Michigan

Michigan was done no favors with brutal Alabama draw in CFP

Published

11 months ago

December 3, 2023

Michigan was done no favors with brutal Alabama draw in CFP

Florida State was the big loser of Sunday’s College Football Playoff announcement – the first undefeated Power Five program to go unselected.

The top seed was next in line.

Michigan’s reward for being No. 1? Alabama. This feels like more of a punishment for Jim Harbaugh’s Wolverines than a reward.

Alabama just snapped Georgia’s 29-game winning streak Saturday in the SEC championship game, ending the Bulldogs’ hopes of a historic three-peat. Jalen Milroe is playing as well as any quarterback in the country. The defense held Georgia to a season-low-tying 24 points. Oh, and the Crimson Tide is coached by some guy named Nick Saban. You may have heard of him. He’s only won seven national championships, 11 SEC titles and there is an argument to be made that he has done his best work this season after how poorly his team started the season.

Alabama has begun to feel like a team of destiny, winning four times by six points or less, and has either trailed or been tied at halftime in six different games. It needed a remarkable 31-yard touchdown pass from Milroe to Isaiah Bond with 32 seconds left to get past six-loss Auburn in the Iron Bowl last weekend. Then, it outplayed Georgia on Saturday, an eye-opening performance that speaks to the confidence the Crimson Tide now have.

Michigan has to deal with all of that, Jan. 1 in Pasadena, Calif., at the Rose Bowl. After going undefeated, beating archrival Ohio State and winning its third straight Big Ten crown, it was rightfully given the No. 1 seed. But then, after Pac-12 champion Washington was revealed at No. 2 and Texas was seeded third, Alabama was announced as the final playoff team over Florida State.

A video of the Michigan watch party told it all. There was a gasp, an audible “oh,” mostly silence and a few faint claps. The Wolverines seem to understand they were done no favors by the committee. Facing Florida State, which had struggled offensively since losing star quarterback Jordan Travis to a severe leg injury Nov. 18, would’ve clearly been a much easier draw on paper.

Michigan is only a two-point favorite over Alabama, per DraftKings. Because the committee couldn’t punish the Wolverines for the sign-stealing scandal that led to a three-game suspension for Harbaugh, maybe it opted to give the Big Ten champion the hardest possible road. Coincidence or not, that’s what happened.

It’s eerily similar to the matchup given to Georgia at No. 1 last year, when it had to face Ohio State, arguably the most talented team in the playoff. The Bulldogs had to rally from 14 points down early in the fourth quarter to advance. Michigan will likely have a similar battle on its hands from Alabama.

This isn’t necessarily criticism of the committee. Texas beat Alabama head-to-head by 10 points in Tuscaloosa back in early September, so I understand why the Longhorns were seeded ahead of the Crimson Time. But the No. 1 seed is supposed to get rewarded as the best team. That didn’t happen here. If anything, Michigan received the worst draw, certainly less favorable than Washington, which will face Texas in New Orleans in the Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Day.

Regular season will lose some luster.

This weekend belonged to college football, particularly from the time the Oregon-Washington Pac-12 championship game kicked off Friday night until the playoff matchups were announced Sunday. It was the dominant topic on social media. NFL pregame shows even discussed it. It overshadowed an upset-filled college basketball Saturday.

Personally, I’m going to miss the drama of the four-team playoff because of how important it made every week during the regular season. It turned Michigan-Ohio State on Thanksgiving weekend and the Pac-12 and SEC titles games into virtual elimination games.

Moving forward, forget about that. The expanded 12-team playoff lessens the significance of conference championship games and the importance of fall Saturdays. It will be merely about getting in. Stars could get rested since most of the top teams will merely be playing for seeding.

Now, in the long run, adding teams to the playoff was the right thing to do. More inclusion the better. More teams with a chance to win it all is a good thing. We won’t have to wonder about whether Georgia’s loss to Alabama was merely a blip, if Florida State belonged or what a highly-ranked Group of Five program could do against top competition.

Still, big regular-season games won’t matter nearly as much. Arguing about which team is No. 4 is very different from debating No. 12. Personally, I’ll miss the excitement of this weekend and the debates it created.

Hurting ‘Noles have plenty to prove

For everyone ripping the committee for passing on Florida State, for taking two one-loss teams over the undefeated Seminoles, pay attention to the Orange Bowl. Florida State will meet Georgia in Miami on Dec. 30, a game that will have extra interest based on this controversial decision. I assume we won’t hear those complaints if the Bulldogs, a 13.5-point favorite, take care of business, as most experts expect.

