The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1503142
THE WOLVERINE 2023 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 21 BY MARK PANUS A rthur Schopenhauer, a 19th century German philosopher, didn't know anything about college football. However, he had an interesting worldview on how people seemingly arrive at the truth. Looking at how Michigan football has been perceived since the summer of 2021, his assessment rings true: "All truth passes through three stages," he said. "First, it is ridiculed. …" Before the 2021 season, Michigan was broadly predicted to finish fourth. Not just in the Big Ten, but fourth in the Big Ten East division. It didn't happen. The Wolverines shredded those ridiculous expectations by finishing 12-2, taking apart Ohio State 42-27, capturing their first Big Ten title since 2004 and advancing to their first College Football Playoff game before falling to even- tual national champion Georgia. "Second , it is vio- lently opposed." Last fall, the pun- dits credited U-M for its great year in 2021, but largely treated it as an anomaly. All major outlets once again picked the Buckeyes to return to their familiar spot atop the conference, leaving Michigan in the category of being a good pick for second, but just not quite as elite as that team down south of its state border. Wrong again. The 2022 campaign of- fered even more convincing evidence of what head coach Jim Harbaugh has built in Ann Arbor. Michigan's powerful ground attack pounded its first 13 op- ponents into submission while notching back-to-back Big Ten championships and an extremely satisfying 45-23 victory in Columbus against you-know-who. "Third, it is accepted as being self-ev- ident." This season, the preseason college football prognosticators appear to have seen the light. Finally, the truth about these Wolverines is self-evident. Despite Michigan's unexpected loss to TCU in the 2022 CFP semifinals, Athlon Sports, Lindy's Sports and Phil Steele's College Football are now all aligned and in full agreement that 2023 will be Michi- gan's year in the Big Ten. These esteemed college football analysts also deem a third trip to the College Football Playoff to be in the cards for U-M, with a berth in the championship game being fully within the program's grasp. Now that the fourth estate agrees on the truth about Michigan football, what really matters is how the Wolverines handle their business as heavy favorites this fall. W h a t fo l l ows i s a rundown of how the big three preseason publi- cations assess Michigan football headed into the 2023 season. Athlon Sports Athlon ranked Michi- gan as its preseason No. 2 team in the nation, behind only Georgia, stating "Michigan should be the favorite to win the Big Ten and reach the College Football Playoff for the third consecutive season." The publication predicts U-M to go 12-1 overall and 8-1 in the Big Ten while winning the East division and claiming Blue Wave The Path To The Big Ten Title Runs Through Ann Arbor "It's proof of concept now, that's why they've stepped it up in recruiting. … They breed the culture into those guys. It's elitist, but that's built on confidence, and confident teams are consistent." ANONYMOUS OPPOSING BIG TEN ASSISTANT COACH ON U-M