The Michigan Wolverines have reeled off three straight wins since losing to Texas, but their two wins against power conferences have been way too close for comfort and analyst Joel Klatt believes that the team is struggling to find their identity.
On the latest episode of the Joel Klatt Show, Klatt said that Michigan looks “lost” now. He believes that the passing game is to blame as it has been so ineffective that nothing else seems to work right for them.
“Michigan looks lost right now. This is not anywhere close to the teams that we have seen over the last three years,” Klatt said. “Now, they want it to be similar, and the difference is that — I just don’t sense that they have a real deep understanding of who they are. This Michigan team in the first half against Minnesota looked very good. The entire game against Texas, looked totally lost.
“There were so many mistakes in the passing game, too many turnovers, and then they went to Alex Orji and there’s just no passing game to speak of. They get up big on both USC and then Minnesota in the first half, and then they totally fall apart with an inability to move the ball offensively in the second half. They allow the opposition to get back in the game.
“They have lost some of that Michigan identity, which means that they don’t have a blueprint to follow like they did in previous years, and there’s no margin for error. If they’re not perfect, then all of a sudden they can be beat, and they can be beat in a hurry. So the rest of the year now, what Michigan is going to have to deal with is the fact that if they’re not perfect, they will be vulnerable to be beat.”
At 4-1 on the season and ranking No. 10 in the most recent AP poll, there still appears to be optimism that the Wolverines will be one of the better teams by the end of the year.
Will Michigan prove Klatt right with any more losses this season?
Related: Joel Klatt Releases His 2024 College Football National Championship Pick