5 Predictions For The 2020 Michigan Football Season

With the Wolverines scheduled to take the gridiron again 125 days from now, let's gaze into the crystal ball and forecast what we may or may not see.

With the Wolverines scheduled to take the gridiron again 125 days from now, let's gaze into the crystal ball and forecast what we may or may not see. 

1. The opener at Washington will either be relocated, replaced, or canceled altogether. 
For various reasons this isn't the platform to delve into, the trend line seems to be the West Coast is going to be slower to reopen and return to some form of post-SARS 2 coronavirus normalcy than the rest of the country. And Washington state was one of the original hot spots for the virus as well. I believe by September 5th, when this game is scheduled to be played, life out there will be similar to everywhere else. However, if you're planning ahead as Michigan must for that road trip, you really need to know what they're planning by June 1st or July 1st. Which is why I think Warde Manuel will ask to have the game moved to a neutral location,  or replace it even with a FCS home game if need be -- with outright cancellation and one less game being the final and least enviable option. 

2. Joe Milton will be Michigan's starting quarterback. Not Dylan McCaffrey, or prospective transfer J.T. Daniels. 
I remain in favor of taking Daniels if he's immediately eligible, and doesn't impact the signing of 5-star J.J. McCarthy. His recruiting profile is clearly superior to either Milton's or McCaffrey's, and he has far more game experience than they do as well. That being said, I think he ends up at LSU, Tennessee, or somewhere in the Pac-12. That leaves the original competition between McCaffrey and Milton, and with Milton having the higher ceiling minus McCaffrey's injury history, I believe he will win the starting job. 

3. Andre Seldon is the true freshman that makes the most immediate impact at the start of the season. 
Perhaps it's only fitting the young man in the 2020 class who was committed the longest earns this distinction, but he also fits one of the few pressing needs on a talent-laden defense -- a nickle-corner with elite quickness to cover in the slot. 

4. Michigan's biggest win of the season will be handing Penn State its lone conference loss. 
For the last four years this has been a series that has favored the home team, and three of those were total blowouts. Even in last year's nail-biter in State College, the Wolverines at one point trailed 21-0. Michigan will get its revenge in Ann Arbor on October 3rd, and that will turnout to be the Nittany Lions' lone loss in Big Ten play. Which means, yes, I'm predicting they upset Ohio State at Happy Valley for the October 24th "white out." 

5. Michigan loses three games or more, just as it has every year Jim Harbaugh has been the head coach. 
While the schedule minus the-game-which-must-not-be-named at the end is actually favorable overall, the toughness of the slate doesn't seem to matter in the Harbaugh era. Michigan loses three games or more (counting the bowl) one way or another. The excuses/reasons/facts (whichever term you prefer) change, but the song remains the same. And given the question marks at quarterback and the offensive line, not to mention a five-year precedent, I'm not sure how I can possibly predict anything better based on anything beyond sheer hope. So until Harbaugh proves otherwise, his is a 3-loss or more program.