Texas Football: 3 teams Longhorns should be above in Coaches Poll

2. Michigan Wolverines

Now I get to turn my attention to one of two teams out of the Big Ten that were ranked in the top 10 of the Coaches Poll. Michigan fell in line at No. 7 in the preseason Coaches Poll, three spots ahead of Texas football. There are bona fide reasons why college football fans should trust Michigan over Texas and some very big concerns.

Like it has compared with Florida, Texas has more certainty at quarterback compared to Michigan. Head coach Jim Harbaugh will be relying on the former Ole Miss Rebels five-star quarterback transfer Shea Patterson as he enters the final year of his collegiate eligibility.

Patterson didn’t have a great first year with the Michigan offense, but he did get it done more so than previous quarterbacks under Harbaugh’s direction. He finished the 2018 campaign with 2,600 passing yards and 22 touchdowns with seven interceptions. He’ll be looking for breakthrough seasons from wide receivers Donovan Peoples-Jones and Nico Collins.

Michigan does bring back more starters on the both sides of the ball than the Longhorns, but that is the main edge the will hold. Slotting Michigan over Texas has to come for one reason and one reason only, the stability of more experience across the board. Herman has the Longhorns on a better upward trajectory than Michigan, though.