Look, Florida State obviously got dealt a bad hand. No argument. It won all 13 of its games. It played two power-conference teams, LSU and Florida, away from home. But it wasn’t the same team without Travis — the unimpressive wins over Florida and No. 15 Louisville were evidence of that — and the committee had to take that into account. I’ll be the first to apologize if the Seminoles can hang with Georgia, or even beat the Bulldogs. This is their chance to prove they were truly wronged.

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Michigan

Michigan high school football scores from first round of MHSAA playoffs

Published

3 hours ago

November 1, 2024

Press Room

Michigan high school football scores from first round of MHSAA playoffs

November is here, which means we finally have Michigan high school football playoffs! Welcome to the first round of the MHSAA state tournament, with 128 games on the schedule, including 10 on Saturday.

As always, we broke down all eight divisions, picked each region’s final four and predicted state champions.

Check freep.com/sports/high-schools for game coverage, and on Saturday night, we’ll have the playoff schedule for next week’s second-round matchups. Then come back next Friday to see predictions for each game.

Congratulations to Detroit Free Press Prep Athlete of the Week for Oct. 20-26: Howell’s Justin Jones.

Send in your nominees this weekend across any sport for Oct. 27-Nov. 2, and voting will open Tuesday.

Here are the MHSAA football scores and results from the first round of the playoffs.

