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[ohiobuck94]

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By Pete Fiutak
95 wins in ten years. One national title. Three Rose Bowl appearances including trips to Pasadena over the last two years. Not even a whiff of a scandal.

99% of all college programs would kill for this résumé, so why is there a sense that Michigan should be so much more under head coach Lloyd Carr? With his ability to maintain one of the nation's most successful programs at such a high level for a decade, aren't the expectations a bit too high? Maybe, but they're not that far off.

Maybe it's hard to get too jacked up over the Wolverines when they lose games like they did last year to a mediocre Notre Dame team. Maybe it's the way 2004 ended by getting their doors blown off by the mobile Ohio State and Texas quarterbacks. Maybe it's that they've been knocked out of the national title hunt by mid-September in each of the last five years.

No matter what the issues have been, there's a general sense that this is a slightly underachieving program considering all the talent it hoards year in and year out. While the 2005 team isn't perfect, it's one of the ten best in America and more than talented enough to win the Big Ten title again meaning the expectations, as always, will be as big as Michigan Stadium.

The schedule isn't all that bad (more on that in a moment) and only Ohio State is the only team Michigan plays with the same athleticism. Chad Henne and Mike Hart should go from being great true freshmen to superstar sophomores, the lines are loaded with All-Big Ten stars, and the questionable defensive back seven won't be that bad. Now it's up to Carr to get this group to do something it hasn't done under his watch since the national title year: overachieve. If the Wolverines can come out with an angry, hungry attitude and can gear the machine up week in and week out, it might be a third straight trip to Pasadena.

The Schedule: All things considered, it's not bad with the first three games at home followed up by two tough, but winnable, road battles at Wisconsin and Michigan State. If the Wolverines can hold serve against Minnesota and Penn State, they could be 7-0 going into Iowa for one of the year's biggest showdowns. Ohio State comes to Ann Arbor for yet another battle for the Big Ten title.

Best Offensive Player: Sophomore RB Mike Hart. While he isn't going to tear off many big runs, there are few better workhorses and few better at consistently getting five yards a pop. There are more talented Wolverines on offense (WR Steve Breaston and tackles Adam Stenavich and Jake Long), but Hart is the one all the defensive coordinators will game plan for.

Best Defensive Player: Senior NT Gabe Watson. End/linebacker LaMarr Woodley will make the most big plays and tackle Pat Massey will get his name called often, but Watson does the dirty work occupying two and three blockers allowing the rest of the defense to shine.

Key player to a successful season: Senior CBs Grant Mason and Darnell Hood. Leon Hall will be a good number one corner on one side, so it'll be up to the seniors, along with sophomore Charles Stewart, to make up for the loss of Marlin Jackson.

The season will be a success if ... Michigan wins another Big Ten title and finishes the regular season 10-1. Unless you're USC, no one can reasonably demand a spot in the national title game. A one-loss season would be more than acceptable to most Wolverine fans.

Key game: October 22nd at Iowa. Yeah, yeah, yeah, the Ohio State game at the end of the year is always the biggest game of the bunch, but the Big Ten title fate will likely be out of Michigan's hands if it can't survive the date at Iowa.

2004 Fun Stats:
- Fumbles: Opponents 26 (lost 11) - Michigan 16 (lost 9)
- Rushing touchdowns: Opponents 19 - Michigan 15
- Sacks: Opponents 29 for 193 yards - Michigan 21 for 146 yards
Offense Breakdown and Analysis | Defense Breakdown and Analysis | Depth Chart

[BuckBackHome]

I was told by the two most rabid michigan fans I work with yesterday that one is more confident about this season then he was in 97 and the other guaranteed a victory over OSU. The one who is so confident about the season really likes his defense, as do I

[NightmaresDad]

"Not even a whiff of a scandal"

[stxbuck]

Well, bottle smashers and and 300lb public masturbators must be considered par for the course around detroit.....

[Taosman]

Only 21 sacks from the "D" kind of says it all! Better? This year?

[Sloopy45]

BIM: "I was told by the two most rabid michigan fans I work with yesterday that one is more confident about this season then he was in 97 and the other guaranteed a victory over OSU."

More confident than in '97?? I hate to break it to this guy, but that scUM team came out of nowhere to win the National Title ... they weren't pre-season favorites, or anything like that. They were working on a 50 year drought, in fact.

In fact, I thought we were ranked ahead of them in the preseason polls. Correct me if I'm wrong here.

[Pheasant]

Originally Posted by BuckinMichigan

I was told by the two most rabid michigan fans I work with yesterday that one is more confident about this season then he was in 97 and the other guaranteed a victory over OSU. The one who is so confident about the season really likes his defense, as do I

I wonder what he likes about it, how dog[censored] slow it is, maybe?

[AKAKBUCK]

and the questionable defensive back seven won't be that bad

7 players won't be that bad?

Its two whole units.

[MililaniBuckeye]

Originally Posted by FindlayBucks

I wonder what he likes about it, how dog[censored] slow it is, maybe?

Maybe he likes giving up 37 points (which should've been 48 points if we had better goal line blocking).

[jwinslow]

I really think Tate is going to rip them apart this year. scUM could pull it out if Iowa's DL is still maturing, but it will be fun watching Tate pass all over their team, and then have Stanton run circles around their slow defense.

Then we'll put both together and dominate them even worse than last year.

