1968 Michigan Wolverines football team

1968 Michigan Wolverines football
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 15
APNo. 12
Record8–2 (6–1 Big Ten)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorTony Mason
Defensive coordinatorHenry Fonde
MVPRon Johnson
CaptainRon Johnson
Home stadiumMichigan Stadium
Seasons
← 1967
1969 →
1968 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 1 Ohio State $ 7 0 0 10 0 0
No. 12 Michigan 6 1 0 8 2 0
No. 10 Purdue 5 2 0 8 2 0
Minnesota 5 2 0 6 4 0
Indiana 4 3 0 6 4 0
Iowa 4 3 0 5 5 0
Michigan State 2 5 0 5 5 0
Illinois 1 6 0 1 9 0
Northwestern 1 6 0 1 9 0
Wisconsin 0 7 0 0 10 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1968 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1968 Big Ten Conference football season. In their tenth and final season under head coach Bump Elliott, the Wolverines compiled an 8–2 record, outscored opponents 277 to 155, and finished the season in second place in the Big Ten Conference and ranked No. 12 in the final AP Poll. After losing the season opener to California, the Wolverines won their next eight games by a combined score of 256 to 84. The team rose to No. 4 in the AP poll before losing to Ohio State by a 50–14 score in the final game of the season.[1]

On November 16, 1968, Michigan running back Ron Johnson set an NCAA record with 347 rushing yards against Wisconsin.[2][3] He also finished his career with a school record 2,524 rushing yards. At the end of the year, Johnson was selected as Michigan's most valuable player and a first-team All-American. He also won the Chicago Tribune Silver Football trophy as the most valuable player in the Big Ten.

Defensive back Tom Curtis set a new Big Ten record with 10 interceptions in 1968 and was selected as a first-team All-Big Ten player. Michigan's other first-team All-Big Ten players included Johnson, quarterback Dennis Brown, and ends Jim Mandich and Phil Seymour.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference t68 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ George Langford (November 17, 1968). "Ohio, Michigan Win; Meet on Saturday; Johnson Gets 347 Yards, Scores Five Times To Help Michigan Beat Wisconsin 34 to 9". Chicago Tribune.
  3. ^ Oliver E. Kuechle (November 18, 1968). "Wisconsin Defeat Summed Up in but 2 Words -- Ron Johnson". The Milwaukee Journal. pp. 2–12.