Can Michigan football save this season after loss to Michigan State?

Jim Harbaugh looks to lead young team past first loss

Can Jim Harbaugh and Michigan football save this season? (Getty Images)

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Jim Harbaugh is in a tricky situation.

Coming into the 2017 season, Michigan football wasn't being talked about among the country's top championship contenders. Instead, the Wolverines were in a second group, considered a fringe contender with too many young players to truly pose a threat.

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That narrative changed after a 4-0 start, but the last few weeks have proved that start might have been smoke in mirrors.

Damaged resume

Florida isn't the impressive win it appeared to be, after the Gators struggled with Tennessee and Kentucky and lost to an LSU team that couldn't beat Troy at home.

Air Force and Cincinnati, both of which were within three points of Michigan in the third quarter, are a combined 1-6 since their trips to Ann Arbor. Purdue might be Michigan's best victory, so it's not a pretty resume.

Saturday's crushing defeat against Michigan State not only dropped the Wolverines well out of the top 10, it also exhausted their only mulligan, with more than half the season left to play.

Michigan is no longer considered a playoff contender, a Big Ten championship contender, or even a New Year's Six bowl contender.

So what's next?

Michigan's goals won't change

With Michigan's elite defense, a coach like Harbaugh and a talented roster, there's no denying the team's goal was to compete for a Big Ten title and a berth in the College Football Playoff.

Now, that's only be possible if the Wolverines run the table, which would include wins at Penn State, at Wisconsin and against Ohio State before the Big Ten Championship Game.

Even the most optimistic Michigan fan knows that's a tall order, especially since young players are much more likely to have higher highs and lower lows throughout the course of the season.

Yet on a game-by-game basis, Michigan has a chance in every single game. The defense usually only allows one long drive per game, and as long as the offense doesn't make major mistakes, Michigan shouldn't find itself on the wrong end of any blowouts.

Unfortunately for Harbaugh, the offense has made more lethal errors than he could have imagined. Michigan survived back-to-back pick-sixes against Florida and a dozen overthrown passes against Cincinnati and Air Force, but five turnovers and three dropped passes caught up with the offense last weekend.

It might not be fair, but Michigan's goals won't change, at least not in the eyes of fans who expected something special this season. Harbaugh's team basically has to finish the regular season 11-1 and win the Big Ten East Division, or else the season will be viewed as a disappointment.

Those are the expectations at Michigan.

Is it even possible?

Michigan's national relevance this season is hanging by a thread -- it wouldn't be completely shocking to see the Wolverines lose at Indiana this weekend. But there are a few glimmers of hope.

For starters, there's a chance Michigan won't see a defense as good as Michigan State's for the rest of the season. The Spartans are ranked fourth nationally in total defense, higher than anyone else on Michigan's schedule.

There will be challenges. Wisconsin is No. 10 in total defense, Penn State is No. 12, Ohio State is No. 14 and Minnesota is No. 22. Michigan will have to improve on offense, but it probably won't face another top-five defense in a monsoon.

The Wolverines have also fared much better away from home this season. Sometimes the pressure of playing in front of home fans with high expectations can work against a young team, and it feels like that has happened to Michigan this season.

In all three home games, Michigan struggled to bounce back from early miscues, tightening up at the first sign of trouble. Away from the Big House, it's been a different story. Michigan bounced back from adversity against Florida and Purdue for blowout victories.

Michigan has all season to fix the home woes before Ohio State, but its two biggest games before then will come on the road. Maybe that will be a blessing in disguise.

There are countless examples of teams bouncing back from early losses. Last season, Penn State was 2-2 after getting pounded by 39 points at Michigan. The Nittany Lions won the rest of their regular-season games to take home the Big Ten championship.

It happened much later in the season, but Clemson lost a similar game last season. The Tigers lost at home against a Pittsburgh team that finished the season with eight wins. It looks extremely likely that Michigan State will finish with at least eight victories, so Michigan's situation isn't entirely different.

Michigan isn't as good as Clemson, but because of its elite defense, it can't be entirely dismissed. The Wolverines allow just 213 yards per game, which is 15.8 fewer yards than the No. 2 defense (Washington). Only 19 teams are within 100 yards of Michigan's total defense, meaning the Wolverines are more than 100 yards per game better than 110 teams in the country.

Michigan is down and facing a major uphill battle, but it'll take one more loss to deliver the official knockout punch.


About the Author:

Derick is the Lead Digital Editor for ClickOnDetroit and has been with Local 4 News since April 2013. Derick specializes in breaking news, crime and local sports.