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The Michigan football team fell to 4-3 on the season (2-2 Big Ten) after a loss against Illinois on Saturday. The Wolverines came into the game favored by 5.5, but they lost by 14 as the final score was 21-7. The season up to that point hadn't been great, but Michigan looked significantly worse out of their bye week, and that's a big issue.
Michigan's defense wasn't an issue on Saturday, but their offense put up their worst performance of the season. The Wolverines couldn't get anything going and they came up with their lowest point total in 10 years.
Jack Tuttle got the start at quarterback on Saturday for Michigan, and there was some optimism from the fan base coming into the game because of Tuttle. He came in against Washington and provided a spark, but he didn't look great against Illinois.
Tuttle's stat line wasn't bad as he was 20/32 and he threw for over 200 yards, but he did have a costly interception and a costly lost fumble. Turnovers have been an issue all season, and they plagued the Wolverines once again against the Fighting Illini.
After winning the national title last year, no Michigan fan was expecting the team to have to fight for a bowl game, but that is where we are now. Michigan is 4-3 and they have game against #1, #4 and #13 left on the schedule. They also play Michigan State and Northwestern, and if they drop either of those, this team likely doesn't make a bowl game.
A disaster was needed for things to get this bad this quickly. A disaster has happened. The loss against Illinois and this entire season boils down to poor coaching.
The coaching staff is to blame for this loss and season
Sherrone Moore is in his first year as the head coach of the Michigan football team, and it really couldn't be going any worse right now. The Wolverines have a few ugly losses on their resume, and their College Football Playoff odds have been squashed before November. Moore will be the first to tell you that he has to do a better job.
Michigan also needs their coordinators to do a better job. The defense had a good game on Saturday, but overall on the season this unit hasn't met expectations. There are numerous first-round draft picks on that side of the ball, there's no reason why the defense should be as bad as it is. Wink Martindale has to be better.
The offense is obviously the biggest concern for this team, and it would be surprising to see Kirk Campbell remain in this position when the season comes to a close. On Saturday, Michigan was playing a team that has struggled to stop the run and a team that just gave up 49 points to one-win Purdue. The Wolverines have a clear strength and a clear weakness on offense. Running the ball is their strength, throwing the ball is their weakness.
Michigan threw the ball 32 times against Illinois. Even with top-10 NFL Draft pick JJ McCarthy, the Wolverines usually had 15-20 passing attempts per game. A lot of the play calls on Saturday, and this season, have been head-scratchers.
There are already Michigan football fans that have seen enough of Sherrone Moore as the head coach of the program, and it's only been seven games. The Wolverines will be hosting in-state rival Michigan State this weekend. The Spartans were at rock bottom last year and they are also going through a coaching change. If Michigan loses at home against Michigan State, Moore will be on the hot seat just eight games into his tenure.