Michigan high school football scores today in playoffs

Friday’s scores from MHSAA first round

Adams 44, Stoney Creek 14

Alcona 52, Atlanta 0

Armada 37, Richmond 10

Au Gres-Sims 70, Mio-Au Sable 42

Avondale 43, Thurston 6

Beal City 47, Frankfort 0

Belding 52, Swan Valley 30

Belleville 68, Pioneer 0

Berrien Springs 14, Dowagiac 6

Big Rapids 28, Ludington 21

Boyne City 23, Negaunee 16

Brighton 53, Grand Ledge 28

Britton Deerfield 58, Lenawee Christian 15

Byron Center 38, Northview 17

Carlson 42, Bedford 21

Cass City 50, Valley Lutheran 15

Cass Tech 41, Stevenson 0

Catholic Central 28, Hopkins 0

Central 34, Edison 16

Central Montcalm 36, Kent City 12

Chelsea 24, Pinckney 20

Clarkston 34, Lake Orion 16

Clinton 38, Whiteford 32

Constantine 39, Parchment 14

Coopersville 39, Kenowa Hills 13

Corunna 35, Flint Hamady 8

Croswell-Lexington 31, Marysville 6

Dakota 31, Utica 0

De La Salle 49, Port Huron Northern 0

DeWitt 42, St Johns 7

Dearborn 30, Fordson 0

Decatur 34, Centreville 6

Deckerville 54, All Saints 34

Detroit Catholic Central 33, Stevenson 0

Dexter 42, South Lyon East 14

Divine Child 42, Lamphere 6

East Jordan 34, Bark River-Harris 14

East Lansing 43, Milford 22

Edwardsburg 29, Harper Creek 8

Eisenhower 44, Romeo 21

Everest Collegiate 51, Bentley 0

Farmington 39, Lakeland 13

Father Gabriel Richard 51, Whitmore Lake 20

Flat Rock 40, Denby 22

Forest Hills Central 7, East Grand Rapids 0

Fowler 48, Reese 12

Frankenmuth 62, Tri-County 6

Franklin 21, Allen Park 14

Freeland 51, Lake Fenton 21

Gabriel Richard 48, Cabrini 0

Glen Lake 38, Mancelona 14

Goodrich 49, Brandon 7

Grand Blanc 42, Lapeer 14

Grandville 24, Rockford 14

Grosse Pointe South 27, Roseville 26

Groves 49, Ferndale 14

Harbor Beach 35, Ubly 0

Haslett 42, Parma Western 21

Hastings 35, Ionia 0

Hazel Park 41, South Lake 22

Heritage 52, Dow 20

Howell 35, Kalamazoo Central 12

Hudson 38, Napoleon 6

Hudsonville 25, East Kentwood 23

Ida 56, Advanced Tech 8

Inland Lakes 46, Montabella 8

Iron Mountain 49, Manistique 12

Ithaca 42, Saranac 7

Kalamazoo United 33, South Haven 7

King 41, Fitzgerald 0

Kingston 16, Fulton 14

Lansing Catholic 36, Chesaning 29

Lawton 42, Coloma 6

Leslie 49, Atherton 7

Linden 42, Fenton 14

Lowell 27, Cedar Springs 7

Loyola 28, Mt Clemens 8

Lumen Christi 42, Robichaud 8

Lutheran North 48, St Clair 30

Lutheran Northwest 40, Cardinal Mooney 14

Manchester 20, Summerfield 17

Marine City 50, Clintondale 30

Martin 52, Gobles 22

Mason 59, Jackson 18

Mattawan 27, Everett 21

McBain 49, Harrison 6

Mendon 58, Climax-Scotts 50

Michigan Lutheran Seminary 21, Nouvel 20

Midland 34, Flushing 7

Millington 42, Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port 14

Mona Shores 28, Traverse City West 0

Morrice 28, St Patrick 22

Mt Pleasant 36, Cadillac 22

Newaygo 30, Montague 17

Niles 42, Paw Paw 14

North Muskegon 56, Evart 7

Notre Dame 49, Williamston 19

Ogemaw Heights 21, Clare 13

Old Redford 28, Pershing 6

Olivet 49, Buchanan 15

Onekama 22, Marion 20

Ovid-Elsie 44, Almont 21

Oxford 21, Davison 14

Petoskey 61, Glenn 21

Pewamo-Westphalia 42, Montrose 12

Pickford 67, Munising 12

Pittsford 52, Burr Oak 22

Portage Central 28, Portage Northern 12

Portland 42, Sexton 8

Reading 36, Sand Creek 0

Reed City 41, Manistee 20

River Rouge 13, Southgate Anderson 7

Riverview 22, Trenton 21

Romulus 26, Lincoln-King 24

Saline 37, Northville 7

Saugatuck 24, White Pigeon 22

Schoolcraft 28, Bronson 14

Seaholm 59, Warren Mott 29

South Christian 35, Holland Christian 7

Springport 38, Addison 14

St Francis 26, Charlevoix 16

St Joseph 41, Lakeshore 21

St Mary Catholic Central 41, Blissfield 6

St Mary’s 42, North Farmington 7

Standish-Sterling 50, Mason County Central 32

Summit 17, Voyageur 10

Union City 42, Hanover-Horton 13

Unity Christian 63, Hamilton 20

Walled Lake Western 49, Garden City 7

West Bloomfield 49, Novi 15

West Catholic 32, Oakridge 14

Whitehall 28, Forest Hills Eastern 21

Zeeland West 32, Zeeland East 6

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Michigan

Michigan reveals classic uniform combination for matchup with Oregon

Published

12 hours ago

November 1, 2024

Press Room

Michigan reveals classic uniform combination for matchup with Oregon

Fans will be in for a visual treat on Saturday when Michigan clashes with No. 1 Oregon in the Big House. Not only will it feature two of the most recognizable brands in college athletics, but the matchup will also feature two elite uniform combinations.

For the Wolverines, it will be the traditional blue top with maize pants and blue accessories – a classic look.

Always looking good#GoBlue pic.twitter.com/3Tm9kNy4Ns
— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) November 1, 2024

For Oregon, it will be the all-white “Warp Speed” alternate for the road matchup in Ann Arbor.

Warp Speed.
Game 9 uniform combo for @OregonFootball. #GoDucks pic.twitter.com/nAxc1Gx5uY
— GoDucks (@GoDucks) October 27, 2024

This will be the sixth meeting all-time between the two programs, and the first meeting with both programs being part of the Big Ten conference. The Wolverines currently hold a 3-2 advantage all-time, but the Ducks have won the last two consecutive meetings. Here’s a quick look:

Michigan and No. 1 Oregon will kick off LIVE from the Big House at 3:40 pm ET on CBS.

– Enjoy more Michigan Wolverines coverage on Michigan Wolverines On SI –

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Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris to visit MSU campus Sunday

Published

20 hours ago

November 1, 2024

Press Room

Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris to visit MSU campus Sunday

EAST LANSING — Vice President Kamala Harris will visit Michigan State University’s campus Sunday to rally young voters two days before Election Day.

The Democrat is expected to deliver remarks around 6:30 p.m., according to the Harris-Walz campaign.

“The rally builds upon Harris-Walz campaign’s youth organizing program in Michigan, which is the largest youth organizing program anywhere in the country,” the campaign said in a release.

No other details were available from the campaign early Friday morning but officials said the vice president’s stop is her second visit to the Lansing area and marks her 11^th trip to Michigan.

Harris gave remarks Oct. 18 at UAW Local 652 hall in Lansing.

Former President Donald Trump, her opponent, also has been a frequent visitor in Michigan. He visited mid-Michigan in late August, speaking at Alro Steel in Potterville.

A new poll of likely Michigan voters by Suffolk University/USA Today showed a tie race going into Tuesday’s presidential election

Students living in East Lansing could play a determining role in one of the most high-profile congressional races nationwide – Michigan’s 7th district.

Both of the men running for the seat, Charlotte Republican Tom Barrett and Lansing Democrat Curtis Hertel, have spent time and resources on campus educating students about their campaign platforms and hiring on-campus volunteers to get their messages out.

Contact editor Susan Vela at svela@lsj.com or 248-873-7044. Follow her on Twitter @susanvela.

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