8-3 Record

We are here guys. The floor of a Michigan team under Jim Harbaugh. 8 wins, a good shot at 9, and a puncher's chance at 10. This crystallized for me when a relative asked me a dinner if I enjoyed the game. I sort of did. Our beaten up, youngest team in football played right there with a senior laden "power" in their house. Never will a Harbaugh team be younger, never will a Harbaugh team not have more than a handful of 4th and 5th year players. Next week they may as well roll senior day stuff in with the coin toss as nobody would blink at the scholarship recruited guys with expiring eligibility walking out to midfield to greet the Buckeye captains. Hurst, Cole, Ways, McCray, Kugler, Hill, Poggi, and thin friggin air.

Anytime I get down I remember pre Harbaugh years and I'm g2g again

Anything more would have been just gravy.

Youngest team in Big 10 and college football goes 8-4 with 3rd string true frosh QB,  inexperienced WRs, no RT and an endless parade of injuries?  Yes, please.

Next year Michigan will be 11-1 but all of you manic depressants will be waving at the fishes because you decided to put on cement boots and take a swim.

2018
Sept. 1 -- at Notre Dame   (toss up)
Sept. 8 -- Western Michigan   W
Sept. 15 -- Southern Methodist W
Sept. 22 -- Nebraska*  W
Sept. 29 -- at Northwestern* W
Oct. 6 -- Maryland* (Homecoming) W
Oct. 13 -- Wisconsin* W
Oct. 20 -- at Michigan State* W
Oct. 27 -- Bye Week
Nov. 3 -- Penn State* W
Nov. 10 -- at Rutgers* W
Nov. 17 -- Indiana* W
Nov. 24 -- at Ohio State*  (toss up)
Dec. 1 -- Big Ten Championship Game

 

 

Agree with the OP.

this year: Washington, USC, FSU, Florida, UCLA, Tennessee, Penn State, just to name a few. Just have patience.

Ya I think it’s mostly the MSU game that people are still angry about mostly. If we had won that the year would just “feel” better about losing to Penn State and Wisc

That’s half-assed for this program.

the trajectory of the team is outstanding

I'm with you . . . if that is indeed true.

We are getting better: November 2017 Michigan beats October 2017 Michigan or September 2017 Michigan. 

I just hope we are getting better enough to weather the storm that is next year's schedule.

I'm not expecting that next year is automatically going to be a Playoff year, but we really need a win next year against Ohio State, even if the game is in Columbus.

I know Harbaugh's teams will get better, but will they ever get better enough to beat OSU regularly and win the Big Ten?  That's the unanswered question so far.

and Wisconsin were both very winnable so it's slightly disappointing, but the season as a whole is about where we expected given the youth of the team

Our schedule this year had 5 games against similarly competitive programs. The other 7 were against inferior programs that are in no way a measuring stick. So, we should measure the success of the season in how we do in the 5 games that are meaningful. We are currently 1-3 in those games and I think most expect us to be 1-4 after next week. When looked at that way do you still feel good about the season?

Here is why this record is disappointing, underachieving to me.  It strictly revolves around the MSU game.  We should have won (Weather problems or not).  outside of that, we performed EXACTLY like I expected. My pre season predictions would have us at 9 and 2 with an estimated loss to OSU and a bowl win giving us a 10 win season.  Injuries aside (I am one of those who view that as a minor excuse if even an acceptable excuse at all) we've acted like a young team.  

Longish post but here I go: I love Harbaugh and believe his is - and will be - the best chance UM has at resurrecting our program. He's absorbed a tire fire, and has made lemonade out of the lemons. I do not have the Harbaugh demagogue mentality though. He has made mistakes since he has been here, as have all coaches in college / pros. The MSU game this year remains a major coaching head scratcher in my mind. The Iowa game last year is up there. And - honestly - the FSU game was extremely frustrating as well (our guys just did not seem mentally prepared for that game). Record aside, not all games are created equally. Yes, as it relates to the CFP, every game matters. However, as fans, every game matters AND some games, like OSU and MSU, matter more! Our record versus rivals is just plain bad...and - with our schedule next year - it's hard to be optimistic that it will get better (but those games obviously remain to be played). I appreciate we have a winning record, but when those wins come against - for the most part - doormats of our league and a somewhat weak OOC schedule, I just say "meh." We do have some signature wins, but we haven't won anything of true value (and not winning with a senior-laden team was rough). We have not beaten a team with a winning record since October of last year, and we've lost 7 straight games to do so. That's not good. The part that concerns me is next year. Yes, we return a lot of experience, but so does MSU and OSU. Yes, our team is having some improvement here-and-there, but nothing that genuinely says, "We can build on this for the future." Higdon, DPJ, Black, and others look like rising stars. But without an O-Line and a competent QB, their skills are moot. I've been happy with Peters, but aside from a few good drives against Wisconsin, he's only played glorified FBS teams, for the most part (and really didn't do much of anything during those games from a passing perspective. I could see us being "better" on the field next year but actually having a worse record because of our schedule. If that happens, the state of our program will hinge on 2019. Admittedly, I hate to say that...I normally punish posters who say "wait until 201X." But I can't see an alternate silver lining (unless there is a massive staff shake up that brings in some true position coach starts) .

That hasn’t been mentioned is the potential return of Grant Newsome. Hoping for his continued healing and return to the team.