It has been 11 years since Denard Robinson graced the cover of the last EA College Football game, but on July 19th it will be back and the sports gaming universe is excited. The trailers and gameplay look to be great and it appears that the small details have not been overlooked. The Wolverines are once again represented on the cover as running back Donovan Edwards is the same spot Shoelace was 11 years ago. Despite getting a cover athlete the Wolverines seem to be overlooked a bit in the team rankings.
The Wolverines Rankings are a bit Head-Scratching After National Championship Run
Michigan finished its first-ever 15-0 season in 2023 and won its first National Championship in 1997 when they split it with Nebraska. They had one of the best defenses in the playoff era and had a solid offense built around a dominating run game.
The run paid dividends in the NFL draft as the Wolverines broke a school record of 13 players drafted. They were led by quarterback J.J. McCarthy who went 10th overall to the Minnesota Vikings. They did lose a lot of key players, but they still have a lot returning.
The defense was the strength of the team in 2023 and still return star players in cornerback Will Johnson, lineman Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant, and also safety Rod Moore who had the game-winning interception against Ohio State.
Defense is ranked 7th overall
The Wolverines come in at number seven in the defensive rankings that have been released. They are tied at 90 overall with Oregon, Clemson, Alabama, and Notre Dame. The Ducks have joined the Wolverines in the Big Ten and they had trouble stopping some of the best teams in the Pac-12 last season. The Tigers have always been known to have a good defense, but they have struggled in the past couple of seasons and The Fighting Irish tend to be overrated every season.
There are only two teams that have a higher ranking, the hated Buckeyes and Georgia. The Buckeyes did have one of the best defenses in the country last season, but the Wolverines were still able to beat them in their annual rivalry game at the end of the season.
The Wolverines’ second-week opponent is right behind them with an 88 ranking and they are tied with Utah, Oklahoma, Florida State, and Utah.
Offense isn’t even in the top 25 in the rankings
There weren’t many people who would confuse the Wolverines for a juggernaut on offense last season, but they were extremely efficient and still put up a lot of points. The running game has been one of the best in the country the last couple of years and they still return Edwards who scored two long touchdowns in the National Championship game against Washington.
The starting quarterback is a big question for the Wolverines and a valid reason to not be ranked high, but the teams that made the top 25 above Michigan are, to put it lightly, crazy.
Just to name a few, Memphis comes in at 19, SMU is 20 and UCF comes in at 21. None of those teams are going to be confused for powers. Yes, they run fast offenses, but they aren’t exactly ripping through good defenses regularly. Coming in at 24 is the vaunted Virginia Tech offense that scored 17 or fewer points five times last season.
The top 25 is rounded out by USC, who is also breaking in a new quarterback and has a ton of questions. The fact that Michigan isn’t in the rankings is baffling at best.
Overall Michigan comes in at No. 11
The Wolverines are outside the top 10 in overall rankings despite being the reigning National Champions. Georgia comes in at the top spot, which isn’t a surprise and to show the favoritism to the Buckeyes, they come in at two despite having to replace a lot of talent. They brought a lot in, but can they mesh together and be successful?
The Ducks come in at three and are followed by Alabama and Texas. Clemson, Notre Dame, LSU, Penn State, and Utah all round out the top 10 before the Wolverines finally show up just outside the first 10.
It is nothing new for Michigan to be ranked lower than what is expected, but to see some of the teams right around them it is very interesting. Just five spots behind the Wolverines is the Deion Sanders-led Colorado Buffaloes. They were the toast of the season in the first two weeks of season, but they fell apart quickly and had no defense. They are just a single overall point behind Michigan in what seems to be more of a publicity ranking than an actual talent ranking.
The Wolverines may be ranked low, but the excitement for the game is still there and in two short weeks all Michigan fans will look to lead their teams to a second straight National Championship.
Main Image: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
