What we learned about Michigan, MSU football in openers, and expectations for Texas game

WEEK ONE FOR THE NFL SEASON. BUT WEEK TWO FOR COLLEGE FOOTBALL. AND WE HAVE TWO TOP TEN TEAMS MEETING IN ANN ARBOR ON SATURDAY AT NOON AS TEXAS, THE NUMBER FOUR TEAM IN THE COUNTRY, COMES UP TO MICHIGAN TO FACE THE WOLVERINES. DEREK, YOU'RE THE RESIDENT WOLVERINE IN HERE. CAN YOU THINK OF A BIGGER GAME A NON OHIO STATE GAME IN THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS, AS BIG AS WHAT MICHIGAN IS ABOUT TO HAVE AT HOME? >> NO, YOU KNOW, THE PENN STATE GAME LAST YEAR FELT LIKE IT, BUT DIDN'T TURN OUT BEING AS BIG. IF YOU'RE JUST TALKING NONCONFERENCE, THIS IS DEFINITELY THE BIGGEST NONCONFERENCE GAME MICHIGAN'S HAD SINCE LIKE THE NOTRE DAME DAYS, I THINK, YOU KNOW, I THINK TO PUT THIS GAME IN PERSPECTIVE, IF MICHIGAN WINS, I THINK THEY PRETTY MUCH SET THEIR COURSE FOR A PLAYOFF SPOT. I MEAN, YOU YOU BEAT A TEAM LIKE TEXAS AND YOU FIND A WAY TO GET TO 9 OR 10 WINS AND YOU'RE PROBABLY IN WITH A 12 TEAM PLAYOFF. YOU LOSE AND YOU'RE PROBABLY GOING TO HAVE TO FIND A WAY TO UPSET OR AND MAYBE BEAT USC AND OREGON, SOMETHING LIKE THAT. SO IT'S A HUGE GAME. DON'T GET ME WRONG. BUT YEAH, IT'S ABOUT AS BIG AS A SEPTEMBER GAME AS I CAN REMEMBER. >> FOR ME WATCHING THAT GAME, SATURDAY I WAS I WAS SCARED FOR THIS OFFENSE GOING, YOU KNOW, GOING UP AGAINST TEXAS, YOU KNOW, DAVIS WARREN LOOKED PRETTY GOOD, BUT I DON'T THINK HE'S AT THAT POINT WHERE I FEEL VERY CONFIDENT HE'S GOING TO LEAD THEM AGAINST TEXAS. THE DEFENSE IS STILL ELITE. GOD, I LOVE THAT. WILL JOHNSON INTERCEPTION I WATCHED THAT THE REPLAY OF THAT LIKE 100 TIMES ON TWITTER. IT WAS AWESOME. OR EX, BUT, THE OFFENSE IS WHAT WORRIES ME. CAN THEY GET ENOUGH OFFENSE TO WIN? >> THATEXAS OFFENSE IS JUST SO GOOD. YEAH. AND I DON'T KNOW HOW THE MICHIGAN DEFENSE GETS OFF THE FIELD. LIKE THEY'RE JUST GOING TO BE ON THE FIELD THE ENTIRE TIME. THE OFFENSE IS JUST NOT THERE TO SET THEM UP FOR SUCCESS LIKE IT'S GOING TO BE. IT'S GOING TO BE HARD. >> BEN IS A I THINK SO TOO. BEN IS A REALLY, REALLY NICE GUY TO SAY THAT. HE THOUGHT DAVIS WARREN LOOKED GOOD. I I MEAN, YOU KNOW, THIS REMINDED ME YOUR COUSIN OR SOMETHING. THIS REMINDED ME OF, LIKE, THE WILTON SPEIGHT ERA MICHIGAN TEAMS THAT WERE ELITE ON DEFENSE. BUT THE OFFENSE JUST PUT THEM IN BAD POSITIONS SO OFTEN THAT EVENTUALLY TY WOULD WEAR DOWN. AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S ONLY ONE GAME. I'M NOT GOING TO OVERREACT TO ONE GAME. THESE ARE THE DEFENDING NATIONAL CHAMPS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT. AND THEY BROUGHT A LOT BACK. BUT TO REITERATE MY POINT FROM THE OFF SEASON, THE FACT THAT MICHIGAN DIDN'T ADDRESS THE QUARTERBACK POSITION AT ALL, THEY JUST KIND OF TRUSTED WHAT THEY HAD. AND NOW THEY'RE NOT MAKING A DECISION AND THEY'RE GOING WITH TWO INSTEAD OF ONE. I JUST, I DON'T KNOW, I'M DEFINITELY NERVOUS ABOUT HOW THIS IS GOING TO PLAY OUT. >> I'M NERVOUS TOO FOR THAT DEFENSE. TO YOUR POINT, BECAUSE FRESNO STATE WAS NOT SCARED OF WILL JOHNSON IN THAT LAST GAME. THEY THREW AT HIM A LOT IN THE FIRST THREE QUARTERS AND THAT PICK SIX, THAT KIND OF MADE UP FOR WHAT WAS OVERALL AN OKAY GAME FOR HIM BECAUSE THEY WERE A COUPLE, PROBABLY A FOOT AWAY. FRESNO STATE WAS FROM COMPLETING A TOUCHDOWN PASS WHEN THAT WIDE RECEIVER CONTORTED HIS BODY OVER WILL JOHNSON. >> YEAH, I THINK WILL JOHNSON I THINK HE WOULD TELL YOU THAT HE STUNK