CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2006 Michigan

11–⁠2 (7–⁠1 Big Ten), coached by Lloyd Carr, finished No. 8 in the AP poll.

Schedule and results

Michigan in 2006, game by game: won vs. Vanderbilt 27–7; won vs. Central Michigan 41–17; won at No. 2 Notre Dame 47–21; won vs. Wisconsin 27–13; won at Minnesota 28–14; won vs. Michigan State 31–13; won at Penn State 17–10; won vs. Iowa 20–6; won vs. Northwestern 17–3; won vs. Ball State 34–26; won at Indiana 34–3; lost at No. 1 Ohio State 39–42; lost vs. No. 2 USC 18–32+31−14Won 27–7 vs. Vanderbilt+20VanderbiltWon 41–17 vs. Central Michigan+24Central MichiganWon 47–21 at No. 2 Notre Dame+26No. 2 Notre DameWon 27–13 vs. Wisconsin+14WisconsinWon 28–14 at Minnesota+14MinnesotaWon 31–13 vs. Michigan State+18Michigan StateWon 17–10 at Penn State+7Penn StateWon 20–6 vs. Iowa+14IowaWon 17–3 vs. Northwestern+14NorthwesternWon 34–26 vs. Ball State+8Ball StateWon 34–3 at Indiana+31IndianaLost 39–42 at No. 1 Ohio State-3No. 1 Ohio StateLost 18–32 vs. No. 2 USC-14No. 2 USC
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 2vsVanderbiltW 27–⁠777%
Sep 9vsCentral MichiganW 41–⁠1778%
Sep 16at2Notre DameW 47–⁠2137%
Sep 23vsWisconsinW 27–⁠1360%
Sep 30atMinnesotaW 28–⁠1463%
Oct 7vsMichigan StateW 31–⁠1380%
Oct 14atPenn StateW 17–⁠1054%
Oct 21vsIowaW 20–⁠672%
Oct 28vsNorthwesternW 17–⁠390%
Nov 4vsBall StateW 34–⁠2692%
Nov 11atIndianaW 34–⁠383%
Nov 18at1Ohio StateL 39–⁠4234%
Jan 1Bowls & playoffvs2USCRose BowlL 18–⁠3243%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to USC 32–⁠18 in the Rose Bowl; No. 8 in the final AP poll; tied for 2nd in the Big Ten.

In program history: The 29th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 140 on file).

AP poll, week by week

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

Heisman voteMike Hart, fifth

Lombardi AwardLaMarr Woodley, DE; also the Hendricks

3 consensus All-AmericansJake Long, OL; LaMarr Woodley, DE; Leon Hall, DB

Record
11–⁠2
Conference
7–⁠1 tied for 2nd in Big Ten
AP final
No. 8 peak No. 2
Points
380–⁠207
Coach
Lloyd Carr
Elo
1735 +141 this season
SP+ rating
22.6 No. 8 of 119; offense No. 25, defense No. 6, special teams No. 53
SRS
17.3 No. 9 of 119 in FBS
Recruiting class
No. 10
Offensive coordinator
Mike DeBord
Defensive coordinator
Ron English
Captains
Jake Long and LaMarr Woodley
Most valuable player
David Harris and Mike Hart
Offense
Multiple
Defense
Multiple

How good, play by play

  • Offense39th of 119
  • Defense13th of 119
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0643%0.8839th of 119
Defense-0.0334%1.0713th of 119
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense-0.2own 332% allowed
Defense0.0own 273% caused

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. From CollegeFootballData.com.

Top recruits in the 2006 class

Brandon Graham ILB★★★★★No. 16
Carlos Brown RB★★★★No. 34
Stephen Schilling OT★★★★No. 43
Justin Boren OG★★★★No. 49
Jonas Mouton S★★★★No. 63
Adam Patterson DT★★★★No. 80
Greg Mathews WR★★★★No. 173
Stevie Brown S★★★★No. 175

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2006 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Running backs33.70.911
Receivers14.00.925
Offensive line33.70.930
Defensive line24.00.935
Linebackers34.00.925
Defensive backs24.00.949
Athletes and specialists14.00.907
Whole class153.90.927

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2007

The 2007 draft
Rd 1Leon Hall DBCincinnati Bengals
Rd 2Alan Branch DTArizona Cardinals
Rd 2LaMarr Woodley LBPittsburgh Steelers
Rd 2David Harris LBNew York Jets
Rd 5Steve Breaston WRArizona Cardinals
Rd 6Prescott Burgess LBBaltimore Ravens
Rd 7Tyler Ecker TEWashington Redskins

All-Big Ten

9 first team, 4 second team

First team

Second team

From Wikipedia’s 2006 all-conference team article, with the selectors that named each player (AP-1: the Associated Press’s first team).

2006 Big Ten standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Ohio State8–⁠012–⁠12
Wisconsin7–⁠112–⁠17
Michigan7–⁠111–⁠28
Penn State5–⁠39–⁠424
Purdue5–⁠38–⁠6
Minnesota3–⁠56–⁠7
Indiana3–⁠55–⁠7
Iowa2–⁠66–⁠7
Northwestern2–⁠64–⁠8
Michigan State1–⁠74–⁠8
Illinois1–⁠72–⁠10

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