CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

1975 Michigan

8–⁠2–⁠2 (7–⁠1 Big Ten), coached by Bo Schembechler, finished No. 8 in the AP poll.

Schedule and results

Michigan in 1975, game by game: won at Wisconsin 23–6; tied vs. Stanford 19–19; tied vs. Baylor 14–14; won vs. No. 5 Missouri 31–7; won at No. 15 Michigan State 16–6; won vs. Northwestern 69–0; won vs. Indiana 55–7; won at Minnesota 28–21; won vs. Purdue 28–0; won at Illinois 21–15; lost vs. No. 1 Ohio State 14–21; lost vs. No. 3 Oklahoma 6–14+69−8Won 23–6 at Wisconsin+17WisconsinTied 19–19 vs. Stanford0StanfordTied 14–14 vs. Baylor0BaylorWon 31–7 vs. No. 5 Missouri+24No. 5 MissouriWon 16–6 at No. 15 Michigan State+10No. 15 Michigan StateWon 69–0 vs. Northwestern+69NorthwesternWon 55–7 vs. Indiana+48IndianaWon 28–21 at Minnesota+7MinnesotaWon 28–0 vs. Purdue+28PurdueWon 21–15 at Illinois+6IllinoisLost 14–21 vs. No. 1 Ohio State-7No. 1 Ohio StateLost 6–14 vs. No. 3 Oklahoma-8No. 3 Oklahoma
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 13atWisconsinW 23–⁠661%
Sep 20vsStanfordT 19–⁠1979%
Sep 27vsBaylorT 14–⁠1475%
Oct 4vs5MissouriW 31–⁠763%
Oct 11at15Michigan StateW 16–⁠657%
Oct 18vsNorthwesternW 69–⁠088%
Oct 25vsIndianaW 55–⁠793%
Nov 1atMinnesotaW 28–⁠2178%
Nov 8vsPurdueW 28–⁠088%
Nov 15atIllinoisW 21–⁠1577%
Nov 22vs1Ohio StateL 14–⁠2154%
Jan 1Bowls & playoffvs3OklahomaOrange BowlL 6–⁠1443%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Oklahoma 14–⁠6 in the Orange Bowl; No. 8 in the final AP poll; 2nd in the Big Ten.

In program history: The 34th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 140 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 1: 3
  2. Wk 2: 2
  3. Wk 3: 2
  4. Wk 4: 9
  5. Wk 5: 12
  6. Wk 6: 8
  7. Wk 7: 7
  8. Wk 8: 7
  9. Wk 9: 7
  10. Wk 10: 6
  11. Wk 11: 4
  12. Wk 12: 4
  13. Wk 13: 6
  14. Wk 14: 5
  15. Final: 8

Players on this team

Before 2004 our records hold honors and the draft; these are the players whose college years here, from their Wikipedia articles or their honors, include 1975.

Record
8–⁠2–⁠2
Conference
7–⁠1 2nd in Big Ten
AP final
No. 8 peak No. 2
Points
324–⁠130
Coach
Bo Schembechler
Elo
1725 +50 this season
SP+ rating
19.2 No. 13 of 132; offense No. 27, defense No. 15
SRS
20.1 No. 7 of 137 major-college teams
Recruiting class
—
Defensive coordinator
Gary Moeller
Captains
Don Dufek and Kirk Lewis
Most valuable player
Gordon Bell

Drafted in 1976

The 1976 draft
Rd 4Gordon Bell RBNew York Giants
Rd 4Dan Jilek LBBuffalo Bills
Rd 5Don Dufek DBSeattle Seahawks
Rd 5Steve King OTNew York Jets

All-Big Ten

8 first team, 2 second team

First team

Second team

From Wikipedia’s 1975 all-conference team article, with the selectors that named each player (AP-1: the Associated Press’s first team).

1975 Big Ten standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Ohio State8–⁠011–⁠14
Michigan7–⁠18–⁠2–⁠28
Michigan State4–⁠47–⁠4
Illinois4–⁠45–⁠6
Purdue4–⁠44–⁠7
Wisconsin3–⁠4–⁠14–⁠6–⁠1
Minnesota3–⁠56–⁠5
Iowa3–⁠53–⁠8
Northwestern2–⁠63–⁠8
Indiana1–⁠6–⁠12–⁠8–⁠1

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.