This is one of the most exciting NFL Draft seasons for Michigan fans in years, probably even surpassing the 2017 draft when Taco Charlton was taken in the first round, Jourdan Lewis seemed like a borderline first rounder, and several others were drafted. A couple players are expected to go in the first round, and another player is considered to be one of the top few players at his position.
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Nico Collins (image via MGoBlue)
I always like to look back at my predictions for the previous season to see how well I judged the year beforehand. Here’s the link to my 2018 Season Predictions (and the comments): LINK.
LEADING RUSHER
Prediction: Karan Higdon, 1100 yards
Actual: Higdon, 1178 yards
Thoughts: Higdon was about as effective as I thought he would be, although he would have ended up with more yardage if he didn’t miss one regular season game (due to injury) and then the bowl game (due to selfishness). I was surprised he was named First Team All-Big Ten, but there were some other backs in the conference who were not as effective as I thought they would be.
LEADING RECEIVER
Prediction: Donovan Peoples-Jones, 750 yards
Actual: Nico Collins, 632 yards
Thoughts: Collins had a breakout season, going from 3 catches for 27 yards in 2017 to leading the team in receiving yardage (and being #2 in receptions) in 2018. Peoples-Jones was just behind Collins by a mere 20 yards and led the team in receptions (47), but Collins was the big downfield target.
LEADING TACKLER
Prediction: Devin Bush, Jr., 95 tackles
Actual: Bush, 79 tackles
Thoughts: As the middle linebacker, Bush was an obvious choice, but his instincts and sideline-to-sideline speed ensured that he would make plays all over the field. Safety Tyree Kinnel was not far behind with 74 tackles in one more game, since Bush missed the bowl game.
Hit the jump for the rest of the review.
Jim Harbaugh (image via Wolverines Wire)
That wasn’t close. Las Vegas picked Michigan. Virtually all the experts picked Michigan. I picked Michigan. We were all wrong, and it wasn’t close. That was an extremely disappointing performance in all three phases of the game. I’m sure I won’t cover every disappointment, but I’ll get it started.
Hit the jump for the rest of the preview.
Josh Metellus (image via Detroit News)
So…uh…how about that offensive line? It hasn’t been often that we have said this over the past few years, but the offensive line play was excellent. The Badgers’ defense isn’t as good as it has been in some other recent seasons – the linebackers aren’t as good, and the defensive line was banged up. But it’s still a well coached unit, and the linebackers are solid. This offensive line would have still been mauled in recent years, but Shea Patterson had oodles of time to throw, and Karan Higdon had good enough run blocking to bounce some runs to the outside for big chunk gains. The coverage on the back end was good for the most part, so Patterson still had to scramble (and tried to do too much at times), but there weren’t many mistakes up front. Credit goes to the players, obviously, but I think the Ed Warinner Effect is becoming more and more apparent.
Hit the jump for the rest of the recap.
Shea Patterson (image via ClickOnDetroit)
Let’s see more of this guy on offense . . . Ronnie Bell. The freshman wide receiver is making plays when given the opportunity. He caught a long touchdown pass from Dylan McCaffrey a couple weeks ago, and this week he caught a crossing route from Shea Patterson that turned into a catch-and-run touchdown. Michigan needs to keep the receivers healthy, so it’s good that Bell is getting some snaps so he (and others) can be available down the stretch.
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