Michigan’s spring schedule has seemed on the immediate horizon for weeks, and it’s finally available. The gritty details:
| Date | Opponent | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Feb. 1 | Marquette (exh.) | Home (Oosterbaan) |
| Feb. 8 | Penn State | Away (State College, Pa.) |
| Feb. 14 | Mercer | Home (Oosterbaan) |
| Feb. 19 | Detroit | Away (Pontiac, Mich.) |
| Feb. 22 | Johns Hopkins | Away (Baltimore) |
| March 1 | Cornell | Home |
| March 5 | High Point | Away (High Point, N.C.) |
| March 8 | Furman | Away (Greenville, S.C.) |
| March 15 | Bellarmine | Away (Louisville, Ky.)* |
| March 18 | Maryland | Home |
| March 22 | St. Joseph’s | Home |
| March 29 | Air Force | Away (Colorado Springs, Colo.)* |
| April 5 | Fairfield | Home* |
| April 12 | Ohio State | Away (Columbus, Ohio)* |
| April 19 | Yale | Home |
| April 26 | Robert Morris | Home |
Interactive Whiteboards by PolyVision
A few thoughts:
- This is the first year Michigan has put together a schedule where they can really win a few games. Of course, past games that looked like possible wins (namely High Point last year) didn’t pan out that way. This year there’s more than just one or two, however. You have a Mercer team that has struggled to reach any competency, a rematch against High Point, and a first-year program in Furman. Add in the St. Joseph’s team that U-M beat last year, and there are some real opportunities.
- Of course, the hope is to sweep that slate and take a couple more games here and there from the middle ranks. It remains to be seen how much U-M improves, but I think the growth they showed with the eyeball test last year will translate to the results this season.
- There’s also a ton of power at the top. As in… six of last year’s top nine teams nationally. That’s tough. Of course those teams aren’t all returning in full force (though Ohio State, for example, could be even better than last year), but Michigan is not really in a position to stand up to some of those teams.
- The overall average 54.44% was about equivalent to the No. 28 team in the country. Obviously with a couple of the worst programs and a few of the best on the docket, this is a high-variance group.
- A pretty good mix of home and away games. Of course the Detroit contest is more of a neutral-site deal in practice. Most of the winnable games are away from home (Mercer is the exception), making them both a little tougher to win and less likely to be seen by Michigan fans. Still, getting the likes of Maryland and Cornell into Michigan Stadium will be 1) awesome in general 2) good for the growth of the game, and 3) preparation for the Big Ten schedule in 2015.
This is a schedule that Michigan should finally turn into multiple wins after one in each of the previous two seasons. It should also show them a bit of humility and what sort of team they want to be in the future. For the season to be a success, it’s really taking care of business in the easy games, earning a win or two out of the middle, and building toward 2015 with the first fully-recruited (albeit not all recruited for D-1) roster in program history.
I predict 5 wins based on that. Furman and Mercer are must-wins. High Point and St. Joseph’s are highly likely. The next group would be Detroit, Bellarmine and the home games against Fairfield and Robert Morris. No way we win all of those games, but getting 5 wins out of it seems like the most likely scenario to me.
Some observations:
1. The Wolverines could win a half-dozen games. As you said, this schedule is a good mix of home/away as well as caliber of competition.
2. Bellarmine could very well be a winnable game given the graduation of their All American goalie as well as a top offensive (points leader) player. Likewise, Fairfield and RMU could be victories given the home field advantage.
3. A Cornell team in transition (firing of their coach as well as the graduation of their All American attackman, among others) will be an interesting opponent (and home game).
4. Maryland coming to Michigan represents the biggest varsity (acknowledging Hopkins coming here a few years ago to play the UofM club team) lacrosse game this state has ever seen…hosting eventual national champion Loyola in 2012 not withstanding (given that Maryland has a much bigger following).
5. Ohio State certainly won’t be better without Schuss and Alexander, but the fact that it’s their first time hosting Michigan will provide the Buckeyes with more than enough fuel to make the score similar to last year (as in close to a 10 goal win).
I see 8 winnable games: Mercer, Detroit, High Point, Furman, Bellarmine, St. Joseph’s, Fairfield, and Robert Morris. Realistically, I’d be happy with wins in five of those, and I agree with my LA brethren that there should be no reason why five wins isn’t attainable. I really like the mix of the schedule. Half are games that UM can win, and half are games that, while not winnable, should provide a good measuring stick of how much more competitive the team is this year. Once again I’ll drive the 50 minutes to Homewood to see UM play Hopkins.
I like this schedule a lot. UM needs to put a few wins on the board and should be able to do that this year. Recruits and Alums have no interest in year-after-year 1 win seasons (notwithstanding the very high level of your opponents’ play). This is a building-block year – bridging to what will be a very good team in the future. When the 2015 H.S. class rolls in, last year’s freshmen will be seniors. Logan, Lott, Hernandez and Jackson will be better than they were last year – and the classes below have significant talent to add to that. Look for this program to accelerate into the top tier in the 2016-2020 seasons.
I think it sets up very well. A few games that are should-wins, several that are possible wins, and a few that are going to be tough tests against really good teams to prepare for future seasons.
Did Michigan change its coach? They were 1-13 last year right? Maybe a couple of wins. Cornell will not be interesting but a loss. Until there is a new head coach Michigan will not suceed and every coach in the DI ranks knows it.
Troll on, troll.