ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The mood inside Michigan’s Crisler Center media room late Saturday afternoon was equally reflective and forward-looking.
Michigan had beaten rival Ohio State and won the Big Ten East. The division title didn’t come as a surprise, given the strong roster the Wolverines returned in 2023, but it continued a historic season. This was the first time Michigan had beaten its rival three straight times since 1997, the program’s last national championship season.
As the Wolverines return to the Big Ten championship game for the third consecutive year, they have national championship aspirations again.
Safety Rod Moore’s diving interception of an underthrown pass by Ohio State’s Kyle McCord secured Michigan’s 30-24 win Saturday and ensured a return to Indianapolis. But the twists and turns of Michigan’s journey have made this season stand apart from the school’s past two championship runs.
“It’s been a lot,” quarterback J.J. McCarthy said.
Michigan won six of its 12 games without coach Jim Harbaugh on the sideline because of two separate suspensions. The program has been under intense scrutiny since mid-October, when the NCAA began investigating an off-campus scouting/signal-stealing operation led by former staff member Connor Stalions. There have also been standard obstacles, like injuries to key starters — guard Zak Zinter, cornerback Will Johnson — in the Ohio State game. But whether self-created or not, Michigan found ways to navigate whatever obstacles fell in its path, reaching 1,001 all-time wins.
“No one cried, no one whined,” running back Blake Corum said. “It was like, ‘OK, this is what we have to do.’ The job has to get done, no matter what.”
And there’s still work left to do as Michigan faces No. 17 Iowa this coming Saturday. A win would give the Wolverines three straight outright Big Ten championships for the first time in team history.
“It’s been a tremendous season, right in the exact position that we hoped for, that we worked so hard to be in,” Harbaugh said Sunday. “It’s onward now. We’ve accomplished many of our goals, but not all of them yet.”
Here are five factors that helped Michigan complete its journey back to Indianapolis and could help the Wolverines finally win an elusive national title.
1. A veteran-laden roster that doesn’t flinch, starting with QB McCarthy
The experience of this Michigan team has been especially important given Harbaugh’s suspension and the intense media scrutiny on the program. Almost every position group boasts numerous players with significant starts or notable field time. Even after a devastating injury like Zinter’s against Ohio State, Michigan responded by moving fifth-year lineman Karsen Barnhart to right guard and then sliding in Trente Jones, another fifth-year player, to Barnhart’s spot at tackle. The offense continued to move.
“We’re always talking about the six best guys, the five best guys, whoever it is,” said Sherrone Moore, who oversees the line.
McCarthy’s savvy has stood out this season as Michigan has asked different things of him than in 2022, when the team rode running backs Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards. After an excellent start — he had 2,134 pass yards with 18 touchdowns on 75.7% completions through Michigan’s first nine games — he didn’t attempt a pass down the stretch against Penn State, as the Wolverines called 32 consecutive runs. Then, after a shaky performance last week at Maryland, McCarthy executed a precision passing game to near perfection against Ohio State, completing 16 of 20 attempts for 148 yards and a thread-the-needle touchdown to Roman Wilson. He completed 12 of 12 passes of 5 yards or less, and recorded his fifth game with at least 80% completions, tying Oregon’s Bo Nix for most in the FBS. His mobility also stood out against a fast Buckeyes defense.
“I told him before the game: ‘Listen, when the game matters in some critical situations, I’m going to put the ball in your hands, because I know you’re going to make a great decision,'” Moore said. “I know where his mindset is at, especially on those critical downs.”
2. Moore’s growth as a coach
Harbaugh has generally hired good staff members at Michigan. Several of his ex-assistants have moved on to head-coaching positions or to the NFL. His 2023 staff projected well, especially with two up-and-coming coordinators in Jesse Minter, a Broyles Award finalist in 2022, and Moore. Back in late spring, Michigan had no idea how much of the season Harbaugh would miss and how much it would have to rely on the rest of the coaching staff in his absence.
Although the 37-year-old Moore has never been a head coach and only became a coordinator in 2021, he was the clear choice to lead Michigan on game days during the stretch run. Moore took a necessary conservative approach in an emotionally charged game against Penn State, which has an aggressive defense filled with NFL-level talent, but an offense that was not set up to truly challenge Michigan. He got Michigan through a shaky performance against Maryland, in which the Wolverines needed scores in all three phases to overcome the Terrapins.
