2024 At First Glance: Week 11 Michigan Wolverines

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Written by Ben Gillard

Hoosier Huddle’s first glance series continues with the Hoosiers Week 11 matchup against the 2023 National Champion Michigan Wolverines. The Hoosiers are 1-3 in their last 4 matchups with the Wolverines, and are looking to have a repeat of their 38-21 win in 2020.

Week Eleven: Michigan Wolverines

Date & Time: November 9, TBA

Venue: Memorial Stadium, Bloomington, IN

TV: TBA

Wolverines at a Glance

Head Coach: Sherrone Moore

Record at Michigan: 4-0 (First Full Season)

Overall Record: 4-0 Entering First Full Season as Head Coach 

Last Season: 15-0 (9-0), Big 10 Champions, Rose Bowl Champions, National Champions

Wolverines Returning Leaders

Passing: Jack Tuttle - 15 of 17 (88.2%), 130 Yards, 1 TD, 0 INT

Rushing: Donovan Edwards - 1,662 Yards on 294 Carries and 15 TDs

Receiving: Colston Loveland (TE) - 61 Catches for 884 Yards and 6 TDs.

Tackles: Mason Graham (DT) - 63 Tackles (37 Solo), 10 Tackles for Loss, 5.5 Sacks

Wolverines Preseason Predictions

Athlon: 3rd in Big Ten

Lindy’s: 6th Nationally

Phil Steele: 4th in Big Ten

SP+: 5th Nationally

Impact Newcomers for the Wolverines

  • Jaishawn Barham, LB, Transfer from Maryland

  • Josh Priebe, OL, Transfer from Northwestern

  • Jadyn Davis, QB, True Freshman

  • Jordan Marshall, RB, True Freshman

Biggest Questions Facing The Wolverines

  • Who is QB1?

  • What Will the Fallout from the Sign Stealing Scandal Be?

  • Can the Wolverines Continue Their Success Post-Harbaugh?

Program Preview

The Michigan Wolverines’ 2023 season was a tale of on-field dominance and off-field scandal. The Wolverines went 15-0 (9-0) winning the Big 10, and finally getting over the hump of the CFP Semifinal, beating Alabama in the Rose Bowl, and going on to defeat Washington in the National Championship game. 

This achievement was overshadowed by the media circus and scandal that followed the Wolverines all season. Head Coach Jim Harbaugh served two separate 3 game suspensions at both the beginning and end of the regular season. 

The first was a self imposed suspension for the first 3 games of the season as punishment for Coach Harbaugh’s role in the infamous “Cheeseburger-Gate,” where Coach Harbaugh had impermissible conduct with a recruit during the Covid dead period. 

The second was handed down by Big 10 Commissioner Tony Petitti as punishment for the Connor Stallions advance in person scouting and sign stealing scandal. This saw Harbaugh miss the final three games of the regular season, including key matchups against Penn State and Ohio State.

Perhaps because of this and the fact that the Wolverines were able to win the National Championship, Harbaugh left Michigan for the Los Angeles Chargers, taking a majority of his Michigan staff with him, while Offensive Coordinator Sherrone Moore, who served as the interim head coach during Harbaugh’s suspensions, was promoted to Head Coach.

In addition to replacing the coaching staff, Coach Moore will have the difficult task of replacing the record 13 players who were selected in the 2024 NFL Draft.

The Wolverines schedule is also not doing them any favors as they will be tested early and often with games against Texas, Oregon, Ohio State, and USC. Ultimately, the Wolverines control their own destiny, if they can win the games that matter, there is no reason why they cannot earn a spot in the expanded playoff.

Offensive Preview

The biggest question mark for the Wolverines offense heading into the 2024 season is who will be the starter under center after J.J. McCarthy. Both Indiana transfer Jack Tuttle and freak athlete Alex Orji saw snaps last season, and as of right now, they appear to be the front runners. However, much of this battle will depend on the health of Tuttle, who underwent shoulder surgery this offseason. If Orji wins the starting job, expect Coach Moore to use him similarly to how Coach Saban used Jalen Milroe last season.

Regardless of who starts at QB for the Wolverines, it will be behind a completely different Offensive Line, as Michigan lost its entire starting line to the NFL draft. The good news for the Wolverines is that, as a former OL Coach, Coach Moore has proven himself as a good talent developer when it comes to the trenches. With several players who have game experience, and veteran Northwestern lineman Josh Priebe transferring in, expect the Wolverines to continue their dominance in the trenches.

In the backfield, the Wolverines lose one of the greatest running backs the school has ever seen in Blake Corum. However, Donovan Edwards, who rushed for two 40+ touchdown runs in the National Championship game, returns, as does veteran running back Kalel Mullings. Additionally, the Wolverines have added Ohio’s Mr. Football, 4-star Freshman running back Jordan Marshall to the backfield. With the uncertainty at quarterback, expect the Wolverines to keep up their identity as a ground-and-pound football team this season.

Like so many other position groups, the Wolverines’ receiving corps also lost a leader to the NFL Draft as both Roman Wilson and Corneilus Johnson were drafted. The Wolverines do return TE Colston Loveland and freshman phenom Semaj Morgan, but they do not have a clear WR1. Only time will tell if players like Fred Moore and Tyler Morris can take the next step this season.      

Defensive Preview

Michigan’s strength has always been their defense, which ranked 1st in total defense last season, and even with all the losses to the Draft, as well as the departure of Defensive Coordinator Jesse Minter, it appears that they will have another top-10 defense this season. New Defensive Coordinator Wink Martindale, who mentored Michigan’s past two defensive coordinators, Mike Macdonald and Jesse Minter, is the godfather of the scheme that Macdonald and Minter have run for the past two years.

The strength of this defense will be the pass rush, which includes returning star DT Mason Graham as well as DE Rayshaun Benny and NT Kenneth Grant, who all look to wreak havoc on opposing quarterbacks this season. Coach Martindale tends to incorporate more blitzes in his schemes, so expect Mason Graham to live in opponents backfields.

The Wolverines Linebacking corps has also gotten a boost from Maryland transfer Jaishawn Barham who ranked 8th amongst linebackers in the transfer portal this offseason. Barham joins returning LBs, Ernest Hausmann and Derrick Moore who were among the Wolverines leading tacklers last season.

The undisputed leader of the Wolverines defense is Junior Cornerback Will Johnson, who had 4 interceptions last season, including a key pick against Michael Penix Jr. in the National Championship game. The Wolverines suffered a major setback when starting Safety Rod Moore tore his ACL in spring camp. While there is some hope that he could return towards the end of the season, it is doubtful. Instead, it appears that Makari Paige and Quentin Johnson will get the start at safety, with Michigan State transfer Jaden Mangham in the rotation.

Special Teams Preview      

The Michigan Special Teams unit has not had much turnover since last season. Punter/Placekicker Tommy Doman and Return Specialist Semaj Morgan both return. Doman is coming off of an All-Big 10 season where he averaged 44.3 yards on punts with a 71 yard long and 18 punts inside the 2-yard line. Morgan is coming off a stellar Freshman season, where he had a season-long return of 87 yards in the Big 10 Championship. During the offseason, the Wolverines brought in Arkansas State Transfer Dominic Zvada to handle kicking duties. Zvada is 17-22 on Field Goals with a long of 53 and is 41-41 on Extra Points.