Michigan Football 2009: Brutally Honest Predictions

By Bart Doan  |   Saturday, August 22, 2009  |  Comments( 1 )

Michigan Wolverines
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Michigan's 2009 Schedule: Brutally Honest Predictions

In the effort of not being a complete homer, here we go with the preview of the Wolverines on a game by game basis, starting in a way too long away two weeks from now.

Western Michigan: (W) The world will find out very soon whether or not there will be marked improvment under Rich Rodriguez in this team like he had at West Virginia. WMU knocked off Illinois last year, returns a stud QB, and a ton of confidence. Still, the Wolverines get this one against their directional in-state opponent. Michigan: 27-17.

Notre Dame: Led by Jimmy Clausen, Michael Floyd, and Golden Tate, this figures to be the year the Irish make that jump the national media is dying for them to have into the upper eschelon of college football. Though the Irish will be heavily favored, the game is in Ann Arbor and we'll call it a mild upset and the official coming out party of the Rodriguez regime. Michigan: 33-31.

Eastern Michigan: True to his roots, Rich isn't much for tough out of conference schedules. For a young team needing confidence, that's a good thing. A week after shocking Notre Dame, spirits will be high enough to make this a closer than it should be game. Michigan: 27-20.

Indiana: This schedule is built for early positive returns. IU was the one team worse than Michigan last year in the Big 10. They don't figure to be much better. Even with Eastern Michigan on the schedule, this might be the most effortless win they garner all year as IU's one threat in Kellen Lewis was kicked out of school. And it's the Big 10 opener. Michigan: 41-14.

@ Michigan State: The in-state little brother always plays Michigan tough. However, if any team is needing to replace more than the Wolverines, it's Sparty. The Spartans though play a style that could expose Michigan's green defensive front. That will be the difference as Michigan continues on the Lloyd Carr tradition of dropping any and all first road games of the season. Michigan State: 17-10.

@ Iowa: Kinnick Stadium has been a house of horrors for highly ranked Big 10 teams throughout the years. This will be no different, though Michigan won't exactly fit the highly ranked demographic mentioned above. Iowa is big, they run, and Ricky Stanzi is the most underrated quarterback you've never heard of in the nation. Iowa: 28-13.

Delaware State: All Appalachian State jokes aside, reasoning or analysis shouldn't be needed on this game. Michigan: 52-12.

Penn State: In every team's surprising evolution, there is a shocking win. Speaking of places where dreams die for certain teams, the Nittany Lions in Ann Arbor have had season breakers ever since entering the Big 10. They've never played well against Michigan. The Wolverines' secondary exposes the lack of a breakaway pass catcher for PSU and upsets the Lions. Michigan: 23-20.

@ Illinois: As long as Ron Zook is calling plays, Michigan has a chance. That chance isn't a good one though, because Illinois basically has the athletes at the receiver and quarterback positions that Michigan needs. The reality that this is an average Big 10 Michigan team finally hits. Illinois: 35-24.

Purdue: One of the most miserable losses of Michigan's season was against Purdue last year when the Boilers started a backup quarterback and gashed the Wolves for nearly 50 points. Fast forward, that was the beginning of the end for Scott Shafer, the defensive coordinator. That QB for Purdue? He got kicked out of school. If any team in the conference is in a rapid decline, it's Purdue. Michigan takes advantage of a small, young, and painfully not deep Boiler team. Michigan: 42-20.

@ Wisconsin: The Badgers traditionally are another team that Michigan, whether they're better or not, seem to have a vexing problem trying to beat. Wisconsin figures to go through growing pains with young Curt Phillips, who is UW's first foray into the world of dual threat quarterbacking. Michigan's combination of size and speed have fared well against Wisconsin despite two consecutive losses in Madison. Michigan: 23-22.

Ohio State: Under no circumstance, be it Michigan being 0-11 and Ohio State being 11-0 can any Wolverine possibly go into The Game predicting a loss. The Bucks are the one team that has out-recruited the Wolverines, so they figure to have a massive edge in this contest. Can Rodriguez catch some of Lloyd Carr's early career Buckeye-breaking magic? The call here is "yes." Michigan: 18-17.

Prediction: 9-3, 5-3 in the Big 10. Though it seems probably a bit on the high side, Michigan, win or lose against Notre Dame sets themselves up well to at least gain confidence that they can compete. How they play against the Irish will show how far they really have come and how good the season possibly can be. This might seem overly optimistic, but even a young Michigan team has more talent than all but 1 or 2 teams on their schedule. The feeling here is that Year Two of Rodriguez will either be surprisingly good, or surprisingly, possible fire worthy bad. Let's be optimistic.
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About Bart Doan

Bart has been with Realfootball365.com for about six months and thoroughly enjoys writing for the site. He has been featured for his writings on college football in The Sporting News, The Indianapolis Star, Sports Illustrated, and on CBS Sportsline.com. When he's not drowning himself in the ...
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