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The OFFICIAL MICHIGAN FOOTBALL TEAM 138 THREAD: THE TEAM! THE TEAM! THE TEAM!
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Coli Prophet
The entire complexion of Michigan’s 2018 season changed Friday when the NCAA announced Shea Patterson is immediately eligible to play for the Wolverines after transferring from Ole Miss. And if that sounds like hyperbole to you, well, you must’ve not seen Michigan play much a season ago (or at least caught the cliff notes on Amazon's All or Nothingseries).
Despite a defense that ranked third nationally in yards allowed per game, the Wolverines stumbled to an 8-5 finish. Why? Michigan’s nearly non-existent passing attack.
Without getting too numbers-heavy, the Wolverines’ passing offense finished 111th nationally out of 130 FBS teams in passing yards per game. The team’s yards per attempt finish, 109th, wasn’t much better. Add in a 53.5 complete percentage as a team, which slotted 113th nationally, and Michigan’s issues under center are rather clear.
For those thinking, ‘Oh, but there are other positions that matter when it comes to the passing attack,’ I need you to consider this: All five of Michigan’s starting linemen graded out as a 71 or better per PFF College, and three Michigan backs ran for at least 5.1 yards per carry. Michigan’s QBs – be it John O’Korn, Brandon Peters or Wilton Speight – had the ground support to let it fly from down to down. They just didn’t get it done consistently.
That’s where Patterson changes the dynamic.
Patterson’s natural talent is obvious. 247Sports’ top-ranked passer in the 2016 class, Patterson is a 6-foot-2, 200-pound dynamo. His dual-threat tendencies and ability to improvise get the most attention, but Patterson is a natural thrower of the football. He features beautiful mechanics and the ball rifles out of his hand. Prior to the knee injury that ended his 2017 campaign after just seven games, Patterson completed 64 percent of his passes for 2,259 yards and 17 touchdowns. He was the SEC's leading passer after three weeks and shattered Ole Miss' single-game record for passing yards with 489.
Patterson can be interception prone – he threw nine picks last season – but much of that can be pinned on his improvisational style. That risk-taking element was somewhat encouraged in Ole Miss' up-tempo, spread system. Expect some of those aggressive tendencies to be reeled in a bit in Jim Harbaugh’s pro-style system.
PFF College ranked Patterson (82.3) as its 37th overall quarterback this season. John O’Korn (71.6) rated 113th for Michigan. Redshirt freshman Brandon Peters and Speight didn't crack the ranked list with both nabbing a 55.4 grade or worse. There is a significant difference in what Patterson will provide Michigan compared to what the Wolverines had under center a year ago.
When you consider what the Wolverines bring back around Patterson that's when their 2018 projection gets interesting.
Harbaugh pessimism is en vogue this offseason, but the Wolverines should be considerably better next year. That elite defense from a year ago brings back nine starters, including four potential All-Americans: Rashan Gary, Chase Winovich, Khaleke Hudson and Devin Bush. That’s number isn't an exaggeration. All of those defenders outside of Gary graded out as “elite” at their position per PFF College in 2017, and Gary, the former No. 1 overall prospect in the country, has the highest ceiling of them all. Add in the defensive mastermind that is Don Brown, and the Wolverines should again swarm. On the offensive side of things, the core of last year’s unit is in place outside of left tackle Mason Cole and Patrick Kugler.
Consider too that the 2017 Wolverines were one of the youngest teams in the country.
Michigan replaced more starters than anyone in the FBS heading into last season. That hurts in the short term, but that pain generally leads to long-term gains. Young players like Donovan Peoples-Jones and Tarik Blackflashed brightly as receiving threats a year ago. With another year in Ann Arbor, they should be even better.
When considering Patterson’s impact on that group, the key word to consider is balance.
The Wolverines ran the ball 529 times against 346 passes a year ago. You can win football games with that type of split. But it can’t happen if many of the play-action passes and bootleg actions resulting from those runs are squandered. That’s what happened with Michigan’s passing attack in 2017. Patterson’s already proven in his short college career that won’t be the case under his guidance.
The framework for the Wolverines to contend is intact.
