Ranking all eight of Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan football teams

6. 2019

Nov 16, 2019; Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Michigan Wolverines quarterback Shea Patterson (2) passes the ball against the Michigan State Spartans in the first half at Michigan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

The third-worst Jim Habraugh-led Michigan football team came in 2019, though this team might take the cake when it comes to most disappointing.

Michigan football came into the 2019 season with the highest expectations from a Harbaugh-led team, perhaps ever. The Wolverines returned them starting QB from 2018 (Shea Patterson) and were looking elite across the board on paper. Michigan was an early favorite to win the Big Ten and would host Ohio State at the end of the season.

The Buckeyes had a brand new head coach and quarterback, and many outlets predicted that Ohio State would finish around 9-3. They were wrong; in fact, the reality was the opposite.

Michigan got off to a rocky start — going to overtime with Army and battling it out with Middle Tennessee State — before getting blown out at Wisconsin. As one fan stated after the loss, “Michigan football [had] become nothing more than a fight song and a helmet.”

After Michigan’s second loss of the season, a touchdown loss at Penn State for the White Out game, Michigan football managed to get itself back on track and miraculously floored No. 8 Notre Dame, 45-14.

Michigan football went on to defeat its next three opponents, including a statement win over Michigan State (44-10), before dropping ‘The Game’ to the 12-0 Buckeyes. Michigan’s 9-3 record was okay, but it felt like a disappointment after the brutal 56-27 home loss to a seemingly unstoppable Ohio State squad. The Wolverines earned a Citrus Bowl bid as the nation’s No. 17 team against No. 9 Alabama — Michigan lost and capped off a 9-4 season as the nation’s No. 18 team.

FINAL RECORD: No. 18, 9-4 (6-3 Big Ten), loss to No. 9 Alabama in Citrus Bowl.