After Michigan Football's Win at Notre Dame, What Now for Rich Rod's Wolverines?

The annual Michigan-Notre Dame football game has a reputation for being weird (for lack of a better adjective).

The 2010 version did not disappoint: from Dayne Crist's mysterious eye injury to the inexplicable pass that sailed past the Wolverines' end zone as time expired in the first half to Denard Robinson's 87-yard touchdown run and, of course, Kyle Rudolph's 95-yard TD reception to give the Irish an edge with just under four minutes remaining in the game.

Indeed, the rainbow over the stadium seemed to signal that the Irish would work a little magic and emerge victorious.

This wasn't the case, though. 

In keeping with the thrilling and unpredictable nature of this rivalry, it was the Wolverines who edged the Irish, riding Robinson's 72-yard drive that culminated with the most important two yards of Robinson's career—a scamper into the end zone with just under 30 seconds remaining in regulation to give Michigan a 28-24 advantage.

And for Michigan fans, the plot was eerily similar to last year's contest that ended with 11 seconds to go, when Tate Forcier connected with Greg Matthews to lift the Wolverines to a 38-34 win over the Irish in Ann Arbor.

In fact, the season thus far seems like the worst streak of déjà vu—from offseason drama to the big statement on opening week, to the thrilling victory over the Irish, the 2-0 start, everything is eerily familiar. Perhaps too familiar.

Everyone is well aware of what happened to Michigan last year—riding an awesome 4-0 start and media sensationalism, the Wolverines climbed to 22nd in the AP poll and appeared to be heading in the right direction.

Then the train derailed.

Michigan limped to a 5-7 record, losing seven of the last eight games of the season.

Will the same happen this year?

The truth is, it's hard to tell. Forcier managed in Rich Rod's offense last year, but Robinson has owned it these past two weeks. He broke his own record Saturday and tore the Irish up for 502 yards of offense en route to the upset victory.

And while it's tempting to say that Michigan will not meet the same fate it did last season strictly because of Robinson's performance, it's hard to ignore that we are potentially an injury away from disaster.

The special teams were horrendous, and the Notre Dame offense was a juggernaut with Crist at the helm. A lot needs to improve before conference play, and nobody will argue with that, but just where will the Wolverines find themselves at the end of November?

I still think we're looking at a 7-5 season. Michigan is poised to start 4-0 (sound familiar?) before conference play, and could potentially be 5-0 by the time State comes to town if the Wolverines can get past a tricky Indiana squad. But then what?

Oct. 9 is the most important day for Michigan. A third straight loss to the in-state rival (affectionately known as "little brother") would be disastrous for this team—and would not set a good tone for the rest of the season.

A win over Michigan State would put the Wolverines at (potentially) 6-0 and bowl-eligible for the first time since 2007-08, giving Rich Rod and his offense the boost needed to navigate a tough second half of the season.

(Michigan will have to face Iowa and Wisconsin at home, while taking on Penn State and Ohio State on the road. It's not exactly the nicest schedule to navigate down the stretch.)

Robinson will continue to impress, but the running backs and receivers will need to get more involved if Michigan hopes to win any more signature games this year.

As of now I expect Michigan to drop the contests at Penn State, Ohio State, and Wisconsin at home, surprise one of Iowa or Michigan State, and drop one they shouldn't (Purdue or Illinois).

That leaves the Wolverines 7-5—not quite there yet, but improved. A bowl game, no matter how small, will do wonders to quiet the anti-Rich Rod sentiment. He just may live to see the sideline in 2011.