"Wasted waiting on Jim Harbaugh to decide": CFB insider rips Michigan management as Sherrone Moore faces QB troubles
Jim Harbaugh was able to lead the Michigan Wolverines to a national championship last season before leaving the program to coach the NFL's Los Angeles Chargers. He recently received a bit of criticism for the program's struggles at quarterback in 2024 as the Wolverines sit at 5-5 after finishing 15-0 a year ago.
College football insider Andy Staples appeared on the "Dan Patrick Show" where he discussed the team's decline:
"Jim Harbaugh delayed his decision. His decision was on the NFL's timeline, which is not on the transfer portal's timeline. So, the time you would have spent figuring out who your quarterback was going to be, getting a quarterback out of the transfer portal if you didn't like what you had on your roster - which they didn't - all of that was wasted because they were waiting on Jim Harbaugh to decide if he was going to stay or leave."
Staples continued:
"That was the issue. I don't bang on Sherrone Moore for the roster this year because he had really no chance to address it. What he does in this offseason will tell us a lot more."
Staples noted that the Wolverines are attempting to flip Bryce Underwood's commitment to join the LSU Tigers. He added that the program will likely look to add a quarterback via the transfer portal.
He speculated that their plan could be to bring in a rental quarterback, while developing the top-ranked prospect in the 2025 recruiting class - provided they flip his commitment.
Will the Michigan Wolverines earn a bowl game appearance?
In addition to losing Jim Harbaugh and much of his staff to the NFL, they had 13 players selected in the 2024 NFL Draft - the fourth-most by one program in a single season since the draft was reduced to seven rounds in 1994.
The amount they have regressed, however, has been somewhat of a surprise as many believed their defense would remain elite. Instead, they have fielded one of the worst offenses in the nation and a middle-of-the-pack defense. In all likelihood, their chances of earning a bowl game berth will depend on the outcome of their Week 13 matchup with the 4-5 Northwestern Wildcats.
It is expected that six wins will be necessary to earn a bowl game bid and the Wolverines have just two games remaining on their schedule. Aside from the aforementioned matchup, they will face the No. 2-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes.