Hooray! The Michigan Wolverines are national champions...oh wait, that was last year.
This year, the Michigan football team finished with an 8-5 record and a victory in the ReliQuest bowl against the Alabama Crimson Tide. Although the season ended with two victories, it was a far cry from the national championship year of 2023.
Former head coach Jim Harbaugh set a precedent before he cruised into the Los Angeles sunset. One where national championship trophies are an expectation in Ann Arbor. He built a model of consistency. A place where Michigan football belongs on the national stage.
Say what you will but this season fell short of that mark. There were moments with Sherrone Moore looked like his coaching tenure would meet an early end. The quarterback carousel has been discussed at nauseum throughout the whole season. Beating USC on a last-second play seems remiss now after how USC played throughout the year.
Going to Indiana and losing a game the Wolverines had in hand at different points seems even more glaring considering that Indiana could barely stay on the field against Ohio State. A team, in Ohio State, that Michigan then beat weeks later.
But which Ohio State team is real? The one Michigan football beat or the one who ran Tennessee off the field in the first quarter? And after the victory against the Crimson Tide on New Year's Eve, the sports world seemed to be having an escalating debate on if Alabama was even the team the experts thought they were.
Give Michigan football credit
Take nothing away from Jordan Marshall, who carried 23 times for 100 yards to help lead to Michigan's victory on Tuesday afternoon. Take nothing from Dominic Zvada, who is considered one of the best, if not best, kickers in the country who had an extraordinary season. Take nothing from Davis Warren, who's personal story of being a cancer survivor is inspiring enough but his ability to gain back the starting job after losing it is one amazing feat. There were, of course, bright spots for the Wolverines this season.
8-5 isn't anything to take for granted but another season where the Michigan Wolverines are not in the upper echelon of the Big Ten and vying for the college football playoff will be underwhelming.
Sherrone Moore took over from Jim Harbaugh, who no matter where he goes, wins. Wolverine fans got a taste of what it's like to be at the top of the mountain again and irrelevancy keeps that from happening. Flipping Bryce Underwood was a big move. Hopefully, he is the guy because if he isn't, the fanbase may not stomach another carousel at the most important position. Running the football is extremely valuable in the Big Ten but throwing the ball is as well. With a new offensive coordinator coming in, the field has to open up, or competing against teams like Oregon won't even be worth the watch. The standard is higher now and the Wolverine brass needs to live up to it.
Never be strayed away from the fact, that the College Football landscape has changed. Transfer portal. NIL. TV deals. The college football world is a prism much different than the one of 20, even 10 years ago. Michigan has to stay relevant in that prism. 8-5 is nice. But being average has never been the expectation in Ann Arbor, no matter how far in the past you go. Michigan does not want to lose its seat at the table because if they do...it may be a long time before they get it back.