Look, we've all seen Milton. He's got a cannon arm, he's big and he can move. He never looked to me like he was a difference maker and had a firm handle on the college game yet. Can he run a "speed in space" Gattis offense hampered by Harbaugh's frequent return to Mike Debord level stupidiness? I'm waiting to see it and not with a lot of enthusiasm at all.

Hutchinson the next Bosa? Pffft again. This is still a Don Brown defense and Hutchinson is one piece of it. I have no idea if Brown can scheme around any strengths that Hutchinson may have, i.e., make him a difference maker that can cover known talent deficiencies on M's DL. Brown got pantsed trying to do that with other players so many times in the past, I kinda doubt it.

I'm still of the mind that at the first sign of a failed fast start or hic-ups in a speed in space offense, Harbaugh will jump in on the head sets and rope in whatever higher risk plays are in the playbook in favor of power without the constraints that make that kind of game work. Defenses will know what's coming and M will score it's usual 21 to 27 points ........... while Brown's D will give up 40+ .

It is written, so it will be.

[lineygoblue]

I feel the same way about Sam Webb. He's been pretty good at predicting recruiting results, but his season predictions are almost always wrong. He's a fan, and he gets caught up in the hype just like a lot of us do.

The upcoming 2020 season is a huge question mark. Nobody knows if or how much Covid is going to affect the season. I hope it affects the season as much as it did in the NBA. They basically had nothing. That would be a good result for ALL the teams. How that turns out will be key.

Presuming that Covid has little or no effect on the rosters and availability, I see nothing that would suddenly catapult Michigan into Big Ten Champion contender status. Michigan has one of the most difficult schedules in the conference, and they start with a tough opponent on the road. Any visions of playing in Indianapolis in December could be dashed in Week 1, much less Week 8.

I'll be watching when they play Minnesota. I admit I'm curious about Milton, and I'd like to see if those young RB's have gotten better. I'm also looking forward to watching the DL play. They're supposed to be the best group on the defense. We'll see.

[Cody_Russell]

Very optimistic / koolaid drinking view to compare Milton to Newton. or Hutchinson to Bosa..... remember when Shea Patterson was going to be Johnny Manziel for M?

Don't buy it.
Beat Minnesota on the road first and then you can talk. Harbaugh hasn't been that successful with road games against top 25 teams.
I think it's more likely Milton looks like Shea week 1 @ ND 2018. Some nice plays/flashes, but overall not good enough against a competitive Minnesota defense. Milton needs experience to earn hype.
As for Hutchinson, I don't see the explosiveness or athleticism in his game to be compared to a Bosa. High floor, high motor guy... not buying anything outside of that yet. Doubt Hutchinson is a better DE than Purdue's Karlaftis in 2020.

[lineygoblue]

Aiden Hutchinson has a great pedigree, but I wouldn't put him in the Bosa category. He's had flashes where he's made some great plays, but I also saw him flat on his back against OSU several times. Make some great plays against great competition, and then the hype talk can begin. That's what guys like Woodson and Howard did.

Same goes for Milton. Lets hold off on the Cam Newton comparisons until he strings together some impressive wins and stats against great competition. That's how Cam got the Heisman. Until that happens, just stifle it.

I still think the ceiling for this team is 3rd in the BTE. Anything above that is frosting.

[Mike]

Joe Milton is the next Cam Newton! Chris Evans catching 5 yard swing passes should keep us under 100 pt loss vs osu and Hutchinson is the next Bosa.


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I have had it with all the puffery year after year. If there's a sports team that receives more unwarranted accolades than Michigan football, I don't know who it is.

[Whitley]

From what I have seen of Milton (and granted it has not been much). I don't see Cam Newton. I see Culpepper. Big arm. Able to move around and run some. I think the ceiling on Milton (this year) i is Culpeppers second year:

3086 yards
62.5% completion percentage
25 td
10 INT
yDS/aTT 8.1

If he can put up those kind of numbers---then it means the o-line is a lot better than thought and probably the running game is pretty good. Have both of those things and I think Michigan is B1G title game contender. I don't expect it though. Still think Week 8 is a sure loss.

[lineygoblue]

Michigan v Minnesota will kick off at 7:30 pm on 10-24 on ABC TV.

IMO, if Minny had a big crowd for this one, I'd call this as a sure thing for the Goofers. But, without the crowd, Michigan may have a bit of a chance. Bottom line for Michigan is that Milton has to hit his passes. If he doesn't, its a long night for the Wolverines.

I read an article yesterday that claimed the reason McCaffery opted out was that not only was he passed by Milton, but he was also legitimately passed by McNamara as well. He fell all the way to 3rd on the depth chart. That, along with JJ McCarthy coming in next year pretty much iced his decision to leave.

One thing for sure, actually playing football will show whether all these rumors are true or not.

[Mike]

I'm excited to see what Milton can do as the starter. He has a lot of upside potential but the hype he's receiving is ridiculous. Let's see the guy play first. It's a little surprising that McCaffery dropped essentially two spots on the depth chart but also encouraging, as Hanni said, that Milton seems to have taken the job with force. Michigan MUST have an elite QB to compete for a championship and so far Harbaugh hasn't had one.

[Jeff Buchanan]

Such a weird COVID interrupted CFB season makes me hesitant to get too interested or involved in M football. The trend line of my optimism has been decidedly downward trending during the Harbaugh years. That its sort-of established that way makes me doubtful it will be reversed. Too much bad recruiting water under the bridge; too much evidence that JH's approach to the game is outdated. Sure, Gattis will only be in his second season but Harbaugh's personality is strong and, IMO, his influence has been heavy handed.

It was pointed out to me yesterday that fans who are paying attention may have failed to recognize that modern offenses revolve around competent QB play and only to a lesser extent that of the skill positions. Patterson was not good. He simply did not pan out as a read-option QB despite his hype. Was that coaching or was it his ceiling that none of us were willing to recognize early on?

Frankly, I don't know the answer to that and it is unlikely it as either/or answer. I always felt M's O was janky with Patterson running it. But it's the coaches that have to figure things out and make an offense get into rhythm. That rarely happened definitely not against quality teams, with equal talent and even, sometimes, against the not so good ones.

First game, on the road, first start for a new QB and a weird season makes for a bad combination for a Michigan coaching staff and players that have a well established pattern of playing poorly in openers and anytime on the road.

I'm not optimistic and will go into watching it in that mood.