Before the Ohio State game, Harbaugh had two messages for Moore: Love you and be you. The latter meant: make more aggressive play calls. Moore kept the offense on the field for three fourth-down opportunities and converted each time, including twice on a 14-play, 75-yard touchdown drive that put Michigan up 14-3 in the second quarter. He also opened the fourth quarter with a halfback pass, as Edwards found tight end Colston Loveland for 34 yards, and mixed in Alex Orji as a “change-up” quarterback and got a 20-yard run.
“Coach Moore said from the get-go that he’s going to call the most aggressive game he’s ever called,” McCarthy said. “For the big boys, for Blake, for myself, it’s music to our ears, just knowing that he has confidence in us to go get that extra yard or go get that 2 yards. It means the world because that’s who we are.”
Harbaugh said Ohio State’s defense was the best he had seen, and Michigan’s game plan required creativity.
“Not a thing I would have changed in the way he called that game and the decisions he made in that kind of environment, that kind of pressure,” Harbaugh said.
Moore’s 3-0 Big Ten stretch without Harbaugh showed that he’s ready to lead his own program. Given the uncertainty about Harbaugh’s future — Harbaugh has interviewed for NFL jobs each of the past two winters, and likely will face another NCAA suspension if he returns to Michigan in 2024 — Moore has emerged as a very capable option to take over at Michigan, whenever that day comes.
3. A defensive front with few stars but plenty of depth
When Michigan broke through in 2021, winning its first Big Ten title in 17 years, its frontman was defensive end Aidan Hutchinson. He shined down the stretch, becoming the Heisman Trophy runner-up and cementing himself as a top NFL draft pick. And Michigan has had plenty of other star defensive linemen during Harbaugh’s tenure — David Ojabo, Kwity Paye, Rashan Gary, Chase Winovich, Taco Charlton, Mazi Smith and Mike Morris.
The 2023 line might not be remembered for its big names, but it will be remembered for its depth, skill, experience and performances in big games. No Michigan defensive lineman has more than 5.5 sacks, 6.5 tackles for loss or five quarterback hurries, but eight have at least 1.5 sacks and seven have multiple QB hurries.
There have been expected contributions from veterans such as tackle Kris Jenkins and end Jaylen Harrell, but sophomore Mason Graham has emerged into a surprise star — he’s tied for the team lead with 6.5 tackles for loss and has contributed three sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. The California native was an ESPN three-star recruit who originally committed to Boise State. And Josaiah Stewart, a Coastal Carolina transfer, has been a valuable addition on the edge.
Kenneth Grant, a 339-pound sophomore, has contributed 2.5 sacks, 5 quarterback hurries and 4 pass breakups, and drew national attention when he raced down Penn State running back Kaytron Allen, saving a possible touchdown and wowing Harbaugh and his teammates.
“We get ourselves just ready for the moment, and when that moment comes, we know what we’re going to do,” Graham said. “That’s a big part of our team in handling adversity.”
4. Those who stayed have positioned Michigan for more championships
The famous Bo Schembechler line that appears everywhere around Michigan’s program — “Those who stay will be champions” — has taken on new and added meaning. Michigan had several players pass up potential NFL opportunities to return for another run at a Big Ten title and the CFP. The “One More Year” fund, started by the Champions Circle NIL collective, helped the program retain standouts such as Corum, Zinter, Jenkins, offensive lineman Trevor Keegan and wide receiver Cornelius Johnson. Michigan also brought back other accomplished players, such as defensive back Mike Sainristil and linebacker Michael Barrett. The Wolverines had only three underclassmen enter the NFL draft — Smith, Morris and cornerback D.J. Turner.
All of Michigan’s returnees have made significant contributions this fall. Sainristil is an All-America candidate, recording five interceptions and five pass breakups, while Barrett leads the team in both forced fumbles (three) and fumble recoveries (two). Johnson recorded his third consecutive season of 32 or more receptions. Zinter and Keegan have anchored a line for a remarkably balanced offense that averages 37.6 points per game.
Although Corum’s overall rushing production (976 yards) doesn’t match what he did last season (1,463), he has gained the most critical yards, setting a Michigan single-season record with 22 rushing touchdowns.
“I just look back and pray that I left a legacy, I stamped my mark here, I made a difference, on and off the field,” Corum said. “Looking back at [the Ohio State game], this is why I came back. I couldn’t go out in the Big House like I did last year, hurt. I’m so appreciative for the University of Michigan.”
5. Special teams remain solid
Michigan didn’t enter the season with many glaring concerns, but special teams carried some question marks after kicker Jake Moody and punter Brad Robbins both were selected in the NFL draft. The Wolverines became only the second team in the past 40 years to have two specialists picked in the same draft. Moody, the 2021 Lou Groza Award winner and Michigan’s career scoring leader, seemed to be a particularly big loss.
