Michigan football ranked No 15 as Whittingham era begins

No one is quite sure what to expect from Michigan football this season. With Kyle Whittingham taking over the program, the team should return to respectability, but there's a lot of (experienced) youth, though also a very tough schedule, to boot.

CBS Sports' Brandon Marcello put out a post-spring top 25 power ranking, and the Wolverines ended up somewhat middling, coming in at No. 15. It's a fair place for this talented, but unproven Michigan team to rank, especially given that no one really knows how the Whittingham era will unfold in year one.

15. Michigan

Michigan needed a hard reset following the Sherrone Moore error (not era). Kyle Whittingham sets high standards and maintains consistency at the head of the table. He brings with him an incredible offensive coordinator, Jason Beck. Coupled with rising sophomore QB Bryce Underwood, this offense could blossom into something special by the middle of the season. The Wolverines are in position to reach the CFP, but we'll rank them here for now.

As noted, Michigan has a very tough schedule, playing against Oklahoma, Indiana, Oregon, Ohio State, , and , with the two toughest games (against the and Buckeyes) coming on the road. To become a College Football Playoff team, Whittingham would have to really wring the most out of this program in year one, winning four of those six in order to get into the field of 12. But, aside from running backs coach Tony Alford (and maybe to a lesser extent, linebackers coach Alex Whittingham), none of the staffers have worked with the type of talent that resides in Ann Arbor, and they've all managed to do well at their previous stops with significantly less physical prowess.