Top 5 Questions That Need To Be Answered With Players Set To Report
1. What condition are the players in?
This first question is one every program in the country must answer this month. This has been the most "unique" offseason in college football since World War II, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. A handful of programs had half or most of their spring football work done before everything was shutdown, but the overwhelming majority did not. Winter conditioning was held everywhere, but with months away from organized activities and the elite-level training/equipment available at a school like Michigan, there's likely going to be more variation in the collective conditioning of the team than ever before. How quickly can they get everyone up to speed?
2. How much ground can a young offensive line make up in short period of time after a lack of offseason reps?
Offensive line starts is considered a key metric in assessing a team's preseason potential, and while there is talent and depth throughout this roster after four full years of Jim Harbaugh's recruiting, the Wolverines are lacking experience at this key spot. Michigan is losing 95 offensive line starts from last season, which is what happens when you have four guys from the same unit drafted by the NFL. By my count, with a healthy Andrew Steuber the Wolverines are returning just 17 offensive line starts -- and 13 of those are just from redshirt sophomore Jalen Mayfield. Now Ed Warinner is one of the best coaches in the business, and Michigan has recruited as well up front as any team in the country the past two cycles. Still, though, that's a lot of moving parts to assemble on the fly. Not to mention your opening game is on the road on the other side of the country against a decent defensive front.
3. How has the time off impacted the quarterback race?
There's not much more to say about the battle between redshirt junior Dylan McCaffrey and redshirt sophomore Joe Milton that hasn't been said already. But now we will see for ourselves whether one's approach to the peculiar challenges of this offseason gave them an edge over the other.
4. With extra time off, what new wrinkles did a staff with three current/former defensive coordinators come up with?
Don Brown is the unquestioned leader of the defense, but new safeties coach Bob Shoop was a finalist for the Broyles Award just two years ago when he was defensive coordinator at Mississippi State. Brian Jean-Mary is coming off a three-year stint as the DC at South Florida, where his defenses were known for creating the turnovers the Wolverines often haven't under Brown. That's a lot of collective brainpower on that side of the ball, and they had a lot of time to brainstorm and tinker as well.
5. How did all the time away help/hurt establishing a culture of accountability/leadership within the team?
After last season's disappointing finish, senior cornerback Ambry Thomas didn't mince words in calling out the "lack of accountability" internally within the team itself. Recall last summer when offensive coordinator Josh Gattis wondered aloud if Shea Patterson spent too much time playing golf instead of prepping for the season. There was also scuttlebutt about players not wanting to go full-tilt out of concern for their draft stock. Our own Michael Spath summarized the culture concerns back in January. Self-awareness is always the starting point to positive change, so here's hoping Thomas' comments are an indicator the team knows it needs a more self-less culture. However, it's hard to get beyond that starting point when you've been separated from each for three months. It's likely the players had these conversations among themselves while they were away, but how will that esprit de corps emerge once they reassemble?
