Michigan Football: 5 predictions for Wolverines against Rutgers

Wolverines, Harbaugh will have an edge

One of the most common criticisms of Michigan football this season is that the team doesn’t seem to have the same edge or the same fight that it used to.

Throughout his coaching career, Jim Harbaugh has been known as a tough guy and his teams have generally followed suit. Even in the first couple of seasons in Ann Arbor, the Wolverines weren’t the best team in college football but they weren’t going to be pushed around.

Last Saturday in Wisconsin, the team had no energy, no fire, and no fight.

The Wolverines stood there and did nothing as McCaffrey took a cheap shot that knocked him out for the week. The team also didn’t respond the way you’d expect after getting dogged on for two weeks by the national media and fans.

This week, I expect Harbaugh and the team to have that edge back. It starts with the head coach. He needs to get back to being the guy that didn’t care what people thought and went for two against Pete Carroll and USC just because he wanted to send a message.

You can’t really send a message against Rutgers, but winning by 40-50 points would certainly help quiet the critics for at least a day or so.