Michigan Wolverines 2009 Preview: The Resurrection

(Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

The very first article I wrote for Bleacher Report was a preview of the 2008 edition of the Michigan Wolverines' football program.  

I've been a die-hard Michigan fan my entire life, and while I like to think that I am unbiased in my writing, I will admit that I had some blinders on. I definitely wasn't the only college football fan or expert that didn't see this coming, either.

Michigan turned in one of their worst seasons in decades. They finished the year with a 3-9 record, and a conference record of 2-6. Their 33-game bowl streak vanished, and they finished the year with a horrific loss to Ohio State, not to mention ugly losses to Penn State and Michigan State as well.

Many people have wanted to blame this squarely on coach Rich Rodriguez's shoulders...and that's simply not fair.

Last year's team saw their all-time leading passer (Chad Henne) and rusher (Mike Hart) graduate, along with one of the greatest offensive linemen in Big Ten history (Jake Long) and a dynamite college wide receiver (Mario Manningham).

When you combine a huge turnover with a completely new scheme on offense, what you have concocted is the perfect storm for disaster, and that's exactly what happened in 2008.

So, what's the outlook for 2009? If I can liken this to a weather report, I would say partly cloudy with a greater chance for sunshine than for rain. The Wolverines will be better this season, due to a few simple truths:

1. They have been in the spread system for one full season. The pro-style attack, previously employed at Michigan, is vastly different than Rich Rod's version of the spread, and it takes a different type of player to operate it.

Many players last year were playing a role that they weren't suited for. Players and coaches are gearing up for this season with a higher level of confidence and trust in one another, having gone through the "growing pains" of last year.

2. Improved QB situation. Want further proof of how different the spread is from the pro-style attack that Big Blue ran prior to last year? Look no further than to the departures of QB's Ryan Mallett (Arkansas) and Steven Threet (Arizona St.), last year's starting QB.

Once again, Michigan goes into 2009 with virtually no starting experience at the most important position on the field. Despite that, this year doesn't feel as uncertain with the arrivals of Tate Forcier and Denard Robinson.

Both freshmen will be given every opportunity to win the starting spot in their first years at Michigan. Nick Sheridan did start four games last year, and figured to have an advantage heading into spring, but a broken leg derailed his progression.

Still, being the only QB on the roster with starting experience does give him a chance to hold off the incumbents. Of course, there's a good chance that these QB's will simply be "keeping the spot warm" for the arrival of Devin Gardner in 2010, who has the potential to be a collegiate superstar.

3. More experience on offense. Returning starters is one of the biggest indicators of improvement for every team in the nation. 

Last year, Michigan returned one starter on offense, a sure recipe for disaster when integrating a new offensive attack. This year they return 10 starters. That alone should make a huge difference in how efficient and tested this offense is going into 2009.

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