ESPN's Joey Galloway on Michigan's high expectations: 'I don't think they can pull it off'
Joey Galloway isn’t going to be making friends with any Michigan fans anytime soon. The ESPN analyst is already trying to break the spirits of the Wolverines.
During Tuesday’s edition of ESPN’s Get Up!, the early-morning crew talked about Michigan’s chances to win the B1G and potentially challenge for a spot in the College Football Playoff this season. Jim Harbaugh’s bunch is the preseason favorite to win the conference and Vegas as it as a favorite in all 12 regular season games.
Galloway isn’t buying into the hype, though.
“Michigan (will disappoint) and I don’t even think it’s Michigan’s fault to be honest with you,” Galloway said. “They get so much respect in the preseason that people keep thinking, ‘hey, they’ve got a chance to get to the championship this season’ … well, they don’t. There’s still a gap between Michigan and Ohio State from a talent standpoint. And so every time we go into a season and people start saying Michigan can get there and into the Top 10, I don’t think they can pull it off.”
So, not only does Galloway believe the Wolverines are overhyped as conference favorites, he’s also not convinced they’re one of the 10 best teams in the country. That’s not a statement many are making at this time.
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Michigan finished last season with a 10-3 mark, losing to Notre Dame, Ohio State and Florida in the Peach Bowl. With Josh Gattis running the offense and Shea Patterson back under center, the expectations are as high as they’ve ever been in Ann Arbor.
Harbaugh and his players are embracing the challenge and believe something special can be done this year. Galloway just isn’t on that bandwagon yet.