The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Wednesday, August 31, 2022 — 11A
JARED GREENSPAN
Managing Sports Editor
ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily
Sports
Four Michigan football questions
ahead of the 2022 season
Last season, you’d have been
hard pressed to find a better defen-
sive duo than Aidan Hutchinson
and David Ojabo. The All-American
edge rushers comprised a recur-
ring nightmare for the opposition,
so often dominating the line of
scrimmage and flipping the tenor
of the game in Michigan’s favor.
For a defense that entered the year
with a number of question marks,
Hutchinson and Ojabo evolved
into a foolproof answer, assuaging
early concerns. But with both play-
ers now in the NFL, there will be
no such luxury for first-year defen-
sive coordinator Jesse Minter and
company this season. In the spring,
players and coaches expressed con-
fidence that these losses could be
mitigated — while also acknowl-
edging that the production will be
near-impossible to replicate. Mike
Morris and Braiden McGregor are
expected to assume greater roles as
edge rushers, while Jalen Harrell,
Taylor Upshaw and others are sure
to be relied on, too.
Remember that guy? Michigan’s
offense sure does. After tearing his
ACL early on in last year’s season-
opener, Bell is set to return to a
receiving corps rife with weapons.
The addition of Bell could push the
group from good to flat-out domi-
nant — that is, if Bell can recapture
his pre-injury form. Bell isn’t the
most physically-gifted receiver, but
he is shifty and cunning, and he
used his craft to become Michigan’s
leading receiver by yards in 2019 and
2020. A legitimate go-to option out
wide would not only alleviate pres-
sure for McCarthy/McNamara, but
it would also slot the other receivers
down a rung on the pecking order
— presumably giving them more
favorable matchups with the oppos-
ing secondary. And in an offense
that already touts two top running
backs in Blake Corum and Donovan
Edwards, not to mention a steady
tight end in Erick All, a seamless
return from Bell would only make
the opposition’s task more difficult.
1) Who is QB1?
2) Can Michigan
mitigate the losses of
Hutchinson and Ojabo?
3) Can Jim Harbaugh
control — and win —
the narrative?
4) Is Ronnie Bell, well,
still Ronnie Bell?
Much of the intrigue surround-
ing this iteration of the Michigan
football team starts under cen-
ter, where the stage seems set for
a quarterback competition. Cade
McNamara steered the Wolverines
to a Big Ten Championship win last
season, and though McNamara’s
game is not flawless, his blemishes
are often over-emphasized. McNa-
mara is a proficient game manager,
a respected locker room presence
and he can sling it, too — far better
than his critics give him credit for.
That being said, it’s reasonable to
wonder whether Michigan would
have a higher ceiling with J.J.
McCarthy as the starting quarter-
back. McCarthy, a former five-star
recruit, saw limited action last
season as a freshman. It’s clear,
though, that he offers variables that
McNamara does not; McCarthy
has a stronger arm and is a legiti-
mate mobile threat, two skills that
would increase Michigan’s chances
to trump the rugged defenses of the
Big Ten. However, McCarthy has
nursed a shoulder injury through
the offseason, missing spring ball
and hindering the competition. But
both quarterbacks should be ready
to go as fall camp begins.
Michigan football is an exten-
sion of its enigmatic coach, for bet-
ter and for worse. That proposition
is as true now, entering year eight
of Harbaugh’s tenure in Ann Arbor,
as it was back at his introductory
press conference in 2014. Of course,
in the past 20 months, most people
presumed that we wouldn’t reach
this juncture, that Harbaugh would
be out at some point or another. Fol-
lowing a calamitous 2020 season,
many called for Harbaugh’s firing,
and in the wake of a Cinderella-like
tale in 2021, Harbaugh seriously
entertained a return to the NFL in
February. Nonetheless, Harbaugh
remains. And after a year that
unfolded like a Hollywood script
— a feel-good story of a youthful
coaching staff whose revamped
culture helped a rejuvenated head
coach return his alma mater to the
promised land — it’s worth ask-
ing: What happens when this year
inevitably unfolds differently? Har-
baugh did well to deflect conversa-
tion of expectations and pressure in
March, instead stressing the “scary
good” state of his program. But
how long can he manage to keep
such positive feelings afloat in Ann
Arbor, especially among a fanbase
crazed for sustained dominance?
That, perhaps, is the greatest nar-
rative arc at the season’s inception.
Gameday Guide
LYS GOLDMAN
Daily Sports Writer
Fall in Ann Arbor is special. The
campus is abuzz as students return
for the beginning of the school year;
the weather and scenery are abso-
lutely beautiful; and, of course, foot-
ball season is in full swing. Football
and the University of Michigan go
hand in hand. Saturdays in the fall
— whether you care about the sport
or not — are some of the best days of
the year. You’ll wake up earlier than
you wake up for classes. You’ll walk
out of your dorm and down State
Street in a sea of maize and blue.
