Michigan Football: Where Wolverines Stand After Week 2
After a win and a good performance against the Oregon State Beavers in Week 2 of the season, the Wolverines’ stock has gone up slightly. The team is still excluded from both the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll, though Michigan received five points in the latest Coaches Poll.
More from Michigan Football
- 3 things to watch for Michigan football vs. Rutgers
- Michigan football vs. Rutgers: Prediction, Odds, Spread and Over/Under for College Football Week 4
- Michigan Wolverines news: Jim Harbaugh wants J.J. McCarthy ‘gunslinging’, plus a drop in recruiting rankings
- Grades, game balls for Michigan football vs. Bowling Green
- Michigan Wolverines news: Jake Moody is money in the NFL, plus more
In the rearview mirror, Week 1 opponent Utah has moved up to No. 21 in both polls.
The Wolverines moved to a 1-1 record and share the bottom of the Big Ten East with Penn State, Rutgers and Maryland. Indiana, Michigan State and Ohio State sit at the top of the division with 2-0 records.
Looking forward, Michigan should be favored heavily in its next matchup. The UNLV Rebels lost to No. 13 (now No. 10) UCLA at home, 37-3. The Wolverines should keep rolling into this game and begin their first win streak under Jim Harbaugh.
Week 3 will provide a bigger challenge for the Wolverines, with the BYU Cougars coming to Ann Arbor. Cougars quarterback Tanner Mangum threw a last-minute Hail Mary to take the lead against Boise State, and a pick-six on the Broncos’ next drive sealed the deal for BYU.
This is the second time in as many weeks that the Cougars have won the game in the last minute with a Hail Mary. Boise State was ranked No. 20 and stands as a quality win for the Cougars. The performance impressed the AP, which has BYU debuting at No. 19 in this week’s poll.
The coaches aren’t quite as bullish on the Cougars, having them ranked at No. 22. I think the Michigan-BYU contest will be close, but the Wolverines will squeak by the Cougars in the end. They’ll have to stay focused until the end, as the Cougars have twice proven that they won’t be counted out.
I initially had Maryland as more of a toss-up game in enemy territory, but now I’m favoring the Wolverines in Week 4. The Terrapins experienced an absolutely embarrassing 48-27 loss to Bowling Green at home. Maryland gave up almost 700 yards of offense. They looked bad. They looked so bad that they probably should have lost by more than 21 points against their MAC opponent.
The Northwestern Wildcats enter the AP poll at No. 23 and the Coaches Poll at No. 24. They blew out Northern Illinois 41-0 in Week 2. They should still be a very beatable team when they come to the Big House. Their first win was against an overrated Stanford team in an ugly contest. They destroyed a team that they should have destroyed for their second win. I’m not buying the Wildcats yet. Their game against Michigan might be closer than initially expected, but I’ve still got Michigan winning at home.
Michigan State will be a problem when it comes to town. The Spartans won a close match against a quality opponent when they beat Oregon 31-28 in East Lansing. They’ve moved up to No. 4 nationally and received two first place votes from the AP. Even if Michigan continues to improve in upcoming weeks, it will be tough to beat the Spartans, even at home.
Minnesota improved to 1-1 in an overtime victory over Colorado State. Colorado State isn’t a Power 5 school, but it was a 10-win team last year. The Gophers weren’t too impressive in their victory. I was honestly more impressed with their loss to TCU than I was with their victory over Colorado State. Their success will likely be entirely dependent on their defense. Even though I’m not sure their offense will be able to succeed against the Wolverines’ defense, I’m not ready to favor the Wolverines in this game. It’s still an away game, and I still think Minnesota is a team that finishes towards the top of the West Division.
Rutgers football is a mess right now. Not only did it loss to Washington State on Saturday, it also suspended its star receiver Leonte Carroo indefinitely after a post-game altercation. Carroo was previously suspended for the first half of Week 1, along with four others for curfew violations. Six players have already been kicked off the team after arrests. When Rutgers comes to Ann Arbor, if it even has a team at that point, it should be Michigan all the way.
After narrowly holding onto a victory against an FCS team, Indiana won its second straight in a close game against Florida International University. FIU is a team that hasn’t had a winning record since 2011, and went 1-11 two seasons ago. FIU actually led Indiana. Even though Indiana has a 2-0 record and sits atop the East Division, it might be the worst team in the Big Ten.
Penn State looked better in its second game of the season, but it’s hard to not improve after a game where you let your quarterback get sacked 10 times. Michigan’s offense will have to overcome a great Penn State defense, but I think it can be done. The Nittany Lions struggle on the other side of the ball. This seems like a similar team to the team that Michigan beat in an ugly game last season. With an improved Michigan team this season, the Wolverines should win in Beaver Stadium.
Going into Week 3, Ohio State remains at No. 1 overall, but they’re no longer unanimously at the top. Michigan State took two votes from the Buckeyes in the AP Poll, while Alabama took a vote in the Coaches Poll. That’s not because Ohio State looked bad at all. It shut out Hawaii 38-0. As long as the Buckeyes keep winning, it will take something huge from the teams chasing them to dethrone them. Even if you can say that Ohio State’s stock is “down” this week, Michigan will have its hands full on Nov. 28.
Just like last week, I have the Wolverines going 8-4 with losses against Utah, Michigan State, Minnesota and Ohio State. I might take the loss to Minnesota away and add a loss to Northwestern depending on how the next few weeks pan out. Michigan is still in line for a respectable season and a bowl appearance.