Michigan football has won the past two Big Ten championships and here are three reasons why the Wolverines will win the league again.
The 2023 Michigan football season is rapidly approaching and it’s one of the most anticipated seasons in U-M history.
Michigan football has won back-to-back Big Ten championships and that’s thanks in large part to consecutive wins over Ryan Day and Ohio State.
The Buckeyes are going to be a major threat standing in the way once again this season along with Penn State, as well as Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and others in the Big Ten West Division.
This will be the final season of divisions in the Big Ten and here are three reasons why Michigan football will win the East again, along with the Big Ten title.
The veteran quarterback
J.J. McCarthy is returning as the starting quarterback and that’s a huge advantage for Michigan football. He’s as good as any quarterback in the league and this season, I expect the Wolverines to unleash their former five-star quarterback.
McCarthy threw 22 touchdown passes last year and ran for five touchdowns. He only had five interceptions and completed 64.6 percent of his throws. He can make things happen and I have a feeling Colston Loveland will catch a lot of touchdowns.
At any rate, having a veteran quarterback of McCarthy’s caliber is a huge advantage, especially as Penn State and Ohio State break in first-year starting quarterbacks.
McCarthy could easily be a Heisman contender in my opinion and he’s one reason why Michigan football fans should be confident in the Wolverines winning the Big Ten again.
Elite in the trenches
You have to be dominant in the trenches to win championships. That was a key part of the formula for Michigan football in 2021 and 2022, especially in the wins over Ohio State.
Hassan Haskins and Donovan Edwards ran all over the Buckeyes. Those were two legendary performances but the credit always goes to the offensive line, which has won the Joe Moore Award two years in a row and is expected to compete for a third.
But Michigan football isn’t just elite on the offensive line. The defensive line is going to be elite too. Kris Jenkins should be in the NFL and will be a first-round pick in 2023. Kenneth Grant, Mason Graham, and Rayshaun Benny are all forces on the D-line, along with a bevy of EDGE rushers.
Braiden McGregor, Derrick Moore, Josaiah Stewart, and Jaylen Harrell make the front seven downright scary. Michigan football will be elite in the trenches on both sides of the ball, which will lead to another Big Ten title.
Favorable schedule
There are three teams that have a legitimate shot of winning the Big Ten championship in the 2023 season: Michigan, Penn State, and Ohio State.
The good news for the Wolverines is that they will host Ohio State at the end of the season. The Game should decide the Big Ten East title again.
Michigan has to take a trip to Penn State and that could easily be a loss. But if Ohio State beats Penn State, Michigan would likely still win the East Division with a win over Ohio State.
There are some other challenges on the Big Ten schedule such as trips to Minnesota and Nebraska. However, Michigan avoided Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin this year and those might be the best two teams in the West.
The road trip to Michigan State is always worrisome, but this schedule is manageable and the fact that the decisive game in the Big Ten will be played in Ann Arbor, in what could be McCarthy’s final home start, along with many others, bodes well for Michigan football to three-peat.