Anything can happen, but knowing that Shazor was your best safety would not instill much confidence in my team.

[WTEXBUCK]

Originally Posted by MililaniBuckeye

Maybe he likes giving up 37 points (which should've been 48 points if we had better goal line blocking).

Reminds me of a conversation I had with this nut in Hawaii when I was there teaching a class in February. Wierd.

[BB73]

Originally Posted by Sloopy45

More confident than in '97?? I hate to break it to this guy, but that scUM team came out of nowhere to win the National Title ... they weren't pre-season favorites, or anything like that. They were working on a 50 year drought, in fact.

In fact, I thought we were ranked ahead of them in the preseason polls. Correct me if I'm wrong here.

How about verifying that you were correct?

tOSU was 9th and TSUN was 14th in the 1997 preseason poll.

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 border=0><TBODY><TR bgColor=#990000><TD align=right>RK

</TD><TD width=5> </TD><TD align=right>PVS

</TD><TD width=20> </TD><TD>Team (FPV)

</TD><TD width=10> </TD><TD align=middle>Record

</TD><TD width=10> </TD><TD align=right>PTS

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#fafad2><TD align=right>1.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>7

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Penn State (21)

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>11-2

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>1,566

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#ffffff><TD align=right>2.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>1

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Florida (12)

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>12-1

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>1,548

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#fafad2><TD align=right>3.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>3

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Florida State (7)

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>11-1

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>1,507

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#ffffff><TD align=right>4.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>16

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Washington (10)

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>9-3

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>1,484

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#fafad2><TD align=right>5.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>9

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Tennessee (8)

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>10-2

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>1,480

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#ffffff><TD align=right>6.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>6

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Nebraska (4)

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>11-2

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>1,442

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#fafad2><TD align=right>7.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>10

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>North Carolina (4)

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>10-2

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>1,333

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#ffffff><TD align=right>8.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>8

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Colorado (3)

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>10-2

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>1,302

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#fafad2><TD align=right>9.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>2

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Ohio State (1)

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>11-1

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>1,172

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#ffffff><TD align=right>10.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>12

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>LSU

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>10-2

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>1,096

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#fafad2><TD align=right>11.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>19

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Notre Dame

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>8-3

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>1,071

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#ffffff><TD align=right>12.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>23

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Texas

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>8-5

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>1,042

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#fafad2><TD align=right>13.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>14

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Miami (FL)

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>9-3

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>820

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#ffffff><TD align=right>14.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>20

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Michigan

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>8-4

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>797

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#fafad2><TD align=right>15.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>11

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Alabama

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>10-3

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>673

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#ffffff><TD align=right>16.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>24

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Auburn

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>8-4

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>592

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#fafad2><TD align=right>17.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>21

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Syracuse

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>9-3

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>585

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#ffffff><TD align=right>18.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>NR

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Stanford

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>7-5

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>533

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#fafad2><TD align=right>19.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>5

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>BYU

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>14-1

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>375

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#ffffff><TD align=right>20.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>NR

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Clemson

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>7-5

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>352

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#fafad2><TD align=right>21.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>18

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Iowa

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>9-3

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>347

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#ffffff><TD align=right>22.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>NR

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>USC

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>6-6

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>219

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#fafad2><TD align=right>23.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>17

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Kansas State

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>9-3

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>210

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#ffffff><TD align=right>24.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>NR

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Wisconsin

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>8-5

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>198

</TD></TR><TR bgColor=#fafad2><TD align=right>25.

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>NR

</TD><TD> </TD><TD>Michigan State

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>6-6

</TD><TD> </TD><TD align=right>148

</TD></TR><TR><TD bgColor=#990000 colSpan=9 height=1></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

[gbearbuck]

I watched Gabe Watson last year... He's huge, and plugs the two center gaps well... he doesn't move well... just a huge rock in the middle... I wonder what his true height and weight are (he has to be in the mid 300's)...

[Buckeyeskickbuttocks]

Their D has been on a slide backwards consistently since 1997. I mean, as much hype as some of their DB's have got over the last several years, they've all been quite pedestrian. Shazor is just one example in a long line... Before Shazor was going MIA for entire quarters, Cato June was taking up a spot in the 2 deep and disappearing for weeks on end. (Actually, this got to be so comical his senior season, when I'd watch Mich games I would pick him out each play I could and see how he read and reacted, whcih usually ended with him taking a couple of steps this way and that and then exploding towards the ball after the play was dead.) I've never thought Marlin Jackson was as good as advertised.

I'm more interested in seeing if my comments about Henne being bailed out time and time again by Edwards will prove to be true this year. I think we'll see Henne throw more picks and complete less passes. On the other hand, he does have a full year under his belt, and it's not like he just plain sucks. Poor decision maker, yes (Afterall, he did choose Michigan) but he's got some skills.

I think we'll also see how much BE meant to that "vaunted" WR corps. I tell you, Jason Avant has had exactly 1 good game. It was against Northwestern in 2003. That's it. And for as much talent as Breaston has, he's been only a satisfactory compliment to the No. 1 WR (Edwards). Maybe he steps up, I don't know.

[Oh8ch]

I watched Gabe Watson last year... He's huge, and plugs the two center gaps well... he doesn't move well..

Any way they can pick up a couple more Watson's? Poor Teddy G - what will he do against such a force?