Wolverine Watch: Measuring Jim Harbaugh's crew before the big finish

ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit just named Jim Harbaugh his national No. 1 performing coach of college football’s week 11. Oh, what a difference a year makes.

Twelve months ago, Harbaugh made more than a few lists projecting him as the No. 1 coach to move on. His team death spiraling to 2-4, his offense seemingly in chaos, his defense shredded, Michigan’s golden boy appeared, to some, tarnished beyond repair.

Fast forward 12 months. Sitting in the cramped visiting team interview room at Penn State, Harbaugh fairly beamed after his team’s 21-17 triumph. It kept his team alive for everything — a Big Ten championship, the College Football Playoff, you name it.

“How ‘bout those Wolverines!” he boomed out.

The declaration exuded pure joy, the type of joy in too short supply for Harbaugh over the past seven years. The man who most considered Michigan’s Moses took a pay cut (a big one) to remain U-M’s boss this season.

He and his team delivered major changes, infused with huge hopes for the future, regardless of what happens from here on out. And after inadvertently lighting himself on fire at Penn State, he could be considered the hottest coach in America.

Consider five basic stats, and the dramatic change they reflect from the bottoming out in 2020 to the scorching ascension in 2021.

Points Per Game

Michigan averaged 28.3 a year ago. The quarterback situation became a mess and stayed that way. Dylan McCaffrey bolted from the competition before the delayed season even began. Joe Milton got off to a hot start, then plummeted mightily. By year’s end, he also took off.

Freshman Cade McNamara stepped in to deliver a heartening comeback win at Rutgers, but many laughed it off. Rutgers? Come on.

Meanwhile, the running backs shuffle didn’t emerge productively, with former five-star prep Zach Charbonnet transferring out as well. Doubts crept in about the offensive line, receivers, etc.

One year later, McNamara leads a 9-1, No. 8-ranked team into the regular season’s penultimate game. The offense averages 34.7 points per game, featuring old hands (redshirt sophomore Hassan Haskins), new standouts (redshirt freshman Blake Corum, sophomore tight end Erick All) and receivers picking up slack even in the wake of a season-ending injury to junior Ronnie Bell.

Points Allowed

Here’s a huge one. Mike Macdonald took over a defense that couldn’t fool people anymore, one that surrendered 34.5 points per game last year. He’s turned that number into 16.1 going into the final two games, still bringing the heat to quarterbacks (ask Sean Clifford) but cooling the big-play afterburners of other teams.

Michigan defenders talk about Macdonald — in his first year back coaching college following several in the NFL — like he’s a preparatory wizard. He gets the ultimate test in a week and a half. But he’s likely to only get better through this year’s experience.

Run Game

Last year’s revolving door of mediocrity ended poorly. This year, the running attack emerged focused, productive — 225.1 yards per game, compared to 131.5 last year — and able to provide a game-winning edge. That’s precisely what it did at Penn State, pounding out a pair of first downs to close out the win at Beaver Stadium.

“How many times has Michigan had the ball late in the game, the opponent knew Michigan was going to run it, and Michigan wanted to run it to drain the timeouts, and they couldn’t get the one first down they needed to get?” U-M sideline reporter Doug Karsch noted.

“They not only got one, they got two, against a quality defense, on the road. They bled the clock, when everybody knew what they were trying to do.”

Haskins will blow by 1,000 yards for the season at Maryland on Saturday, and Corum sits (literally) at 778 following an injury. Five-star prep Donovan Edwards is just getting started, with new position coach Mike Hart making an early splash.

Sacks

The Wolverines posted nine sacks in six games last year. Through 10 games this season, they feature a pair of edge rushers  — junior defensive end Aidan Hutchinson and redshirt freshman linebacker David Ojabo — with 10 each. Team-wise, U-M sports 27 sacks, including seven against Clifford.

Pro Football Focus has Hutchinson as the No. 1 edge rusher in the nation, Ojabo No. 9. In addition to their combined 20 sacks, they’ve teamed up for 83 total pressures and 47 hurries.

It’s clear Michigan doesn’t need to blitz on every play to get home. That’s changed the game for other defenders.

Field Goals

Michigan went a miserable 3 for 9 on field goals last year, redshirt junior Jake Moody making 1 of 4 and losing his job after going 0 for 3 in the opener. Former U-M kicker and placekicking guru Brandon Kornblue predicted in the offseason Moody would enjoy a standout year, since he wouldn’t be looking over his shoulder at former golden boy recruit Quinn Nordin.

Moody stands 21 for 23 heading to Maryland. Kornblue gets the Nostradamus Award for 2021, and the Wolverines get a chance to pull out a close one in a potential championship moment.

Harbaugh’s doing all this with a host of underclassmen in key positions, with plans to ramp up the talent level even more. The Wolverines embrace a chance to really shock the world over the next two weeks.

Either way, they’re back, for the foreseeable future.

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