But the Wolverines have continued to shine in the kicking game. On Saturday against Ohio State, James Turner went 3-for-3 on field goals, including a 50-yarder early in the third quarter, while Ohio State’s Jayden Fielding missed from 52 yards out to end the first half. Tommy Doman averaged 63.3 yards per punt, placing one at the Ohio State 2-yard line late in the opening half.
“He was money,” Corum said of Turner. “He was calm, cool and collected, hit all of them. Couldn’t ask for a better kicker than my guy, so jolly good fellow to him.”
Turner, a Louisville transfer, is 12-for-14 on field goal attempts this season and 8-for-8 from within 40 yards. Doman averaged 45 yards per punt with 18 fair catches and 14 punts inside the opponent’s 20-yard line. Although Michigan isn’t exceptional on returns, Jake Thaw and Tyler Morris have been a solid tandem on punt runbacks, and the coverage teams haven’t had any busts. The Wolverines’ special teams play shined at Maryland, as they blocked a punt for a safety and downed a Doman punt inside the Terrapins’ 1-yard line, leading to another late safety.
College football coaching tracker: Firings, hirings, news
As sure as autumn fades into winter, as the college football season winds down, the coaching carousel starts to crank up.
The biggest early name to lose his job was Jimbo Fisher, who was fired at Texas A&M during his sixth season leading the Aggies. Since then, several Power 5 jobs have opened including at Houston, which is moving on from Dana Holgorsen, and Indiana, which fired Tom Allen.
As the list continues to grow, we’ll track all the comings and goings of head coaches and prominent coordinators, along with insights and intel on searches for replacements and who might be on the hot seat.
Holgorson out after five years at Houston
Houston went 4-8 in its inaugural Big 12 season, which included a loss at Rice early in the season and three straight losses to end the year. The Cougars finished 2-7 in the Big 12, with their wins coming in overtime against Baylor and on a last-second 49-yard touchdown against West Virginia.
The Cougars owe Holgorsen nearly $14.8 million in buyout money, but his contract includes a mitigation clause that could lower the amount if Holgorsen gets another job.
More: Holgorsen had 31-28 record with Cougs
Indiana moves on from Allen
Allen, who had led Indiana since 2017 after spending a season as the team’s defensive coordinator, finished 33-49 as Hoosiers coach. Indiana dropped its final three games, including Saturday’s rivalry contest at Purdue, to finish 3-9. It had gone 9-26 overall and 3-23 in Big Ten play since the 2020 season, when it was 6-2 in the COVID-shortened season.
More: Allen in line for $15.5 million buyout
Duke has big shoes to fill with Elko gone
Duke was 16-9 in two years under Elko after going 3-9 the year before he arrived.
More: JMU’s Cignetti a candidate to watch
Oregon State needs to replace Smith
Smith, a former Beavers quarterback, was 34-35 in six seasons at OSU, but 18-7 since the start of the 2022 campaign.
More: Bronco Mendenhall a candidate to watch
Babers out at Syracuse after eight seasons
Syracuse tight ends coach Nunzio Campanile was named interim coach.
Under Babers, the Orange lost six of its past seven games, marking the second consecutive year that featured a precipitous slide to end the season. Last year, Syracuse lost six of its last seven games. His ACC record is 20-45.
More: Babers has just two winning seasons at Syracuse
Middle Tennessee fires longtime coach Stockstill
Stockstill had led Middle Tennessee since December 2005 and was 113-111 in 18 seasons with the program, but the Blue Raiders went 4-8 in 2023.
More: Stockstill was fourth-longest-tenured coach in FBS
Dimel fired by UTEP
Dimel, 61, went 20-49 in six seasons with the Miners, including a New Mexico Bowl appearance in 2021, UTEP’s first since 2014. UTEP went 2-6 in Conference USA play this season.
More: Dimel out after six seasons at UTEP
Gonzales out at New Mexico
The school announced the move in the wake of a 4-8 season, which was his highest win total in Gonzales’ tenure.
More: Lobos haven’t played bowl game since 2016
San Diego State’s Hoke set to retire
SDSU will finish this season with its first losing record — both overall and in Mountain West play — since 2009. In 2021, Hoke led the Aztecs to a school-record 12 wins.