BECAUSE FOR HIS STANDARDS THAT WAS THAT'S NOT WHAT WE'RE USED TO. I MEAN WILL JOHNSON IS PROBABLY THE BEST CORNERBACK IN THE COUNTRY. HE'S GOING TO BE A TOP TEN DRAFT PICK. AND THERE WERE SO MANY GAMES LAST YEAR WHERE WE DIDN'T EVEN HEAR HIS NAME CALLED BECAUSE IT WAS JUST LOCKED DOWN. THEY DIDN'T EVEN LOOK TOWARDS HIM. SO I THINK WILL JOHNSON IS GOING TO BE PERFECTLY FINE. I'M NOT WORRIED ABOUT HIM OVERALL. ABSOLUTELY. OH, ABSOLUTELY. I'M NOT WORRIED ABOUT HIM IN THE SLIGHTEST. I THINK HE'S AN ELITE PLAYER. BUT YEAH, MAYBE YOU KNOW, MAYBE THAT GIVES HIM MOTIVATION TO COME OUT AND DO SOMETHING. >> AND ALSO WHENEVER YOU'RE PLAYING AGAINST A WIDE RECEIVER LIKE ISAIAH BOND, WHO WAS AT ALABAMA LAST YEAR, PLAYED AGAINST THEM IN THE ROSE BOWL, HAD A GREAT CATCH ON THE MICHIGAN DEFENSE IN THAT GAME. I THINK THAT'S GOING TO BE THE MATCHUP TO WATCH WHENEVER WE HEAD INTO SATURDAY, BUT ALSO MICHIGAN STATE. THEY TAKE ON MARYLAND ALREADY A BIG TEN GAME FOR THEM. THEY'RE AN EIGHT AND A HALF POINT UNDERDOG ON THE ROAD. WHAT DO YOU EXPECT FROM THE SPARTANS AFTER, DARE I SAY A LACKLUSTER DEBUT FOR JONATHAN SMITH? AIDAN. AIDAN CHILES FOR THAT MATTER. >> I MEAN A BETTER GAME FROM AIDAN CHILES, HOPEFULLY. I MEAN, YOU GO INTO THAT, YOU GO INTO THE SEASON, YOU KNOW, THEY THEY LANDED A QUARTERBACK IN THE TRANSFER PORTAL. AND JONATHAN SMITH HAS BEEN BRINGING IN A LOT OF TALENT THROUGH THE TRANSFER PORTAL. OBVIOUSLY IT'S GOING TO TAKE SOME TIME TO, TO GET THAT PROGRAM BACK UP TO SPEED. I MEAN LAST YEAR WAS BASICALLY LIKE A LOST YEAR FOR THEM AND CULTURE AND EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING ABOUT THAT LIKE 60 NEW PLAYERS COME IN. YEAH. SO YOU KNOW, I'M NOT EXPECTING THEM TO COMPETE FOR A, YOU KNOW, A BIG TEN TITLE THIS YEAR OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT, BUT YOU'D LIKE TO SEE THE OFFENSE BE A LITTLE MORE EXPLOSIVE, YOU KNOW, MAKE MAKE MORE PLAYS. DO THEY COVER THAT SPREAD? MAYBE, BUT I, I'D BE SURPRISED IF THEY IF THEY PULL THAT ONE OUT. >> AND, YOU KNOW, THE WORD THAT JUST STANDS OUT THAT YOU JUST SAID IS LACKLUSTER WHEN YOU WATCH MICHIGAN STATE. MY GOSH, IT'S LIKE, YOU KNOW, THEY JUST THEY DON'T PLAY GOOD FOOTBALL. IT'S HARD TO WATCH SOMETIMES WATCHING ON FRIDAY NIGHT. I THERE'S ALSO THE FIRST GAME OF THE YEAR WAS GIVE THEM A LITTLE BIT. >> BUT YOU KNOW THAT JUST SEEMS TO BE ON BRAND FOR THEIR THEIR THEIR TEAM AND THEIR PROGRAM FOR THE PAST TWO YEARS. >> AND I GET THAT THEY'RE GOING THROUGH A LOT, BUT I DON'T EXPECT A WHOLE LOT FROM THEM. >> THE MICHIGAN STATE GAME AND THE MICHAN GAME HAD A LOT OF SIMILARITIES IN THAT THEY WERE KIND OF DISAPPOINTING EFFORTS FROM THE OFFENSE, EVEN THOUGH THERE WERE A LOT OF OFFENSIVE QUESTIONS. AIDAN CHILES WAS KIND OF THE REASON I HAD A LITTLE BIT OF OPTIMISM FOR MICHIGAN STATE THIS YEAR. I'M NOT DISMISSING HIM AFTER ONE GAME, BUT IT WAS A PRETTY UGLY GAME. LIKE, I WOULD RATHER REWATCH THE LIONS GIANTS PRESEASON GAME THAN THAT MICHIGAN STATE GAME, BUT MICHIGAN STATE DOES HAVE A PATH AS KIND OF LIKE A MUCK IT UP DEFENSIVE TEAM WHO FINDS A WAY TO SCORE SOME POINTS ON OFFENSE. THEY I MEAN, THEY COULD BEAT MARYLAND, BUT AM I EXPECTING IT? NO I'M NOT. >> WELL, WE SHALL SEE. WHENEVER THEY KICK OFF AT 330 ON SATURDAY AFTERNOON. BUTHAT'LL DO IT FOR US HERE ON DETROIT SPORTS PLUS THIS WEEK FOR DEREK, FOR BEN, FOR KEN I'M HOBY. WE'LL SEE YOU ALL NEXT TIME. ENJOY THE FOOTBALL WEEKEND. >> EVERYBODY GO LIONS