On Saturday, Michigan once again leaned heavily on its rushing attack en route to a 27-24 victory over Minnesota. With the win, the Wolverines improved to 4-1 overall and 2-0 within conference play. Under normal circumstances that would be something to feel good about, particularly with a team that lost so much during the off-season. But the mood surrounding this football program certainly doesn’t feel like a victory just took place.
Let me first say that I understand why there is some frustration within the fanbase. In fact, much of that frustration is definitely justifiable. It’s perfectly reasonable to expect a better performance from the reigning national champions, especially when it comes to the passing attack. For the second consecutive week, the Michigan offense has finished with less than 100 yards through the air. Although the Wolverines have found some success in the short to intermediate passing game, it’s starting to feel nearly impossible that we’ll ever see this offense connect on a deep ball to a wide receiver this season.
It’s also understandable to feel frustrated that the Michigan defense surrendered 21 points in the fourth quarter, allowing Minnesota to potentially steal the game and hand the Wolverines their second loss of the season. While that didn’t happen, there’s no question that the Michigan defense cannot have a repeat performance like that moving forward – not if the Wolverines hope to play for a conference championship and/or a spot in the College Football Playoff.
Michigan football coach Sherrone Moore celebrates a play during first-half action between Michigan and Minnesota at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024. / Eric Seals / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
With that being said, we are nearing the halfway point of the regular season and it’s time for the Michigan fan base to accept a few harsh realties.
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We all want to see more dominance from this football program. We want to see a well-balanced offense that can move the ball through the air and on the ground. We want to see a defense that can perform at an elite level for four quarters. All of those things will eventually become a reality in Ann Arbor once again, but it probably isn’t going to happen next week… and it might not happen at all in 2024.
What you saw on Saturday against Minnesota is pretty much who Michigan is. Do improvements need to be made? Absolutely. But there’s no realistic improvement that’s going to occur over the next several weeks that will fundamentally change what we’ve seen through the first five weeks. This Michigan team is going to continue to lean heavily on the run, try to capitalize in the short to intermediate passing game, and rely on the defense to give them a chance every single Saturday. That’s it, that’s the formula. There’s no secret sauce, no hidden weapon, no magical playbook. To a large extent, what you’ve seen is what you’ll continue to get.
I was texting with a friend the other night who happens to be a Penn State fan. He’s yet to see the Nittany Lions win it all, and we discussed what the ride was like for Michigan fans in 2023. “You’ve seen the mountain top,” he said. He was right. I told him that I don’t think I’ll ever experience a season like that for the rest of my life, and that I was perfectly fine with it.
Will Michigan have successful seasons after 2023? There’s no question about it. Will Michigan have to face similar circumstances to what it faced in 2023 on the way to a perfect 15-0 season and a national championship? Not a chance. There will never be another team quite like that again, and there will never be another season quite like that again. Indeed, we have all seen the mountain top as Michigan football fans, and it was glorious.
That type of success can definitely throw your expectations out of whack as a fan. If you’re not careful, you might start to believe that you’re destined, or even entitled, for a Harbaugh vs. Saban Rose Bowl feeling on an annual basis. You’re not, and that’s what makes those experiences so special.
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With a new-look conference and an expanded 12-team playoff, it’s going to be harder than ever to reach that mountain top again. That doesn’t mean that Michigan shouldn’t be in the discussion every year, it just means that we all need to embrace the ebb and flow that comes with today’s college football.
The sky isn’t falling and Michigan isn’t heading back to the dark ages of the Rich Rod era. Instead, the Wolverines are trying to navigate life after a decade with Jim Harbaugh. They’re trying to discover who they are without guys like JJ McCarthy, Blake Corum, and Mike Sainristil.
After five weeks, Michigan is 4-1 with all of its season goals still very much on the table. That’s the reality of where this program is currently, and that’s ultimately what matters the most. Winning ugly is better than losing pretty, and the Wolverines have damn near mastered the art of winning ugly through five weeks.
Onward.
– Enjoy more Michigan Wolverines coverage on Michigan Wolverines On SI –
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A long-lost silent film that’s believed to be the first depiction of a robot in motion pictures was rediscovered in Michigan. And it’s a great reminder for film history fans that you shouldn’t give up hope just because a film has been deemed lost.
The film, titled “Gugusse and the Automaton,” is just 45 seconds long and was created in 1897 by French film pioneer Georges Méliès. It shows a magician named Gugusse turning a large crank to control Pierrot Automate, a child-sized robot. The robot grows bigger and bigger until it’s an adult.
Once full size, the robot does a little dance before hitting Gugusse over the head with a stick. Gugusse brings the robot down from his pedestal and then shows him what’s what.
Gugusse hits the robot over the head with a gigantic mallet, each swing making the mechanical man a little smaller until he’s back to his child-like size. Another swing makes the robot a small doll and then it’s just one more mallet slap before the robot disappears completely.
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With that, the film is over.
It’s a short film with a goofy, slapstick premise. But it’s also an artifact that can be interpreted similarly to so much robot-focused media that would come later in the 20th century. The robot harms a human, the human needs to destroy the robot.
