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The Argument Against Michigan

By johnnyrico, Section College
Posted on Tue Nov 21 2006 at 4:54 PM EST
More on: college, college football, BCS, Michigan, Ohio State (all tags)

Never has an Ohio State/Michigan game been so big and meant so little.  Arguably the greatest rivalry in sports, the 42-39  epic between the two programs last Saturday may have been the most exciting installment of the series ever.  The new BCS standings could render the classic battle meaningless, however.  With Michigan ranked number two behind the Buckeyes, the once improbable notion of a rematch is now more than a possibility, it is a probability.  This would be a terrible injustice to the rest of the teams playing for a shot at the Buckeyes in Glendale, and the most convincing proof to date that college football needs a playoff.  

Strength of Schedule

Michigan's out of conference schedule was a joke with the exception of Notre Dame.  They destroyed Vanderbilt and Central Michigan while USC was battling Arkansas and Nebraska.  They smashed Notre Dame in the third week of the season, when the Irish weren't exactly performing up to their abilities.  Who else did they beat?  Well, there's Wisconsin, the weakest one loss team in the nation according to the polls and the computers.  Other than that, Michigan played a mediocre Big Ten schedule and lost against the only quality team they played in Ohio State.  Florida has won all but one game in their brutal SEC schedule, including wins over LSU, Tennesee, Georgia, and South Carolina.  Their loss was to Auburn, the strongest two loss team in the nation.  Even Arkansas, with wins over LSU and Florida in their next two games coupled with their opening game loss to the third ranked Trojans, have a better national championship resume than the Wolverines.

Equal Opportunity

In the interest of fairness, let's give somebody else a shot.  Would Boise State be complaining if they had a chance to beat the Buckeyes and go on to a national championship game?  Michigan had the joysticks, they controlled their own destiny and had a hand in the outcome.  They lost.  They had a chance and they blew it.  Not every team is lucky enough to have the perfect opportunity to put themselves in the championship game with an unbeaten season.  Even sore loser Michael Hart agrees, saying, "If we don't get another shot at 'em, that's our fault."  We as college football fans have been hearing all season long how much better the SEC is than the other conferences around the nation.  Why then is Michigan, the SECOND PLACE team in the mediocre Big Ten, in line for a second chance at the Buckeyes?  If they didn't even win their own conference, how can anyone seriously call them a National Champion?  The one loss team who wins the championship of the best conference in the nation should get a shot before a one loss team who finished second in a weak conference and already lost to the team they'll be playing in Glendale.

Let's Be Honest....

The game in Columbus last Saturday was not as close as the 42-39 score would indicate.  Michigan scored 17 points off of turnovers, mistakes that the Buckeyes made, not ones that Michigan forced.  Two fumbled shotgun snaps and a deflected pass are not products of the Michigan defense.  Ohio State was comfortably in control for the entire game, moving the ball at will on the ground and through the air against what was supposed to be one of the best defenses in the country.  Sure, Henne and Hart put up some numbers, but when the Buckeyes' defense needed stops they got them.  The game was really a ten point victory.  Any game involving a desperate on-side kick attempt in the final minutes is really not that close.  

If Not Michigan, Who?

USC or Florida.  That is what it ultimately boils down to.  If USC beats Notre Dame and UCLA to finish out the season, they would more than likely jump Michigan in the BCS standings.  If USC loses and Florida defeats an 11-1 Arkansas team in the SEC championship, the Gators could sneak in past the Wolverines.  Notre Dame's chances are slim and none, having been trounced by Michigan at home.  

Regardless of whether or not Michigan gets its rematch, the current system in college football is severely flawed.  The BCS claims to be protecting tradition by keeping bowl games instead of implementing a playoff, but if Ohio State must face a Michigan team that it already defeated again in Glendale for the National Championship, it will mar one of the greatest games in college football history, and make the BCS the laughing stock of the entire sporting world.