With spring ball wrapped up, we are now in the middle of the college football offseason. With that comes projections and prognostications from the national media declaring the best teams despite no games having been played. It’s a nice ego boost for some teams and motivational fuel for others.
With all that in mind, we were curious where the Michigan Wolverines are in these “way-too-early” rankings. Let’s take a look around the country:
CBS Sports (Brandon Marcellano): No. 16
If heralded five-star quarterback Bryce Underwood takes over and can spark an otherwise putrid passing attack, Michigan could be a top-10 team at the end of the year. The Wolverines finished last season on a tear, beating Ohio State and Alabama, and did it with a solid running game and, of course, a suffocating defense.
CBS has Michigan in the mid-teens, which you’ll see is a bit of a theme. Marcellano sees the Wolverines as a team with boom-or-bust potential depending on the play of Bryce Underwood. He also has three Big Ten teams in the top six in the country in Ohio State (No. 1), Penn State (No. 3) and Oregon (No. 6).
USA Today (Paul Myerberg, Erick Smith): No. 15
If the final weeks of last season are to be believed, Michigan is poised to reclaim a place among the top teams in the Big Ten. One reason for optimism is the clear upgrade at QB, whether it’s Fresno State transfer Mikey Keene or five-star freshman Bryce Underwood under center. But Underwood may need more time after making incremental progress as an early enrollee playing in spring drills. The Wolverines should be very strong on both lines even as the defense loses a star in tackle Mason Graham.
USA Today is the rosiest of the bunch with Michigan at 15th overall. Like the others in this list, they have the Wolverines behind Ohio State, Penn State, Oregon and Illinois in the Big Ten, but ahead of Indiana right now.
The Athletic (Stewart Mandel): No. 20
All signs point to five-star freshman QB Bryce Underwood assuming the reins come Week 1. Coach Sherrone Moore needs new skill players to emerge. Alabama RB Justice Haynes is one proven guy, as is Indiana WR Donaven McCulley (48 catches for 644 yards in 2023). Michigan’s defense should again be a strength, with experience across the board. Arkansas’ TJ Metcalf should be a factor in the secondary.
Mandel does not view the Wolverines highly and never has, frankly. Prior to spring practice, he had Michigan at No. 18. He also has Texas Tech and Indiana ahead of the Wolverines in his rankings. Other Big Ten teams include Penn State (No. 2), Ohio State (No. 4), Oregon (No. 8), Illinois (No. 16) and Indiana (No. 18).
SI (Bryan Fischer, Mike McDaniel, Pat Forde, Zach Koons): No. 19
The Wolverines salvaged a nearly disastrous title defense with ugly wins over Ohio State in the regular season and Alabama in the ReliaQuest Bowl, but it’s fair to say 2024 was a disappointment. Determined not to let poor quarterback play repeat itself, Sherrone Moore signed five-star recruit Bryce Underwood and dipped into the transfer portal for former Fresno State QB Mikey Keene. Michigan also fired offensive coordinator Kirk Campbell and brought in Chip Lindsey from North Carolina to kick-start the nation’s 129th-ranked offense. The Wolverines could take a step back defensively with the NFL departures of Mason Graham, Kenneth Grant and Will Johnson, but any improvement on offense could put them back into the Big Ten mix.
Sports Illustrated’s collection of writers sees potential on the offensive side of the ball for Michigan, while acknowledging the defense will likely take a step back.
Only time will tell how these way-too-early projections hold up. If Underwood can develop quickly into the quarterback the recruiting services think he can be, I expect Michigan will rise quickly in the rankings this fall.
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