With Patterson added to the mix, Michigan is now more than a mere curiosity or a pin cushion for Harbaugh criticism. The Wolverines are now a legitimate Big Ten contender. By extension, Michigan is again ready to return to the national stage.
#WeBack
Despite a defense that ranked third nationally in yards allowed per game, the Wolverines stumbled to an 8-5 finish. Why? Michigan’s nearly non-existent passing attack.
Without getting too numbers-heavy, the Wolverines’ passing offense finished 111th nationally out of 130 FBS teams in passing yards per game. The team’s yards per attempt finish, 109th, wasn’t much better. Add in a 53.5 complete percentage as a team, which slotted 113th nationally, and Michigan’s issues under center are rather clear.
For those thinking, ‘Oh, but there are other positions that matter when it comes to the passing attack,’ I need you to consider this: All five of Michigan’s starting linemen graded out as a 71 or better per PFF College, and three Michigan backs ran for at least 5.1 yards per carry. Michigan’s QBs – be it John O’Korn, Brandon Peters or Wilton Speight – had the ground support to let it fly from down to down. They just didn’t get it done consistently.
That’s where Patterson changes the dynamic.
Patterson’s natural talent is obvious. 247Sports’ top-ranked passer in the 2016 class, Patterson is a 6-foot-2, 200-pound dynamo. His dual-threat tendencies and ability to improvise get the most attention, but Patterson is a natural thrower of the football. He features beautiful mechanics and the ball rifles out of his hand. Prior to the knee injury that ended his 2017 campaign after just seven games, Patterson completed 64 percent of his passes for 2,259 yards and 17 touchdowns. He was the SEC's leading passer after three weeks and shattered Ole Miss' single-game record for passing yards with 489.
Patterson can be interception prone – he threw nine picks last season – but much of that can be pinned on his improvisational style. That risk-taking element was somewhat encouraged in Ole Miss' up-tempo, spread system. Expect some of those aggressive tendencies to be reeled in a bit in Jim Harbaugh’s pro-style system.
PFF College ranked Patterson (82.3) as its 37th overall quarterback this season. John O’Korn (71.6) rated 113th for Michigan. Redshirt freshman Brandon Peters and Speight didn't crack the ranked list with both nabbing a 55.4 grade or worse. There is a significant difference in what Patterson will provide Michigan compared to what the Wolverines had under center a year ago.
When you consider what the Wolverines bring back around Patterson that's when their 2018 projection gets interesting.
Harbaugh pessimism is en vogue this offseason, but the Wolverines should be considerably better next year. That elite defense from a year ago brings back nine starters, including four potential All-Americans: Rashan Gary, Chase Winovich, Khaleke Hudson and Devin Bush. That’s number isn't an exaggeration. All of those defenders outside of Gary graded out as “elite” at their position per PFF College in 2017, and Gary, the former No. 1 overall prospect in the country, has the highest ceiling of them all. Add in the defensive mastermind that is Don Brown, and the Wolverines should again swarm. On the offensive side of things, the core of last year’s unit is in place outside of left tackle Mason Cole and Patrick Kugler.
Consider too that the 2017 Wolverines were one of the youngest teams in the country.
Michigan replaced more starters than anyone in the FBS heading into last season. That hurts in the short term, but that pain generally leads to long-term gains. Young players like Donovan Peoples-Jones and Tarik Blackflashed brightly as receiving threats a year ago. With another year in Ann Arbor, they should be even better.
When considering Patterson’s impact on that group, the key word to consider is balance.
The Wolverines ran the ball 529 times against 346 passes a year ago. You can win football games with that type of split. But it can’t happen if many of the play-action passes and bootleg actions resulting from those runs are squandered. That’s what happened with Michigan’s passing attack in 2017. Patterson’s already proven in his short college career that won’t be the case under his guidance.
The framework for the Wolverines to contend is intact.
With Patterson added to the mix, Michigan is now more than a mere curiosity or a pin cushion for Harbaugh criticism. The Wolverines are now a legitimate Big Ten contender. By extension, Michigan is again ready to return to the national stage.
#WeBack
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