A year after winning the national championship and their third straight Big Ten title, Michigan football comes in at No. 4 in the Big Ten preseason media poll. Released Monday by Cleveland.com, Ohio State edged Oregon for the No. 1 spot, with Penn State coming in at No. 3.
The poll, which can be viewed in full below, reflects projected order of finish. While fourth might seem low for a team with Michigan's recent success, the Wolverines lost 13 players from last year's team to the NFL Draft -- most in the country -- including quarterback J.J. McCarthy. They're also entering their first season under head coach Sherrone Moore.
As Michigan color commentator Jon Jansen puts it, "When you lose your quarterback, receivers, offensive linemen, running back -- they've got a lot of talent coming back on defense, but they lost talent there as well -- I think it's right where I would expect most publications and talking heads, we would probably put them somewhere (Nos.) 3, 4, 5."
The new Big Ten feels heavy at the top this year, with a drop-off after the first four teams. Iowa, USC, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Rutgers and Washington -- last year's national runner-up -- round out the top 10.
The biggest question for Michigan, says Jansen, is "what are you doing at the quarterback position?" The Wolverines enter camp next week with a three-man battle between Alex Orji, Davis Warren and Jack Tuttle. It's a trio short on big-game experience.
"The reality is, they don't have an offensive identity right now," says Jim Costa. "And a lot of that will depend on who's the guy under center … The question will be, did they do themselves a disservice by not going to the portal? The top two teams in the Big Ten, Oregon and Ohio State, both said we need to go get someone. Penn State brings back Drew Allard. Michigan has the unknown, and I think that's part of why they're fourth."
On the other hand, says Jansen, "Without that identity going into camp, with a new offensive line, new quarterback, fresh receivers, you have a blank canvas. And you can paint that picture however you want."
"Davis Warren, you've got yourself a strong arm. Jack Tuttle, you've got some experience. Alex Orji provides you that run game, with the question of how well can he throw the ball? No one knows this group of competing QB's better than the staff there. And we're left with, OK, if you're not going to bring somebody in that has starting experience, you better be right. That's how you start to build that trust."
The preseason media full poll is below, courtesy of Cleveland.com.
Cleveland.com
