Mailbag question: Is Michigan chasing Notre Dame down the path to perennial irrelevance? Also Harbaugh?

GBMW,

You still have the best UM forum on the Internet. I have a couple of questions for all of you.

1) Watching the Wisconsin game it seemed to me that Tate was "floating" most of his passes, even when a more straight-line pass would have worked better. Is something that has been changing in his technique?

2.) Do you think Michigan is chasing Notre Dame down the path to perennial irrelevance?

3.) Could you compare the success of the program at Stanford under Jim Harbaugh to what is happening at Michigan under Coach Rich Rodriguez?

Thanks,
Bob
Cary, NC

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Thanks for the question and very nice comment.

1) Tate Forcier's shoulder is still bothering him and it will for the remainder of the season. It is definitely effecting his throwing. He is also taking a ton of hits (some are on him for not getting rid of the ball or not getting down when needed), which can affect a quarterback’s throwing.

2) We hope not, but you cannot continue to post under .500 seasons before a program is no longer looked upon as an upper echelon program. Michigan badly needed to get at least bowl eligible this year, period.

It will (most likely) be a very disappointing season if the Wolverines do not win that sixth game, meaning no bowl and the 15 associated practices for two years in a row. That would make thirty practices in two years, and this further hinders the development of a young team. We (CoachBt and ErocWolverine) actually got blasted by many posters last year that took an opposite position that it was more important to recruit than be in a bowl game.

3. Coach Jim Harbaugh tweaked the program at Stanford rather than completely tearing it apart and starting over. Doing such a conversion makes for a smoother and easier transition. He has done a great job at Stanford taking a program that went from not winning any games to contending for the Pac 10 in a short amount of time, especially at a school like Stanford where it is tougher to get players admitted through their admissions policy.

In 2006 Stanford went 1-11, with not many fans in the stands or press clippings about the academic, struggling football program. Then, in 2007, Jim Harbaugh was hired and the Cardinal went 4-8 with a major upset win over USC. In 2008 Harbaugh’s troops went 5-7 and this year, 2009, they are 7-3 with wins over USC, Oregon and Arizona State. At this late stage there remains a possible chance to still make a Rose Bowl bid, or at the least a very good bowl game.

Thanks for stopping by Go Blue Michigan Wolverine
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Written by GBMW -- CoachBt and ErocWolverine