Michigan football countdown to kickoff: 87 days until 2022 season
There’s much anticipation heading into the Michigan Wolverines football season, and TheWolverine.com is counting down the days until the Sept. 3 opener against Colorado State. We’ll discuss the current Michigan events, upcoming season and/or take a look at a significant number that correlates with how many days remain until kickoff, whether it be a player’s jersey number, a year, a date, a score, etc.
We are 87 days out from the 2022 football season with the season-opener inching ever closer for Michigan. Today’s countdown prompts a look back at the 1987 campaign.
Michigan was at the tail-end of the Bo Schembechler era, but 1987 was notable for a handful of reasons. Chief among them was a pair of coordinators on each side of the ball in their first years in a new role. Gary Moeller took over the reins at offensive coordinator, while Lloyd Carr coordinated Michigan’s defense.
Moeller was a longtime assistant with the program, coaching the defensive ends from 1969-72. From there, he was the team’s defensive coordinator from 1973-76 prior to leaving for the Illinois head coaching job. He returned to Michigan to coach quarterbacks in 1980-81 and coordinated the defense from 1982-86 before flipping to offense.
Following Schembechler’s departure after 1989, Moeller succeeded him in the head coaching role. His reign at Michigan included a 44-13-3 record and three Big Ten titles from 1990-92. Moeller resigned in the spring of 1995 after tapes became public of a drunken outburst and disorderly conduct arrest at a local restaurant.
Carr had less of a history with Schembechler, but still spent several years on his staff. He coached the defensive backs from 1980-86 before holding the defensive coordinator role from 1987-90. The title of assistant head coach was bestowed upon him when Moeller took over for Schembechler in 1990.
Carr takes over for Michigan football
After Moeller’s outburst, Michigan named Carr the interim head coach. Athletic director Joe Roberson said at the time Carr would not be a candidate for the permanent job. Carr’s Wolverines had other plans.
Carr was named Michigan’s 17th head coach in program history on Nov. 13, 1995 after going 8-2 in the team’s first 10 games. This included a 18-17 comeback win over Virginia down 17-0, which was the team’s biggest come-from-behind victory in program history at the time.
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Carr manned the sidelines for 13 seasons at Michigan, going 122-40 (81-23 in Big Ten play). His time included five Big Ten Championships and a national title in 1997. He retired after Michigan’s 41-35 Capital One Bowl victory over a Tim Tebow and Urban Meyer-led Florida Gators team.
Back to the 1987 season
The seeds of what followed the Schembechler era were planted during that 1987 season with Moeller and Carr in prominent positions on the coaching staff. The season itself was solid, if unspectacular.
Michigan finished with a 8-4 record with losses at Notre Dame, at Michigan State, at Indiana at home vs. Ohio State. They did cap off the year with a 28-24 win over Alabama in the Hall of Fame Bowl.
The team had its fair share of stars. Running back Jamie Morris had 1,703 yards on the ground, while offensive lineman Jumbo Elliott and defensive lineman Mark Messner grabbed All-American honors. Morris, guard Mike Husar, Elliott, Messner and defensive back Doug Mallory received votes on the All-Big Ten team.
Michigan would win the Big Ten the next season after finishing with a 9-2-1 record (7-0-1 B1G) and beat USC in the 1989 Rose Bowl.
