When the 2018 Notre Dame football schedule begins in South Bend on September 1, the Irish will be facing Jim Harbaugh and the Michigan Wolverines. Harbaugh’s third season with the Wolverines in 2017 saw a bit of a downturn with an 8-5 record that concluded with a three-game losing streak.
Part of the trouble for Harbaugh related to the influx of newcomers that struggled to translate their raw talent into a positive result. Another factor stemmed from mixed messages coming from the collective braintrust of Wolverine offensive coaches, an issue that was addressed in the offseason with some staff changes.