The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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90 THE WOLVERINE NOVEMBER 2017 F an squawking about the 2017 Michigan team reached fever pitch following U-M's 14-10 home loss to Michigan State, and yes, some of it was deserved. The Wolverines featured the best unit on the field with a dominating defense, and re- ally only needed to protect the ball to win the game. And true, it probably wasn't the best-coached game of head coach Jim Harbaugh's illustrious career. The offense was put in difficult positions at times (an empty backfield on third-and-three in a mon- soon, for example, leading to fifth-year senior quarterback John O'Korn throwing an interception), though part of that was a result of playing from behind. Much of the other bluster, though, is just overreaction, including these gems: "They should be much farther along in year three — Harbaugh's been a disappointment." And, "They're going to stink next year, too, with this offense and the same guys coming back." Which is, of course, as crazy as those who've been comparing Har- baugh's 25-7 record to Brady Hoke's 24-8 start during his Michigan ten- ure. Of the Wolverines' seven losses under Harbaugh, six have come down to the last possession. Not the last quarter, even the last minute, but the last possession. The 1-4 record against the rivals? We get that it's a point of conten- tion, and Harbaugh knows "just win, baby" as well as anybody. But minus a fluke punt drop returned for fumble versus MSU in 2015 and a poor whistle at OSU last year, he'd be 3-2, and one and half quarters of horrible weather this year versus the Spartans didn't help, either. There is one similarity between Hoke and Harbaugh, however. Both inherited uneven rosters, especially as it pertains to the offensive line. Harbaugh and staff have recruited the position well, but there are two sophomores in the starting lineup and difficulties on the right side that were inherited. Hoke, too, took over a situation in which he inherited eight scholarship linemen from head coach Rich Rodri- guez. Harbaugh and staff had more to work with, but a 2013 class that looked great on paper, for example, simply didn't pan out. Of five four- star blockers, four didn't pan out. It's a hole they're working on fill- ing, but offensive line proficiency takes time. Even so, the run block- ers paved the way for 271 yards in a 27-20 win at Indiana and looked good doing it. "We can grow," Harbaugh said after the game when asked if this team was destined to scrape by this year. "We can learn, and we know that we will. "I put myself back when I was a true freshman or sophomore, red- shirt freshman or even a redshirt sophomore, practically a junior in school. I wasn't a finished product by any means. I don't think I could have even gone out there as a true fresh- man like some of these guys are." He was talking about this season, but he could just as easily have been talking about the future. "It's a process," he said, and they're still working on get- ting to the point where they don't have to rely on true freshmen that aren't ready (as compared to the handful that are) to fill key positions. It will come. NFL Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells used to say, "Every team, every year is different," meaning one year has zero bearing on what's going to happen next year. Ask Notre Dame, which finished with four wins last year, but is off to a 5-1 start and has improved dramati- cally, closing in on the top 10. Though Michigan gave one away to Michigan State with five turnovers, the fact that the Spartans were even close would have been laughed at following a sea- son in which they finished with three wins and went through a disastrous offseason, with several players being kicked off the team. Harbaugh has two-thirds of a very good program already in place. The defense under Don Brown is elite and loses only two players next year. Red- shirt freshman kicker Quinn Nordin is a tremendous weapon, and while the sophomore class of receivers and quarterbacks isn't where it could be, freshmen Tarik Black and Donovan Peoples-Jones will be special next year. They and their teammates are gaining valuable experience. "If you can dig down, dig deep, stay in the moment, not look for a soft shoulder to cry on or an excuse to be made while you're in the moment, that's something special," Harbaugh said. "They can grow. Our best people will be on it … we'll forge ahead." Betting against him would be to ignore his recent and impressive past. ❏ Chris Balas has been with The Wolver- ine since 1997, working part time for five years before joining the staff full time in 2002. Contact him at cbalas@ thewolverine.com and follow him on Twitter @Balas_Wolverine. INSIDE MICHIGAN CHRIS BALAS The Future Remains Bright Jim Harbaugh is 25-7 in his two and a half seasons at Michigan, with six of the losses decided on the last possession. PHOTO BY BRANDON BROWN