Kirk Herbstreit 'fascinated' with Michigan in 2024: 'They've got this new chip on their shoulder'

For the first time since 1997, Michigan brought home a national championship. The Wolverines put together an undefeated run in 2023, defeating Washington in the College Football Playoff title game to end their drought.

But things are changing this season. Jim Harbaugh is off to the NFL, and multiple key contributors – including J.J. McCarthy, Blake Corum and Mike Sainristil – are also heading to the league. As a result, Michigan isn’t generating as much buzz as a defending champion might get, and ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit thinks that could put a “chip on their shoulder.”

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On ESPN’s College GameDay Saturday, Herbstreit pointed out the playmakers coming back for UM, led by Donovan Edwards and Will Johnson, as a reason why he’s “fascinated” with the Wolverines this year. While he didn’t go so far as to pick them to win the new-look Big Ten, he called for Sherrone Moore and Co. to get more respect.

“We talked a lot about Dillon Gabriel, the expectations on Oregon. I’m fascinated with Michigan,” Herbstreit said. “I can’t remember a team winning a national championship and almost a forgotten team coming back the next year. Think about what they lost … five offensive linemen, J.J. McCarthy, Blake Corum, all those incredible leaders on defense. Now, you look at these guys that are gonna be playing in 2024, a lot of these guys played a lot of ball last year.

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“I might be crazy, I think Michigan – I’m not saying they’re gonna win the Big Ten – I’m much higher on Michigan than I think a lot of people because I think they’ve got, again, this new chip on their shoulder for 2024. No one’s talking about them, no one cares about them, no one respects them. And these are the defending champs. So I think they’re interesting.”

Michigan returns 40% of its production from last year’s title-winning team, according to ESPN, and still has a question mark at quarterback. Alex Orji got some looks last year, and ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported he’s likely to get the start for Michigan this season.

However, the Wolverines are still being picked toward the top of the rankings. They came in at No. 9 in the preseason AP Top 25, and On3’s J.D. PicKell picked them at No. 7 in his preseason Top 25. The new era will officially begin next week when UM takes on Fresno State.