Michigan football offense has sky high potential, 'a lot to still be shown'

Michigan Wolverines football is averaging 55.3 points per game, the top mark in the country by nearly two full points and 5.8 more than No. 2 in the Big Ten Minnesota (49.7). A huge reason for that is the light schedule, with Michigan having beaten Colorado State (51-7), Hawai’i (56-10) and UConn (59-0), of course.

The efficiency has been there, though, even with Michigan keeping it fairly simple in terms of play calling. Former Michigan All-Big Ten offensive lineman and analyst Doug Skene said on TheWolverine.com podcast Sunday that he’d guess the Wolverines have likely shown about half of their playbook thus far, but out of limited formations. In short, there’s a lot still left to unveil. And with even some of the plays the Maize and Blue have put on tape, there’s a lot they can do off of them.

“I can tell you, by the look of things, the sky’s the limit for this offense,” Michigan junior running back Blake Corum, who rushed for 5 touchdowns against UConn, said following the shutout victory.

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The optimism comes from both what Michigan has done in the early season and the room for growth it still has.

“Shoot, I just feel like there’s a lot of meat on the bone, you know what I mean? I feel like throughout these first three games, we haven’t necessarily finished our plays,” graduate wide receiver Ronnie Bell said Monday. “So there’s a lot to still be done, a lot to still be shown.”

Given the talent Michigan has and the standard the players have set after winning the Big Ten title in 2021, the potential for the offense is even higher than in years past.

“Without a doubt, throughout the whole offseason and preseason, that’s one thing that we established early on,” Bell said of the standard the Wolverines hold themselves to. “You can see it in our play, in the way that we play. The focus and the execution on all three phases of the ball is what has shown that that’s something that we emphasized.”

Ronnie Bell has his feet underneath him again, Michigan receiver shining

Bell missed all but two quarters of play in the 2021 season after suffering an ACL injury in game one. The rehab process was long but smooth, and now Bell is returning to form as perhaps Michigan’s best pass-catcher. He hit personal records in speed and agility drills in the offseason, but doubts crept in about exactly how live action would go.

“The mental side of what I went through, I think that was probably the toughest part,” Bell explained. “Keeping yourself up at night worried about what you’re gonna be. Now that I’m on the other side of that wall, I’m gonna make the most of it.”

“You never know for sure, but he came back stronger and faster,” Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh said Monday. “A lot of the speed and agility tests were PRs for him. And I never really worry about his mindset. I figured that would be his approach.”

The first three games have gone well. Other than a couple dropped passes, Bell has been productive. He’s leading Michigan in receiving with 14 catches for 181 yards and 1 touchdown.

He’s feeling more and more comfortable now that the first few hits are out of the way.

“I feel like I more so just got my feet underneath me,” Bell said. “Practice can only push you so far, so to get the games under my belt, it has really helped me with getting my feet underneath me again.

“I definitely feel like I picked up where I left off, and I feel like I’ve got a lot more gears to hit.”

He’s stepped it up in the blocking department, as well. He’s actually graded out as the Wolverines’ best run blocker regardless of position, per Pro Football Focus (PFF), helping spring his fellow skill position players for big gains.

“The way he’s blocking is at an elite level. So are [senior] Cornelius Johnson, [junior] Roman Wilson, [sophomore] Andrel Anthony,” Harbaugh noted. “It would be a battle for who’s our best blocker. But it’s showing up in the perimeter. The perimeter game is at a new level for us. You’ve seen that in the ball games we’ve been playing.

“Ronnie is really blocking well, catching the ball, running routes, leading, being selfless.”

And it’s contagious to his teammates.