Buy Or Sell: Michigan's Offense Will Be Better Than Its Defense In 2020
The Michigan Wolverines' football offense finally began clicking last November under first-year coordinator Josh Gattis, resulting in a 44-point outburst against Michigan State on Nov. 16 and a 39-point showing at Indiana on Nov. 23, before the club closed out the regular-season with a 27-point effort against the nation's No. 1 defense in Ohio State.
With coordinator Don Brown's defense having taken a slight step back in 2019 (finished No. 11 nationally after concluding in the top three during each of his first three years on the job), many have wondered if U-M's offense is finally set to step into the spotlight as the club's best unit and lead the Wolverines in 2020.
TheWolverine's Austin Fox and Clayton Sayfie provide their opinions on the matter below:
Austin Fox — Sell
Defense has always been the strength of Michigan’s football teams under head coach Jim Harbaugh, though that narrative began to sway slightly at the end of last year when Gattis’ unit finally clicked and U-M’s offense performed better than its defensive brethren.
Brown’s unit, meanwhile, struggled to close out last season when it gave up an average of 45.5 points between the Ohio State and Alabama losses, though a major bounce back effort is expected in 2020.
With several of the offense’s most important players returning and the athletes having a better knowledge of the Gattis playbook, it’s understandable why some people are expecting the late 2019 trend to continue and for Michigan’s offense to once again outshine its defense.
We’re sticking with the formula of success Harbaugh has followed during the majority of his five years in Ann Arbor, however, and are once again projecting the defense to lead the way.
There are enough potential superstars on that side of the ball (sophomore Daxton Hill and senior Brad Hawkins at safety, senior Ambry Thomas and redshirt sophomore Vincent Gray at cornerback, redshirt sophomore linebacker Cam McGrone, senior Kwity Paye and junior Aidan Hutchinson at defensive end, etc.) for this to once again be one of the nation’s four best units, similar to the way it was each season from 2015-18.
We’re not trying to downplay Michigan’s offense by hyping up its defense, but it’s unlikely the former will pick up right where it left off at the end of last season when considering it will be breaking in a new quarterback (likely redshirt junior Dylan McCaffrey, though redshirt sophomore Joe Milton will have a legitimate shot to win the job as well) and four new starters on the offensive line.
Growing pains can be expected early, though the unit should produce — when considering the amount of talent the coaches will have to work with — at a similar rate late in the year to the one we saw last November.
The key for Harbaugh will be finding a way to make his offense and defense perform at a championship level at the same time, something that has only occurred on a handful of occasions over the last five years (much of the 2016 season, the middle portion of the 2018 campaign, etc.).
Clayton Sayfie — Sell
In the middle of a U-M spring practice media session, circa 2015, The Wolverine's John Borton asked Jim Harbaugh the question: "Is the defense ahead of the offense?" Harbaugh, like most coaches (especially in their first year) would do, gave a non-answer, not wanting to give away any secrets about his first Maize and Blue club.
Turns out, the defense was, in fact, ahead, and it's remained that way for all of Harbaugh's tenure.
Many, including offensive coordinator Josh Gattis, expect U-M to have an improved offense in 2020. Even though there's question marks at quarterback and offensive line, there's a strong possibility that he's right and the offense as a whole is better than 2019, especially considering the strong group of skill position players returning.
The defense is once again anticipated to be one of the finest in America. But, the question remains, will either be good enough to beat the elite? It's tough to say, especially considering the aforementioned question marks on offense.
The defense looks to be one that will reload, not losing as many key pieces as the offense. I'll say it's the defense that is, once again, stronger than the offense under Harbaugh.
Returning three out of four starters on the defensive line and three out of four in the secondary will be enough to give Brown's side of the ball an edge over Gattis'. The fact that spring ball never happened in Ann Arbor, which was a detriment to those young offensive players, is another huge factor.
With all this being said, I believe the margin is closer than most seasons in his regime. Expect the defense's numbers to finish better for the season, but it might just be the offense that leads the team to big wins, if they come.
By the end of the season, Gattis' group could be a well-oiled machine, and will need to be if it wants to give the Buckeyes a run for their money in Columbus.
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