Figured you guys might be interested in an insider's view of our upcoming season. I posted it over at mgoblog, so you'll have to go there to read the whole thing. (LINK.) But here's a recap:
1. Defense is going to be nasty--better than 2017, possibly as good as 2016.
2. Offense will be significantly better than it was in 2017, for a few reasons:
- Apparent upgrade at QB
- Experience bonuses at WR and TE
- No wasting of 5 games on ill-fated experiment with inside zone
3. But offense still has two tackle-sized problems, and so will likely struggle in pass protection against the best defenses on the schedule (OSU, MSU, Wisconsin, ND).
4. Also, schedule is harder than it was in 2017, because:
- 7 difficult games as opposed to 5 in 2017
- Playing all 3 rival schools on the road
- Draw Wisconsin, Northwestern and Nebraska as West crossovers
5. On the other hand:
- I don't think PSU is going to anywhere near as good as they were last year.
- We play them at home (where they tend to struggle) instead of at Beaver Stadium (where we tend to struggle).
- Wisconsin will be about as good as they were last year, but we will be better and we play them at home, so it's also a better matchup for us (than it was in 2017)
6. Prediction:
- 7-5 = floor
- 11-1 = ceiling
- 9-3 = mean
7. Most likely losses, in descending order:
- (a) You guys
- (b) ND
- (c) Wisconsin
- (d) MSU
(I figure we go 1-3 against that stretch.)
