Big Ten power rankings entering Week 2: How far does Penn State rise?
Wolverines . 5. team. 811. . 1-0.
This is considered a make or break season for Jim Harbaugh and the Michigan Wolverines.
Michigan needs to be able to contend with Ohio State and push for a Big Ten title, two things they’re yet to do under Harbaugh so far.
While they didn’t play Ohio State, or any Big Ten team this week, Michigan should still be pretty happy with their performance. The Wolverines downed Western Michigan 47-14 behind a balanced offensive attack.
Quarterback Cade McNamara played well, as did his back up, J.J. McCarthy. It will be interesting to see if the 5-star freshman eventually pushes McNamara for the starting job. In addition to the passing attack, Michigan added 335 yards on the ground. Unfortunately, Michigan will have to go through the rest of the season without their leading receiver from 2020, Ronnie Bell, who suffered a season-ending injury on Saturday.
The revamped defense looked good, especially safety Daxton Hill and defensive end Aidan Hutchinson. If this unit plays better than last year, and the quarterback situation stays stable, this team could make some noise.
Michigan has a good chance to start 4-0, before heading to Madison to play Wisconsin. That will be our first real look at how good this team could be.