Joel Klatt shares strong stance on Michigan football, Bryce Underwood's 2025 season in way-too-early ranking

Fox Sports' Joel Klatt is impressed with how coach Sherrone Moore and the Michigan Wolverines finished their 2024 season, especially after knocking off eventual national champion Ohio State and playoff-less Alabama in the ReliaQuest Bowl to finish 8-5.

Since Bryce Underwood flipped his commitment from LSU to the Wolverines, alongside Moore buying into the cultural excellence established by current Los Angeles Chargers Jim Harbaugh, Klatt expects Michigan to return to College Football Playoff contender status this fall.

Klatt revealed his way-too-early top-10 on "The Joel Klatt Show," released Thursday.

"Think about what they did from the moment they were able to flip Bryce Underwood, the No. 1 recruit in the country; thank you, Larry Ellison," Klatt said. "Then they beat Ohio State. Then they beat Alabama. So, in this era where nobody gets to win their last game except for the national champion, maybe the only other team in the country that has real, positive sentiment moving forward and into the offseason is Michigan. That, to me, is just kind of a bonkers thought."

Although they are losing key pieces on both sides of the ball, Klatt added Michigan should be good enough to flip the narrative from close losses to close wins.

"They were still excellent [defensively]," Klatt said. "This culture at Michigan remains, and it feels like Sherrone Moore has leaned into that even more. Think about it, their defense next year is essentially the defense we just saw shut down Alabama and Jalen Milroe."

Klatt said the schedule is manageable enough to find key wins, with its most formidable nonconference opponent being Oklahoma.

Whether Klatt is right remains to be seen. But, with much of its talent off to the NFL, there is still room for Michigan to keep rebuilding.

Only time will tell.