You’ll join 110,000 other fans in the
biggest stadium in America. You’ll
make some of your favorite memo-
ries, ones that you’ll never forget,
even after your time as a Michi-
gan student is over. All that to say,
gamedays are incredible. But they
can also be daunting. So, to help
ease any nerves that you may have
as the first Michigan football game
approaches, here’s a comprehensive
guide to navigating gamedays in
Ann Arbor.
Preparation
Depending on what time the
game is scheduled for, you might be
waking up pretty early on Saturday
to start getting ready and tailgating.
Most students in my dorm hall last
year were up and ready (and blast-
ing music) by 7 or 8 a.m. for noon
games. So try to go to bed early the
night before – you’ll need lots of
energy to make it through the day.
Another good idea is to make a plan
with your friends the day before
about when you’ll meet and where
you’ll go before the game. The din-
ing hall is usually a good place to
start the day, but make sure to check
the weekend hours. If you aren’t
able to make it to the dining hall,
try to grab some quick breakfast
from your room or another place on
campus. And last but not least, don’t
forget your MCard — you’ll need it
to get into the stadium.
What to wear
There’s really only two pieces of
advice I have to give on the topic
of clothing: Dress for the weather
and wear anything maize and blue.
It’s usually warm out for the first
few home games before the infa-
mous Michigan winter starts to
kick in — make sure to check the
weather beforehand and plan your
outfit accordingly. Within weather
constraints, anything with a block
M is fair game. If you need to find
gameday clothes on campus, check
out the M Den for anything you can
imagine with a Michigan logo. For
cheaper alternatives, try the Wal-
greens or CVS on campus. Another
great option is borrowing from your
friends, roommates or hallmates.
Most people come to school with
tons of maize and blue clothes, and
they are usually happy to let you
borrow for a game.
Pre-game festivities
There are tons of tailgates and
events around campus that you
can go to before the game. Almost
every fraternity has a tailgate,
many of which are on big streets
like Hill, Oxford and Packard. Fra-
ternity tailgates are popular spots
for freshmen, and they’re relatively
easy to find. Lots of alumni also
have tailgates closer to the stadium
and around the golf course next to
the Big House. My biggest piece of
advice for pre-game festivities is
to explore! You don’t necessarily
need a set-in-stone plan for tailgat-
ing; you’ll definitely stumble upon
events as you walk towards the
stadium. Some of my favorite pre-
game memories — like fist-bump-
ing Charles Woodson and getting
on TV before the Ohio State game
— were unplanned. If you need
a break at any point (gamedays
can be exhausting), East Quad is a
great place to sit down for a bit and
get some food. When you’re ready
to head to the stadium, follow the
maize and blue masses. All roads
lead to the Big House on gameday.
At the Big House
The Big House definitely lives
up to its name, and it can be stress-
ful to navigate at first. You’ll enter
through Gate 10 for the student sec-
tion, which is very easy to find (look
for the huge crowd of students mov-
ing towards the stadium from State
Street). Your mobile tickets will
have a section, row and seat num-
ber, but most students don’t stick to
their assigned seats; it’s easy to move
around and sit with your friends
once you get inside. Be aware,
though — you’ll probably have little
to no cell service in the stadium. It
can be very hard to communicate
with and find your friends, so make
sure not to lose them in the crowd.
Once you secure a bleacher spot,
prepare to be on your feet for the
entire game. The student section
initiates lots of cheers, so become
familiar with those. The Michigan
fight song, Hail to the Victors, is
definitely the most important. It’s
played every time Michigan scores
a touchdown and at various other
times throughout the game. Addi-
tionally, “Pump it Up” and “Mr.
Brightside” have become Michigan
football anthems — you’ll definitely
want to sing along to those. And at
the beginning of the third quarter,
the band plays “Can’t Turn You
Loose” by Blues Brothers. Everyone
in the student section starts doing
an accompanying dance; watch the
cheerleaders or the students around
you and follow their lead for this
one. There will be other songs and
cheers that are played throughout
the game, but those are the basics to
know and love.
After the game
Follow the crowds to the sta-
dium exits when you’re ready to
leave. Take a well-deserved nap
once you get back to your dorm and
make sure to get some food. You’ll
probably notice either a collective
euphoria or defeat in the Ann Arbor
air depending on the outcome of the
game. But either way, gamedays are
some of the best experiences that
you can get as a Michigan student.
Take advantage of them; you don’t
get all that many.
BECCA MAHON/Daily
FILE PHOTO/Daily