The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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THE WOLVERINE 2023 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 37 How would you characterize M i c h i ga n 's t u r n a ro u n d u n d e r head coach Jim Harbaugh the last two years? Bender: It's been a remarkable turn- around. Jim Harbaugh has done a mas- terful job of reinventing his tenure in the NIL and transfer portal era. The way he managed the Cade McNamara-J.J. Mc- Carthy competition early last season was a reminder that Harbaugh is at his best when he does it his way, not yours. The road victories at Wisconsin and Iowa the last two seasons paved the way for the win against Ohio State at The Shoe in 2022. In the last four years, the Buckeyes and Wo lve r i n e s h ave sent 32 players each to the NFL Draft. The next step is landing more five- star talent and win- ning in the College Football Playoff. Fornelli: In one sense, it's unbe- l i eva b l e b e ca u se O h i o S ta te h a d seemingly reached a level that felt like it would be difficult for anybody other than a select few programs to reach. But at the same time, it's not surprising at all! College football has always been cycli- cal, even if that cycle is just different blue blood programs taking turns at the head of the table. That's essentially been the history of the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry in the Big Ten. One dominates for a while, and then the other. Now, none of this is to say Michigan's on the precipice of a dominant run. Ohio State is still very good, and the Big Ten is about to get more difficult, but none of this should've been a huge surprise. Mich- igan has recruited and developed well. It's also been a dominant program in the Big Ten even when it was losing to Ohio State. Lassan: This is a bit of a weird an- swer: A little surprising and also not all that surprising at the same time. If I think back to the 2020 season where Michigan went 2-4, it's definitely surprising and remarkable this program has earned back- to-back CFB Playoff spots and won two straight Big Ten titles. However, in a strange way, I'm not all that surprised the Wolverines have climbed back to the top of the Big Ten. I thought Michigan would get back to the top of the conference after Harbaugh was hired, but the path was much more un- usual, extended and diverted on a differ- ent track than expected. Harbaugh's track record of success at every stop indicated it would eventually happen — it just took longer than most of us anticipated. Credit to Harbaugh for hitting the reset button after '20, hiring the right staff, and also putting the players in the right schemes to help this team reach its potential. Also, any criticism of not taking the Ohio State game seriously enough is certainly gone after the last two years. Rittenberg: Really impressive. The fact that they've been able to do it in his way, winning the way that he wants to win … I think about the Penn State game last year and the 418 rushing yards they put up and being able to overpower other teams at the line of scrimmage. They've obviously built up and improved both sides of the ball and overcome key personnel losses, overcame a coordinator change on defense last year and continued to excel on that side of the ball. They have certainly elevated their pro- gram to a point where they're winning the Big Ten. The next step is to compete better on a national level, which historically has been a struggle for Michigan. But to think about where they were in 2020 to where they are right now, it's remarkable, and certainly a testament to Jim, his staff and the players. There seems to be a real iden- tity and belief in that program. Michigan has beaten Ohio State and won the Big Ten each of the last two seasons. Have the Wol- verines flipped the script on the Buckeyes, and do you feel that level of success is sustainable go- ing forward? Bender: It's the first time since the 1990s there is discomfort in Columbus. The victory at Ohio Stadium broke a 22- year drought, but it was more than that. It's the way Michigan beat Ohio State without Blake Corum on the field. J.J. McCarthy made every huge throw. Donovan Edwards had the silencers on the long TD runs. It was shocking, but at the same time, this is what Michigan expected when Har- baugh was hired in 2015. Remember when Harbaugh had a 2-1 record against Pete Carroll from 2007-09 when those coaches were at Stanford and USC? The last three years against Ryan Day feel a little bit like that, which is why it's on the Buckeyes to respond in Ann Arbor this year. Fornelli: I don't think it's a coincidence that Michigan's two wins over Ohio State have come in seasons in which Ohio State's play on the defensive line has declined. While the Wolverines have had some great pass rushers the last few years, Ohio State's been looking for the next [Joey or Nick] Bosa or Chase Young the last couple years. The lack of this player has allowed Michigan to "beat up" on Ohio State in the trenches, and as cliché as it can be, this is the Big Ten we're talking about. If you aren't winning at the line of scrimmage, you're not winning. So as long as Michigan continues to pro- duce in that area, it's capable of beating Ohio State. Lassan: Absolutely on both fronts. After beating Ohio State and claiming the Big Ten title in each of the last two years, the path to a conference title (and certainly in 2023) runs through Ann Arbor. And as long as Harbaugh is on the sidelines, I believe this level of success is sustainable going forward. In the era of the 12-team College Football Playoff that's coming in '24, even if the Wolverines fall short of winning the Big Ten, they should be making consistent appearances in the new postseason setup. As Michigan fans know well from the last couple of years, things can change quickly in college football. But right now, Michi- gan has the on-field edge over its biggest rival, and there are zero signs this program is slowing down or on the verge of going through another long losing slump like it did from 2012-19. Rittenberg: I think you have to look at the fact that it's happened twice now, and they won at Ohio Stadium. The games were different, but there were some themes. The main one was that Michigan was the better team in the second half both times, made the plays they needed to make. That was "They have certainly elevated their program to a point where they're winning the Big Ten. The next step is to compete better on a national level, which historically has been a struggle for Michigan. But to think about where they were in 2020 to where they are right now, it's remarkable, and certainly a testament to Jim, his staff and the players. There seems to be a real identity and belief in that program." ESPN'S ADAM RITTENBERG