The Michigan Wolverines season will begin in 26 days when the East Carolina Pirates head to Ann Arbor. The actual college football season will start in 19 days. Today the AFCA Coaches Poll was released, and the Wolverines have their highest ranking in program history, coming in at number two. The Top ten teams are Georgia, Michigan, Alabama, Ohio State, LSU, USC, Penn State, Florida State, Clemson, and Tennessee; Michigan was the only team of the top four not to receive a number one vote.
The SEC has four teams in the top ten, while the Big Ten has three teams. The Big 12 is the only power five conferences not to have a team crack the top ten, with the first team in their conference not showing up until 12th with the Texas Longhorns ranking there.
2023 Michigan Wolverines
The Michigan Wolverines are looking to return to the College Football Playoffs for the third consecutive season. They return Junior JJ McCarthy at Quarterback, and he was fantastic last season, finishing with a 64.6 completion percentage and throwing for 2,719 yards. The Wolverines’ offense will also have the dynamic duo of Senior Blake Corum and Junior Donovan Edwards back, as they ran for 2,454 yards on 387 carries and had 25 touchdowns. Corum is also one of the early favorites to win the Heisman after he ran for 1,463 yards and 18 touchdowns last season. The Wolverines receiving core will be led by Senior Cornelius Johnson, who caught 32 passes for 499 yards and six touchdowns last season.
The Wolverines’ defense has been discussed as one of Jim Harbaugh’s best units during his tenure at Michigan. The defense will be led by Linebackers Junior Junior Colson and Senior Michael Barrett, who combined for 173 total tackles, 5.5 sacks, and two interceptions, both of which came from Barrett. The Wolverine secondary will bring back Junior Rod Moore and Senior Mike Sainristil, who combined for 129 total tackles, 2.5 sacks, five interceptions, and ten pass deflections; Moore led the team in 2022 with four interceptions.
Key Points:
- The 2023 Preseason Coaches Poll was released.
- Michigan Wolverines start at number two.
Bottom Line: Big 2023 Season ahead for Michigan
The Michigan Wolverines will face two teams ranked in the preseason top 25 Ohio State and Penn State. The Wolverines will also be without their head coach Jim Harbaugh for the first four games as he has been suspended. The first big game of the 2023 season will come on October 21st when they head to East Lansing to take on their rival, the Michigan State Spartans, which will be a primetime game. The Wolverines will look to make the college football playoff, get the monkey off their back, and make an appearance in the National Championship game for the first time since 1997 when they beat the Washington State Cougars.