More: SDSU’s Hoke to retire at end of season
Boise State fires Avalos after 22-14 record
Avalos went 22-14 in three seasons at Boise State, including a 10-4 record that resulted in him being named 2022 Mountain West coach of the year. At no point during Avalos’ two-plus seasons was Boise State ranked in the Associated Press poll; the Broncos’ 19-year streak of being ranked ended during his first season in 2021.
Defensive coordinator and longtime Boise State assistant Spencer Danielson is serving as the interim coach.
More: Avalos out as Boise State can’t match past success
Penn State fires OC Yurcich
The Nittany Lions scored only 15 points and managed just 238 yards of offense (74 through the air) in a 24-15 loss to Michigan. Penn State’s offense also struggled in a 20-12 loss to Ohio State on Oct. 21, finishing with 240 yards and not reaching the end zone until the game’s final minute.
Yurcich, 48, has been the team’s offensive playcaller and quarterbacks coach since 2021.
More: Franklin hears boos: ‘Not good enough’ | Yurcich fired
Grinch gone as USC’s defensive woes continue
Grinch, who was Oklahoma’s defensive coordinator from 2019 to 2021 before leaving for USC alongside Riley, led a unit that allowed an average of 34.5 points per game this season and was in the bottom 30 in the country in nearly every statistical category, including 120th in rushing defense and 107th against the pass.
More: USC defensive coordinator Grinch let go
Brian Ferentz won’t return as Iowa’s OC
Brian Ferentz, a former offensive lineman at Iowa, has served as the team’s offensive coordinator since 2017 and has been on his father’s staff since 2012. In February, Iowa announced contract amendments for him that included an unusual points-per-game provision — the team would need to average 25 points per game during the 2023 season and win at least seven games for Ferentz’s two-year rolling contract to be reactivated beyond June 30, 2024. The Hawkeyes have fallen well short of that average.
More: Iowa falls short in ‘Drive for 325′ | Brian Ferentz out
FILLED JOBS
A&M hires Duke’s Elko to replace Fisher
Elko is a former Texas A&M defensive coordinator who left there two years ago to take the Duke head-coaching job. Since Elko’s departure after the 2021 season, A&M’s performance has dipped on the field. The Aggies went 12-12 the past two years, which is why the school paid a record $76 million buyout to fire coach Jimbo Fisher.
Elko immediately showed his chops as a head coach, authoring one of the sport’s biggest turnarounds in the 2022 season. Duke went 9-4 in Elko’s first season after he inherited a team that had gone 3-9 the year before. The team went 7-5 this season after losing quarterback Riley Leonard to injury in Week 4.
Fisher was 45-25 in six seasons at Texas A&M.
More: Elko leaves Duke after two seasons
Oklahoma OC Lebby in for Arnett at Mississippi State
Lebby has been the offensive coordinator at OU, Ole Miss and UCF, with high-tempo and prolific offenses his hallmark. Since 2019, he’s been coordinator of an offense that has scored 50 or more points 14 times, leading all active offensive coordinators.
Lebby replaces Zach Arnett, who fired Nov. 13 before completing his first season. Arnett, the Bulldogs’ defensive coordinator for three seasons, was promoted to head coach this past December after the sudden death of Mike Leach.
More: Lebby agrees to five-year deal
Michigan State hires Oregon State’s Smith
Smith, 44, completed the regular season as No. 16 Oregon State fell to rival Oregon 31-7 on the road, dropping to 8-4 on the season. The former Beavers quarterback finishes 34-35 in six seasons at his alma mater, but 18-7 since the start of the 2022 campaign.
The Spartans fired Mel Tucker for cause Sept. 27 as he was under university investigation for a sexual misconduct complaint brought by Brenda Tracy, a sexual assault awareness speaker.
More: MSU fires Tucker for bringing ‘ridicule’ to program
Northwestern promotes interim coach Braun
The school named Braun interim coach July 14, four days after it fired Fitzgerald in the wake of hazing allegations against the program. Fitzgerald went 110-101 over 17 seasons at Northwestern.
More: Committee liked Braun’s approach | Hazing ‘clearly not a secret’
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The Pop-Tarts Bowl is the latest addition to college football’s unique food-inspired celebrations. The new bowl game will debut next month with the winner receiving a special prize — the chance to take a bite out of the first-ever edible mascot.
Whether the mascot is brown sugar cinnamon or strawberry flavored is unclear, but it will be a key part of the postgame festivities.
“[The mascot] will run around the stadium interacting with fans and, when the final whistle blows, transform into a game-winning snack for the victors,” according to a press release shared by snack company Kellanova on Monday.
