Greg McElroy understands Michigan has put together a dominant season as the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff. The Wolverines will be a tough team to beat this year, and the next team to take on Jim Harbaugh’s program will be Nick Saban and Alabama.

During a recent episode of the Always College Football show, McElroy praised Michigan as an elite and well-coached group. He pointed to the Wolverines’ depth on both sides of the ball as something that makes teams “go the distance” in a four-quarter game.

“This is an excellent group. They can grind you out offensively, they can make you go distance defensively. They’re extremely opportunistic and they’re remarkably well-coached,” said McElroy. “They’re an elite team and will be a difficult team to beat in the College Football Playoff.”

As for the defensive side of the ball, McElroy sees a unit that is impressive with their tackling. He also believes the quality depth on Michigan’s defensive line will be tough for any team to handle.

“Defensively, the first thing that stands out when you watch them: They are so good at tackling,” McElroy identified. “…I don’t see a lot of tackles that are missed, they don’t allow a lot of yards after contact.

“The second thing that jumps out when you really dive into their defense is just how much they’re rotating guys along the defensive line. It’s ridiculous how many guys that are playing… so there’s not a lot of drop-off from the 1s to the 2s and the 2s to the 3s.”

While Michigan does have a strong defense, the Wolverines must cope with Alabama QB Jalen Milroe. Despite a rocky start to the season, Milroe has rounded into a leader for the Tide offense as an elite dual-threat option. We’ll see how that leads Nick Saban’s offense to attack Michigan’s defense.

Here is McElroy’s latest segment with the talk on Michigan’s defense beginning around the 13-minute mark: