Michigan’s opening week did not exactly calm anybody down.
The Wolverines got a win over Western Michigan, but it took a last-second hail mary to get it done, and the way it played out was enough to send them from No. 16 in the nation to outside the AP Top 25. That shaky start has kept the bowl conversation pointed in one direction: Michigan is still being projected for a notable postseason spot, but not the kind tied to the playoff picture.
On Tuesday morning, Sept. 8, ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach updated their weekly bowl projections after the first full weekend of games, and Michigan ended up in different places on the two lists.
Bonagura moved the Wolverines into the Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl against Duke. Schlabach kept Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl, but changed the opponent to Ole Miss.
The Pinstripe Bowl feels like the more believable landing spot at this point, especially after how Week 1 looked. If Michigan were to end up in the ReliaQuest Bowl and face an SEC team, that could get ugly fast. Still, there’s plenty left to sort out, and the Week 2 matchup with Oklahoma should say a lot more.
Bryan Fischer of Sports Illustrated also has Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl, but with Texas A&M on the other side. The Aggies cruised through their opener, beating Missouri State 50-0 without much resistance.
That kind of projection feels ambitious for a team that needed a miracle finish to survive Western Michigan, though this weekend’s game against a fellow SEC program should help reveal more.
Another projection that stands out has Michigan meeting Alabama in the Citrus Bowl, set for Saturday, Jan. 2. That would put the Wolverines back in the same game they played a season ago, when they lost to Texas 41-27 in Orlando, Fla.
The SEC connection keeps showing up across these projections, and Michigan’s bowl history in the Citrus Bowl gives that spot a familiar feel. The Wolverines have appeared there seven times and are 4-3 in those games.
For now, the projections have not shifted all that much from preseason. But after the Sooners game, that picture could look very different.
In Other News...
Michigans Opener Already Sparked A Response Fans Will Notice Against Oklahoma
Rod Moore did not sugarcoat Michigans season-opening showing against Western Michigan, calling it well below the standard the Wolverines expect. The reaction inside the program was immediate, too, with team captains calling an emergency player-only meeting to address what went wrong and to reset the tone before the schedule tightens up.
The response showed up on the practice field, where the defense ramped up its physical intensity in preparation for Oklahoma. Edge defender Dom Nichols also drew attention for both his strong play and his work ethic, a reminder that Michigan is trying to turn a flat opener into a sharper, more urgent version of itself before a much bigger test arrives. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Win Is Now At Center Of A Stunning Official Fight
The final sequence of Michigans 13-12 win over Western Michigan has turned into more than a narrow nonconference finish. A reviewed Hail Mary added one second back onto the clock, and that extra snap led to the game-winning catch that kept the Wolverines on top. The Big Ten later backed the decision after its own video review, treating the ending as a properly administered piece of officiating in a game that was already tense enough on the field.
Now the dispute has moved from the scoreboard to the offices that govern the sport. The Mid-American Conference has formally appealed to the NCAA FBS Oversight Committee and the College Football Playoff, asking them to recognize Western Michigan as the winner. For Michigan, the result stands for now, but the unusual fight over a single second has made this one of the more talked-about finishes of the season. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Win Sparked A Debate Fans Should Care About
Michigans disputed 13-12 win over Western Michigan did more than send people scrambling through the rule book. It also reignited a familiar gripe about how college football handles the last moments of a close game, with ESPNs Rece Davis arguing that fans would be better served by a single shared game clock and by live access to replay officials conversations so the process feels less opaque.
The sequence at the end of the game made the frustration easy to understand: the broadcast clock hit zero, but replay officials restored one second after using a synchronized system, and Michigan turned that final snap into the touchdown that decided it. Officials and conference representatives backed up the replay process, and Western Michigan president Richard N. Yensen acknowledged the clocks did not match while saying he did not view the outcome as unfair, but the larger transparency debate is unlikely to fade soon. [Read more 🡒]