Michigan had one of the weirdest seasons in recent college football memory, with everything happening on and off the field the past calendar year.
Last year around this time, the Wolverines were hosting the national championship trophy, trying to cover up a sign-stealing scandal, and their head coach, Jim Harbaugh, left to take an NFL head coaching job.
After Harbaugh’s departure, offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore was named Michigan’s head coach. His first few games as the new head man didn’t go particularly well.
Michigan Finished The Season Strong
The Wolverines started the year with a 5-5 record, losing to Texas, Washington, Illinois, Oregon, and Indiana, and needed one more victory in their final two games to reach bowl eligibility.
Michigan defeated Northwestern 50-6 in their final home game. A week later, they traveled to Columbus and defeated their archrival, Ohio State, for the fourth straight season.
Moore and the Wolverines didn’t stop at beating Ohio State. They also defeated Alabama in their bowl game, giving them an 8-5 record, which didn’t seem possible in mid-November.
If Michigan had figured themselves out earlier in the season, there is a chance they could’ve gotten into the 12-team college football playoff, and ESPN’s college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit is sad that they didn’t get in.
Kirk Herbstreit Wishes Michigan Was In The Field
On Tuesday, Herbstreit appeared on On3.com’s Andy and Ari show to discuss the semifinals and the four big brands that remained standing: Texas, Ohio State, Notre Dame, and Penn State.
The four schools are some of the most significant blue blood in the sport, but Michigan is right up there with those names.
“ESPN loves the SEC so much that we could not have paid for a better final four with Notre Dame, Ohio State, Penn State, and Texas. The only one is Michigan, which is missing,” Herbstreit said.
Herbstreit also explained that ESPN would take schools like Ohio State and Notre Dame this late in the postseason over schools like Alabama and Texas A&M because of their ratings.
THE ONLY ONE MISSING IS MICHIGAN
– MICHIGAN MAN KIRK HERBSTREIT
— Official Ohio State DG (@DylanEveryday) January 7, 2025
ESPN is now the home of the SEC, and Herbstreit is the network’s major college football analyst. If he says that four teams from the Midwest, including Michigan, are better than having primary SEC schools, then you know ESPN loves this semifinal.
If Ohio State and Notre Dame somehow meet in the national championship on January 20th, it could be one of the most significant rating events in sports history. The two greatest brands in college football would be competing against each other.
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