The University of Michigan's football program reached the summit of the sport last fall, going 15-0 with a third straight win over rival Ohio State, a third consecutive Big Ten championship, a victory over super-program Alabama in the Rose Bowl on its way to winning a national championship over Washington.
Following those achievements, the Wolverines have been hit with about as much roster and coaching staff turnover as any team in the country. Michigan returns several key contributors — especially on defense — in star cornerback Will Johnson, defensive tackles Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant, as well as on offensive with running back Donovan Edwards and tight end Colston Loveland.
With opinions on how good Michigan will be in 2024 varying widely, the host of one of college football's most-watched podcasts gave his insight into what he expects to see out of the Wolverines this upcoming fall this past weekend. 247Sports' Josh Pate — host of Late Kick w/ Josh Pate — expanded upon his view regarding Michigan after a fan suggested he was "down" on the Wolverines heading into the 2024
"Relatively speaking, I am very high on Michigan," Pate said on his podcast Tuesday. "I don't think they're going to win the national title this year, so if that's being 'low' on them, maybe we define that differently, but I'm very high on them as a team."
Why is Pate high on the Wolverines?
"[Michigan's] defensive line, linebacker combination is about as good as you'll see in college football this year, or very close to it. Will Johnson's still their corner, [and] can man up on any wide receiver one in college football. Culture — check. Identity — check. Those things aren't going away over night just because that coaching staff left."
Pate also pointed to predictive advance metrics like ESPN's SP+ ratings, which rank Michigan at No. 6 heading into the new season. However, he also explained why the Wolverines are not his favorite to win the national title again in 2024, starting with how difficult it will be to do so as the College Football Playoff expands from four participants to 12.
"I'm not high on anyone repeating as a national champion from this point moving forward," Pate said. "That could be Georgia, that could be Ohio State, that could be whoever. It's extremely hard to do this. It always has been. It's just going to be a lot harder with the more random variability-esque things thrown in that a 12-team playoff brings."
Pate also pointed to the fact that Michigan will break in a new starting quarterback, after J.J. McCarthy was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings last month.
"Quarterback is still kind of a mystery here," Pate said. "No matter how good you feel about the potential of, maybe like, an Alex Orji. It's a mystery, because he hasn't played. We haven't seen him. That's the very definition of a mystery."
Michigan lost more than McCarthy off last year's team. The Wolverines had the most players selected in the 2024 NFL Draft in the country with 13, and several more key contributors signed undrafted free agent contracts with pro teams in spring.
"They've got the 126th-rated returning production," Pate said. "Out of every Power 4 team, that's last. So, there's a lot of mystery around that team. There's no way that offensive line can be as good as they were last year. They can be good, but as good as they were last year?"
As mentioned above, Michigan returns several star players this season in guys like Johnson, Edwards and the like. However, Pate wonders if the Wolverines will have the kind of depth behind those stars that it takes to win a natty again this year.
"The top-end talent is there," Pate said. "I wonder if the depth is there. The kind of depth you had on last year's team where you've got guys who are role players, guys who are listed with the twos that are playing integral roles in winning you a national championship. Is that kind of depth there again this year?
"There are more games, because you have an expanded playoff. You've got an entirely new staff. You've got a new quarterback. There's just a lot of new, so that's not being down on Michigan. That's just being realistic, to me. I'd say the same thing if that were the case with Georgia."
Pate explained there's a difference between believing a team CAN do something and believing a WILL do something. The podcast host believes its possible for Michigan to win the national championship again, but doesn't believe the Wolverines will in 2024.
With that understood, what indicators could Michigan show early this coming season that would increase Pate's belief that the Wolverines are a legitimate threat to repeat as national champions?
"If we check in mid-year and Michigan is really that good defensively again, that they can dictate entire game script, if they can do the kind of ridiculous stuff they did in the Penn State game last year where they say, 'We don't feel great about our passing game today. Luckily, we won't even have to use it,'" Pate said. "If they can do that kind of stuff, all bets are off."
The full episode of 'Late Kick w/ Josh Pate' referenced in this article can be viewed in its entirety below. The segment regarding Michigan begins at the 35:58 mark in the podcast video.
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