We see anti-robot stories pop up especially during difficult economic times, like the 1930s and 1970s, something I’ve written about before at length. And if you’re wondering whether there were hard economic times in France during the 1890s, there certainly were—in the form of a double dip recession, no less.
But putting aside the potential message of the film (and the risk of taking it too seriously as a sign of broader social frustrations), the story of how this film was rediscovered is fascinating.
Bill McFarland of Grand Rapids, Michigan, drove a box of films that belonged to his great-grandfather to the Library of Congress’s National Audio-Visual Conservation Center in Culpeper, Virginia so that experts could take a look at what he had.
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McFarland’s great-grandfather was a man named William Delisle Frisbee who had worked jobs as a school teacher and a potato farmer in Pennsylvania, according to a blog post from the Library of Congress. But he also worked nights as a “traveling showman,” according to the Library.
“He drove his horse and buggy from town to town to dazzle the locals with a projector and some of the world’s first moving pictures,” the Library explains. “He set up shop in a local schoolroom, church, lodge or civic auditorium and showed magic lantern slides and short films with music from a newfangled phonograph. It was shocking.”
Frisbee died in 1937 and two trunks of his possessions were passed on through generations until they made their way to McFarland, who was unable to screen the movies from himself because of their condition.
The Library posted a video to Instagram talking about their acquisition of the film and how remarkable it is that such an old film was found. It’s estimated that as much as 90% of films made before 1930 are lost to history.
Other films in the trunks included another Méliès film from 1900 titled “The Fat and Lean Wrestling Match,” fragments of a Thomas Edison movie called “The Burning Stable.” Library technicians scanned the films in 4K to preserve them for future generations.
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The word “robot” wasn’t coined until 1920 for the Czech play R.U.R. by Karel Capek. But visions of artificial men date back centuries. And it’s incredible to see a robot from the 1890s depicted on film for the first time. Even if it’s just 45 seconds long.
Don’t give up hope if you’re longing to watch some movie that’s believed to be completely lost. You never know what someone may have in a dusty old trunk in Michigan.
Kylan Boswell (4) scored 15 points for the Illini but Yaxel Lendeborg (23) scored 16 in Michigan’s win. Geoff Stellfox / Getty Images
Michigan has left no doubt about Big Ten superiority — the No. 3 Wolverines’ 84-70 romp Friday at No. 10 Illinois gives them an outright conference championship with two regular-season games remaining.
The win gives Michigan its first outright title since 2021, and it’s another top-shelf win that gives Michigan (27-2, 17-1 Big Ten) a boost in its pursuit of the NCAA Tournament’s No. 1 seed. This matters for the Wolverines because they would be lined up for a potential Final Four matchup with the No. 4 seed rather than either of the two teams that are also in contention for No. 1 — Duke, which beat Michigan last week to gain the inside track, and Arizona.
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Friday’s lone meeting of the regular season between two purported national contenders left Michigan looking much the part, and Illinois looking a tier lower. This was domination, a comfortable second half for a Michigan team that led by as many as 21.
Michigan sophomore big man Morez Johnson Jr., who transferred from Illinois in the offseason, heard a lot of jeers from fans at State Farm Center and responded with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Big man Aday Mara also scored 19. Yaxel Lendeborg, the star of Michigan’s jumbo frontcourt, had 16 points and seven rebounds.
That interior helped the Wolverines to a 42-32 edge in points in the paint and 22 second-chance points. Keaton Wagler had 23 points to lead Illinois (22-7, 13-5), which projected as a No. 2 seed in Tuesday’s Bracket Watch but has lost two straight games and four of six. The Illini are trending in the wrong direction and potentially heading to the three-line.
The No. 1 seed also gets to choose its tournament path, and Michigan has requested Philadelphia as its first-weekend site. Otherwise, the Wolverines will likely be placed in Buffalo, which is closer to Ann Arbor.
SHELBY TOWNSHIP, Mich. – A Shelby Township woman stopped for some pizza and a Michigan Lottery ticket during her lunch break. Then, she won a $822,159 Club Keno The Jack prize.
Sue Strong, 65, matched her easy pick The Jack number, 10-26-33-50-56-58-60-67-70, to nine of the 20 Club Keno numbers that were drawn in draw 2569809, according to the Michigan Lottery.
“I regularly play Club Keno, and I always add The Jack to my ticket,” said Strong. “I went out and bought a Club Keno ticket and pizza on my lunch break and then watched the drawings on my phone while I ate. When I saw all my The Jack numbers come in and the jackpot reset to $10,000, I was shocked! It was nerve wracking and exciting, and to be honest, I’ve hardly slept since!”
The lucky player purchased her winning ticket at Party Palace Liquor Inc., at 49133 Schoenherr Road in Shelby Township.
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She plans to share her prize money with her family, pay bills and then save the rest.
This is the largest The Jack prize a player has ever won on the Club Keno game.
The previous record was set in March 2025, when a player won $677,141 from a ticket purchased at JP’s Trolley Stop in Taylor.
The Jack is an optional add-on to a Club Keno ticket that costs $1 per draw.
When playing The Jack, participants receive nine quick-pick numbers and try to match them with the numbers drawn in Club Keno. Prizes range from $1 up to the jackpot, which begins at $10,000 and increases until claimed. To hit the jackpot, all nine numbers must be matched.
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