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2023 Michigan

15–⁠0 (9–⁠0 Big Ten), coached by Jesse Minter (game 1), then Jay Harbaugh (game 2, 1st half), then Mike Hart (game 2, 2nd half), then Sherrone Moore (games 3, 10–⁠12), then Jim Harbaugh (games 4–⁠9, 13–⁠15), finished No. 1 in the AP poll.

Schedule and results

Michigan in 2023, game by game: won vs. East Carolina 30–3; won vs. UNLV 35–7; won vs. Bowling Green 31–6; won vs. Rutgers 31–7; won at Nebraska 45–7; won at Minnesota 52–10; won vs. Indiana 52–7; won at Michigan State 49–0; won vs. Purdue 41–13; won at No. 9 Penn State 24–15; won at Maryland 31–24; won vs. No. 2 Ohio State 30–24; won vs. No. 18 Iowa 26–0; won vs. No. 5 Alabama 27–20; won vs. No. 2 Washington 34–13+49Won 30–3 vs. East Carolina+27East CarolinaWon 35–7 vs. UNLV+28UNLVWon 31–6 vs. Bowling Green+25Bowling GreenWon 31–7 vs. Rutgers+24RutgersWon 45–7 at Nebraska+38NebraskaWon 52–10 at Minnesota+42MinnesotaWon 52–7 vs. Indiana+45IndianaWon 49–0 at Michigan State+49Michigan StateWon 41–13 vs. Purdue+28PurdueWon 24–15 at No. 9 Penn State+9No. 9 Penn StateWon 31–24 at Maryland+7MarylandWon 30–24 vs. No. 2 Ohio State+6No. 2 Ohio StateWon 26–0 vs. No. 18 Iowa+26No. 18 IowaWon 27–20 vs. No. 5 Alabama+7No. 5 AlabamaWon 34–13 vs. No. 2 Washington+21No. 2 Washington
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 2vsEast CarolinaW 30–⁠378%
Sep 9vsUNLVW 35–⁠787%
Sep 16vsBowling GreenW 31–⁠689%
Sep 23vsRutgersW 31–⁠785%
Sep 30atNebraskaW 45–⁠777%
Oct 7atMinnesotaW 52–⁠1066%
Oct 14vsIndianaW 52–⁠792%
Oct 21atMichigan StateW 49–⁠082%
Nov 4vsPurdueW 41–⁠1391%
Nov 11at9Penn StateW 24–⁠1550%
Nov 18atMarylandW 31–⁠2478%
Nov 25vs2Ohio StateW 30–⁠2459%
Dec 2vs18IowaBig Ten ChampionshipW 26–⁠073%
Jan 1Bowls & playoffvs5AlabamaRose Bowl, CFP SemifinalW 27–⁠2055%
Jan 8Bowls & playoffvs2WashingtonCFP National ChampionshipW 34–⁠1362%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Washington 34–⁠13 in the CFP National Championship; No. 1 in the final AP poll; Big Ten champions.

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

AP poll, week by week

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

National championsNo. 1 in the final AP poll, and a title the school claims

Big Ten champions9–⁠0 in the conference

Led the nationBlake Corum: rushing touchdowns (27 TD), points (168 pts), points per game (11.20)

Consensus All-AmericanZak Zinter, OL

15–⁠0, finished with a 34–⁠13 win over Washington in the Playoff’s title game. Jim Harbaugh coached nine of the games; he sat out three under a school suspension and three under a Big Ten suspension.

Record
15–⁠0
Conference
9–⁠0 first in Big Ten
AP final
No. 1 peak No. 1
Points
538–⁠156
Coach
Jesse Minter (game 1), then Jay Harbaugh (game 2, 1st half), then Mike Hart (game 2, 2nd half), then Sherrone Moore (games 3, 10–⁠12), then Jim Harbaugh (games 4–⁠9, 13–⁠15)
Elo
1908 +203 this season
SP+ rating
31.3 No. 1 of 133; offense No. 12, defense No. 1, special teams No. 6
SRS
25.6 No. 1 of 133 in FBS
Returning
78% of last season’s EPA, No. 19 of 131
Recruiting class
No. 17 roster talent No. 14 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Sherrone Moore
Defensive coordinators
Jesse Minter and Steve Clinkscale
Captains
Mike Sainristil, Blake Corum, Kris Jenkins, Trevor Keegan, Michael Barrett and Zak Zinter
Most valuable player
J.J. McCarthy
Offense
Pro spread
Defense
4–⁠2–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense8th of 133
  • Defense1st of 133
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted7th of 133
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted1st of 133
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.2847%1.238th of 133
Defense-0.1334%1.181st of 133
Opponent-adjusted0.27 off
-0.09 def		49% off
35% def		—7th off
1st def
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. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense4.7own 3311% allowed
Defense2.6own 2422% caused

CORE rating 38.0, 1st of 133 (offense 16.7, defense -21.4).

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. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsJ.J. McCarthy QB2,991 yds
Passing touchdownsJ.J. McCarthy QB22 TD
Rushing yardsBlake Corum RB1,245 yds
Rushing touchdownsBlake Corum RB27 TD
Receiving yardsRoman Wilson WR789 yds
Receiving touchdownsRoman Wilson WR12 TD
TacklesJunior Colson LB89 tkl
SacksJaylen Harrell DE7.5 sacks
InterceptionsMike Sainristil DB6 INT

Top recruits in the 2023 class

Enow Etta DL★★★★No. 121
Cole Cabana RB★★★★No. 173
Jyaire Hill CB★★★★No. 174
Karmello English WR★★★★No. 190
Brandyn Hillman ATH★★★★No. 216
Evan Link OT★★★★No. 270
Amir Herring OL★★★★No. 287
Semaj Bridgeman LB★★★★No. 302

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

The 2023 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Running backs33.00.858
Receivers43.50.898
Offensive line34.00.905
Defensive line53.20.893
Linebackers33.30.874
Defensive backs43.30.873
Athletes and specialists53.20.875
Whole class273.30.883

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 2024

The 2024 draft
Rd 1J.J. McCarthy QBMinnesota Vikings
Rd 2Kris Jenkins DTCincinnati Bengals
Rd 2Mike Sainristil CBWashington Commanders
Rd 3Junior Colson LBLos Angeles Chargers
Rd 3Blake Corum RBLos Angeles Rams
Rd 3Roman Wilson WRPittsburgh Steelers
Rd 3Zak Zinter OGCleveland Browns
Rd 4A.J. Barner TESeattle Seahawks
Rd 5Trevor Keegan OGPhiladelphia Eagles
Rd 7Michael Barrett LBCarolina Panthers
Rd 7LaDarius Henderson OTHouston Texans
Rd 7Jaylen Harrell DETennessee Titans
Rd 7Cornelius Johnson WRLos Angeles Chargers

Roster 144

The 2023 roster

144 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2023 line; 76 have a stat line. See the roster

Transfers in 9

The 2023 portal
Ernest Hausmann LB★★★★from Nebraska
LaDarius Henderson OL★★★★from Arizona State
A.J. Barner TE★★★★from Indiana
Josaiah Stewart DE★★★★from Coastal Carolina
Drake Nugent OL★★★★from Stanford
Myles Hinton OT★★★★from Stanford
Josh Wallace CB★★★from Massachusetts
Jack Tuttle QB★★★from Indiana
James Turner K★★★from Louisville

Transfers out 13

Erick All TE★★★★to Iowa
R.J. Moten S★★★★to Florida
Andrel Anthony Jr. WR★★★to Oklahoma
Cade McNamara QB★★★to Iowa
A.J. Henning WR★★★to Northwestern
George Rooks DL★★★to Boston College
Deuce Spurlock LB★★★to Florida
Alan Bowman QB★★★to Oklahoma State
Louis Hansen TE★★★★to UConn
Damani Dent S★★★no new school on file
Julius Welschof DL★★★to Charlotte
Nikhai Hill-Green LB★★★to Charlotte

And 1 more, lower-rated or unrated.

All-Big Ten

9 first team, 7 second team

First team

Second team

From Wikipedia’s 2023 all-conference team article, with the selectors that named each player (AP-1: the Associated Press’s first team).

2023 Big Ten standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Michigan9–⁠015–⁠01
Ohio State8–⁠111–⁠210
Penn State7–⁠210–⁠313
Iowa7–⁠210–⁠424
Northwestern5–⁠48–⁠5
Wisconsin5–⁠47–⁠6
Maryland4–⁠58–⁠5
Rutgers3–⁠67–⁠6
Minnesota3–⁠66–⁠7
Illinois3–⁠65–⁠7
Nebraska3–⁠65–⁠7
Purdue3–⁠64–⁠8
Michigan State2–⁠74–⁠8
Indiana1–⁠83–⁠9

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