{"id":60572,"date":"2024-07-13T18:40:06","date_gmt":"2024-07-13T23:40:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/?p=60572"},"modified":"2024-07-13T18:40:06","modified_gmt":"2024-07-13T23:40:06","slug":"greg-mcelroy-expects-rock-solid-defense-from-michigan-ranks-wolverines-preseason-no-11","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/greg-mcelroy-expects-rock-solid-defense-from-michigan-ranks-wolverines-preseason-no-11\/","title":{"rendered":"Greg McElroy expects \u2018rock-solid\u2019 defense from Michigan, ranks Wolverines preseason No. 11"},"content":{"rendered":"

As part of Greg McElroy\u2019s preseason top 25 rankings on his YouTube show, Always College Football<\/a><\/strong>, he rated Michigan<\/a><\/strong> outside the top 10 and made the case for why the Wolverines can\u2019t be trusted too much in 2024. <\/p>\n

\u201cJust being honest, I look at the last couple years, I\u2019ve been high on Michigan \u2014 had them No. 2 but picked them to win the national championship,\u201d McElroy referenced of his 2023 preseason predictions. But he made that pick in \u201923 for the same reasons he\u2019s docking UM in \u201924. <\/p>\n

\u201cI took the Michigan Wolverines, understandably because of the continuity that had been created the last few years,\u201d he explained. \u201cThere is no longer the same level of continuity.\u201d<\/p>\n

McElroy then went into breakdowns on the Wolverines on each side of the ball, liking the upside of the defense while really questioning what Michigan has on the other side of the ball. Take a look at what he had to say: <\/p>\n

Defense<\/h2>\n

\u201cI think the defense is excellent and they\u2019re going to be again this year,\u201d declared McElroy. \u201cI think Wink Martindale was an excellent hire \u2014 going to have a lot of pressures, going to bring a lot of blitzes.\u201d<\/p>\n

He obviously likes the coach, but also the personnel Michigan is returning at certain positions. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou bring back a couple of defensive tackles that can take over the game like Mason Graham, Kenneth Grant. They\u2019re in a great spot. I love the edge presence that is Derik Moore and Josiah Stewart.\u201d<\/p>\n

But overall, Greg McElroy just doesn\u2019t see quite as many weapons in the war chest this time around. <\/p>\n

\u201cDefensively, they just don\u2019t have as many pieces this year as they\u2019ve had the last couple years. I also look at the inside linebacker group, are they what they\u2019ve had the last couple years? That I\u2019m not 100% sure.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile I love Will Johnson there at corner, he\u2019s elite, there will be a couple of guys that will be stepping in from time to time. There\u2019s a few other guys that I think there are some question marks defensively.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even with all that said, Greg McElroy isn\u2019t talking about a great leap backward, but instead, some small slippage compared to what was the very best defense in the nation a year ago.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey should be rock solid top three, four, five, 10 in the country, no doubt about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Offense<\/h2>\n

\u201cThe problem is on offense,\u201d says McElroy, noting what he expects Michigan to excel at vs. struggle with given all they lost on that side of the ball. <\/p>\n

\u201cI know they\u2019re going to be able to run the football, that\u2019s what they do,\u201d he continued, then questioning the offensive front and quarterback situation. \u201cI look at the offensive line and there are more question marks there for me than there is for most. I think there are massive question marks at quarterback.\u201d<\/p>\n

In specific, the QB conundrum isn\u2019t working out any qualms for McElroy. <\/p>\n

\u201cLooking at the Big Ten and how it might change a little bit, you might need to score more points to win games in the Big Ten. When you\u2019re playing USC, you might have to play and score 35 to win. <\/p>\n

\u201cSo I look at how the game has changed and the quarterback question mark is significant, because a five-man quarterback battle in the spring is not something that has me feeling real good about that position. I think Orji is a great athlete, I think Tuttle\u2019s been around for a long time, you got a couple other guys that obviously have some talent. But that is a legitimate questionmark for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Greg McElroy admitted he does like the skill talent, but it\u2019s that OL and QB which are holding him back from more optimism. <\/p>\n

\u201cI also look at the wide receivers. I think the wide receivers are going to be really solid, I think tight end is gonna be really solid. I think running back Donovan Edwards going to be really solid. <\/p>\n

\u201cQuarterback and offensive line are legit question marks for me, which is why at this point I have Michigan outside of my top 10 heading into the preseason. I know it\u2019s going to make a lot of people frustrated but right now man there are too many question marks surrounding the Wolverines.\u201d<\/p>\n

The post Greg McElroy expects \u2018rock-solid\u2019 defense from Michigan, ranks Wolverines preseason No. 11<\/a> appeared first on On3<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As part of Greg McElroy\u2019s preseason top 25 rankings on his YouTube show, Always College…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-60572","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60572","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=60572"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60572\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":60618,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60572\/revisions\/60618"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=60572"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=60572"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=60572"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}