If Nico Collins Is Right, The Michigan Coaches Have Some Explaining To Do
I'm a big Nico Collins fan. I enjoyed covering him as a recruit, he was a joy to cover while at Michigan and he's likely going to be a solid pro. I was really looking forward to seeing him in the No. 1 jersey last fall and truly believe he would've put up terrific numbers had the season been more normal. With all that said, Collins was asked about the talent gap between Michigan and Ohio State, and his answer left a lot to be desired.
In his defense, it's a tough question to answer. Collins is a proud, athletic and talented guy. And he likely thinks very highly of his former teammates at U-M. Collins probably feels like he can hang with anyone on OSU's roster, and individually, he's probably right. He's not going to sit in front of the media and say that Ohio State is far more talented than the Wolverines, even though most would say that they are. Instead, he'll say what he said in the video above.
But the other angle is, what if he's right? What if the raw talent gap actually isn't as wide as it looks on the field? Ohio State recruits like few other programs in the country, but Michigan has done very well on the recruiting trail as well. Jim Harbaugh and his staff have had talent to work with, but they've come up well short against the Buckeyes and other programs who have recruited as well or better. Everyone would say that Ohio State has reeled in more talent than Michigan, but are they truly 30-40 points better than the Wolverines? Michigan has been outscored 118-66 during its last two meetings with the Buckeyes and many believe it would've been even more lopsided in 2020 than it was in 2018 and 2019 had the game been played.
Additionally, Michigan has been putting players into the pros. Wolverines haven't been picked as high as Buckeyes have, but several from recent classes are playing regularly on Sundays. When you've got NFL talent littered throughout a college roster, you should be competitive against just about everyone. Michigan has not been competitive against Ohio State in a long time.
So which is it? Is the talent gap with Ohio State extremely wide like it looks like it is on the field? Or Does Michigan have comparable talent like Collins says? If the talent is comparable, then the coaches have been underperforming in the worst way. If the talent gap is as massive as it appears, then the outcomes are understandable, but how did it get like that?
Anyway you slice it is unfortunate. Michigan fans want a win against Ohio State more than anything. Harbaugh wants the same. Obviously the players do too. But a win against the Buckeyes seems like a fantasy heading into year seven of Harbaugh's tenure. I for one didn't see it playing out like this, but here we are. To Harbaugh's credit, he's tried just about everything you can think of to correct issues — this year maybe more than ever. There are six new coaches on the staff, four doing a job they've never done before, another graduate transfer quarterback coming in and a lot of talent in the freshman class. If Harbaugh can make it all work, and the Wolverines can do several things they've never done on his watch, it'll be the best coaching job he's ever done.
