Questions on NFL to follow coach
Michigan is headed to Houston for Monday’s College Football Playoff title game looking to win its first national championship in 26 years. The Wolverines got here by fighting through an adversity-filled regular season to earn the top seed in the playoff, then holding on to beat Alabama 27-20 in overtime in the Rose Bowl.
The Wolverines are 4⁄ -point favorites to beat Washington and claim their first national championship since the 1997 season. To do so, they’ll have to ignore the whispers of their coach Jim Harbaugh’s uncertain future and the cheating taunts that have followed them throughout this run.
Here are five things you should know about the Michigan football program heading into the national title game:
Harbaugh’s future
Plenty of Jim Harbaugh’s time with reporters this week will be spent answering/dodging questions about his future. The Michigan head coach, who previously led the 49ers to a Super Bowl, has been rumored to be returning to the NFL and has been linked to every coaching vacancy in the league, particularly the Chargers’ job. He didn’t dispel any of those rumors before or after the Rose Bowl, dodging a question about his future after his team’s win over Alabama, saying “My future consists of a happy flight back to Ann Arbor, Michigan.” We’ll see how he answers the question when he arrives in Houston.
Cheating scandal
Perhaps it’s appropriate the Wolverines will play for a national title in Houston, because their cheating scandal has drawn comparisons to the 2017 Astros. Stealing signs is completely legal in both baseball and football, but much like the Astros, Michigan took things a little too far. Staff analyst Connor Stalions was found to have created a network of people he sent to games of future Michigan opponents to film their sidelines and decode their signals. Stalions lost his job over it, as did Michigan linebackers coach Chris Partridge, who allegedly tried to conceal evidence once the news hit. Harbaugh also was suspended three games by the Big Ten.
NFL draft prospects
Although Michigan clearly is one of the top teams in the country, the Wolverines are unlikely to have a first round pick in April’s NFL draft. Quarterback J.J. Mccarthy is fourth among quarterbacks on ESPN’S Mel Kiper Jr.’s big board, so he figures to go in he first few rounds, and Blake Corum is one of the best running backs in the country, but there likely won’t be any running backs selected in the first round. Michigan’s best NFL prospects for 2024 are probably offensive guard Zac Zinter and defensive tackle Kris Jenkins.
Players from Texas
Michigan doesn’t have any players from the Houston area on its roster, but the Wolverines do have six players from Texas. Left tackle Ladarius Henderson from Waxahachie is the only starter from the Lone Star State. He transferred from Arizona State in the offseason and earned first-team All-big Ten honors for the Wolverines. Backup running back Tavierre Dunlap from Del Valle and reserve defensive back German Green from Desoto are the only other Texas players who see regular playing time for Michigan.
Rich history
Michigan’s 1,003 total wins makes it the winningest program in college football history, but the Wolverines have won just one national title since 1948. That championship in 1997 was a shared title with Nebraska when both teams went undefeated.