The bowl game Dec. 28 matches the top ACC school against the second-best Big 12 school — both teams will be outside of the College Football Playoffs. It replaces the Cheez-It Bowl.
While the edible mascot is the first of its kind, celebratory food showers have become part of multiple bowl games, serving as a creative twist on the victory bath the college football bowl season serves up to winning coaches and players.
A handful of bowl game sponsors award the winning team’s players — and lucky fans — the opportunity to douse coaches with cereal, cheesy crackers, creamy spreads and other foodstuffs. They may require dedicated cleanup efforts afterward, but the postgame ceremonies provide memorable visuals.
How much of any food can fill a cooler? Our math for the measurements is based on filling a seven-gallon drink cooler, which equates to 896 ounces. We crunched numbers to see the amount of mayonnaise (and other substances) dumped on college football’s finest during the bowl season.
Here’s a look at some of the most notable — and edible — celebrations during the 2022 bowl season:
Duke’s Mayo Bowl: Maryland Terrapins 16, No. 23 NC State Wolfpack 12
The mayo dumpers did their jobs. Maryland coach Mike Locksley, wearing an oversized hat, got the condiment bath after the Terps came out on top in an ugly game that had four turnovers.
Duke’s Mayo became the sponsor for the game formerly known as the Belk Bowl before the 2020 bowl season.
Dumping mayonnaise on the winning coach has now become an anticipated part of bowl season. Last year, however, it didn’t go well for South Carolina Gamecocks coach Shane Beamer following a 38-21 win over the North Carolina Tar Heels.
“I got hammered in the back of the head from the cooler — and then came the mayo,” Beamer said after the game, per Steve Reed of the Associated Press. “I may have a concussion. It was awful.”
So Duke’s Mayo Bowl set out to find new “mayo dumpers” for 2022.
“Much like the College Football Playoff, we have a very dedicated and serious committee that reviewed entrees, debated and eventually selected our winners … Mayo dumpers, by nature, needed to be able to lift/dump a large cooler of mayo. We were also looking for those who could show their fandom — of both college football and Duke’s Mayo,” Miller Yoho, director of communications and marketing for the Charlotte Sports Foundation, told ESPN via email.
On Dec. 6, Allison Vick and Kevin DeValk were named as the new mayo dumpers for the 2022 Mayo Bowl.
“It feels like a dream! … If there’s a better way to ring in the New Year, I can’t imagine it,” Vick told ESPN via email.
“Never in a million years would I have expected to be chosen to dump a tub of mayo on someone on national television,” DeValk said to ESPN via email.
Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl: Pittsburgh Panthers 37, No. 18 UCLA Bruins 35
The Sun Bowl, played for the 89th time, is one of the older bowl games in college football. Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes has been the sponsor since 2019.
A late field goal, one of five for Pitt kicker Ben Sauls, gave the Panthers the win. The Panthers’ players got to dump the classic cereal after the game.
In 2021, Central Michigan Chippewas head coach Jim McElwain enjoyed a Frosted Flakes deluge courtesy of his players after a 24-21 win over the Washington State Cougars.
Cheez-It Bowl: No. 13 Florida State Seminoles 35, Oklahoma Sooners 32
Cheez-It in 2020 became the sponsor of this game, which began as the Blockbuster Bowl in 1990. Last year, Clemson Tigers coach Dabo Swinney enjoyed a lightly toasted cheese cracker bath after a 20-13 win against the Iowa State Cyclones.
This year, Florida State and Oklahoma traded the lead four times in the second half, with the Seminoles sacking quarterback Dillion Gabriel on the final drive to hold off a comeback bid. Mike Norvell got a Cheez-It bath to remember as the clock ticked down to zero.
How many Cheez-It crackers? It takes nearly 72 regular boxes (12.4 ounces) of Cheez-Its to fill a sideline drink cooler.
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl: Eastern Michigan Eagles 41, San Jose State Spartans 27
Since its inception in 1997, this game, known by its current name since 2011, has taken place in Boise, Idaho, the “Potato Capital of the World.” So it’s only natural that its postgame celebration includes food made from the plant.
In the 2022 edition, Eagles quarterback Taylor Powell finished with 298 yards passing, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception while running back Samson Evans led the team on the ground with 82 yards rushing and two scores. According to ESPN Stats & Information, Eastern Michigan’s 41 points are the most it has scored in a bowl game in program history. It’s the team’s first bowl victory since the 1987 California Bowl.
Eagles coach Chris Creighton received the postgame potato bath after the victory.
