I know you're down on your team but you guys are a different football team at home. Michigan is very average in a lot of facets and good in a few.
I’m not down on them. They are an average team this year, that’s a fact, which is actually more than I expected after everything was blown apart. Overall, I’m optimistic about the program.
But the reality is we returned a grand total of two starters from last years team, and have a group of guys who are playing together for the first time. The roster was decimated to the point there wasn’t enough offensive lineman to do the full array of spring drills, resulting in a modified, incomplete program. UW has some talent, but everything is patchwork at moment.
This 2024 team isn’t “different at home,” because most of these guys had never even played a game in that stadium until 3 weeks ago. This isn’t a continuation of DeBoer’s squad riding a home win streak, feeding off the momentum of a rising program. This is Keanu Reeves and the replacements. They don’t even really have an identity yet. All that stuff is in the process of sorting itself out.
It’s football, so shit happens, but the fact they’re favored in this game, despite Michigan’s flaws, is fucking wild.