Michigan football ranks No. 6 in preseason coaches poll
The preseason edition of the USA Today Coaches Poll was released ahead of the 2022 college football season, and Michigan Wolverines football stands No. 6. The Maize and Blue are behind No. 1 Alabama, No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Georgia, No. 4 Clemson and No. 5 Notre Dame. This marks U-M’s highest preseason placement since 2007, when it slotted No. 5.
Alabama received 54 out of a possible 66 first-place votes; Ohio State tallied five, Georgia scored six and Texas got one, with those three standing as the only other programs to garner first-place consideration by voters. Texas is ranked No. 18, an outlier to receive a No. 1 vote. Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh does not have a vote for the 2022 season.
Notre Dame and Ohio State play each other Sept. 3, so if Michigan beats Colorado State as a big favorite, there’s a good chance the Wolverines would move into the top five in a hurry.
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Michigan is coming off a stellar 2021 campaign that included a 12-2 record (marking just the third time the Wolverines have earned 12 wins in history), win over arch rival Ohio State for the first time since 2011, Big Ten title for the first time since 2004, ending the Wolverines’ longest drought and first-ever appearance in the College Football Playoff. Michigan lost to eventual national champion Georgia in the Orange Bowl, which served as one of two CFP semifinals, 33-11.
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The Wolverines were unranked in the coaches poll ahead of the 2021 campaign but wound up slotting No. 3 when the season was over. That marked the first time a Michigan squad under Harbaugh entered a campaign not in the top 25 since the 2015 season, his inaugural season at the helm.
The Maize and Blue return eight full-time starters on offense, four on defense and all of their top special team contributors. They were picked to finish second in Big Ten East by the media in the Cleveland.com preseason poll. Ohio State was tabbed as the unanimous choice to win the conference.
Besides Michigan and Ohio State, the Big Ten’s last two teams to make the College Football Playoff (Ohio State did so in both 2019 and 2020, in addition to previous appearances in 2014 and 2016), two other league teams made the top 25. Michigan State ranks No. 14, and Wisconsin stands No. 20. Iowa, Penn State and Minnesota are in the ‘receiving votes’ category.
