CHICAGO — The ivy-draped walls of Wrigley Field, which turn a rusty shade of brown in November, have seen some epic collapses. They almost saw another one Saturday.
Michigan’s Dominic Zvada hit a 31-yard field goal as time expired to give the No. 18 Wolverines a 24-22 victory against Northwestern. The kick spared Michigan the agony of a fourth-quarter meltdown that would have extinguished the Wolverines’ faint hopes of making the College Football Playoff. Afterward, there was much talk about Michigan’s resilience, the importance of savoring every win and the fortitude Michigan’s freshmen showed on their final drive.
“There’s so many positive things to reflect on with this young group,” coach Sherrone Moore said.
The Wolverines are allowed to celebrate. That’s the winning team’s prerogative. But they shouldn’t be surprised if no one else in the Big Ten sees this as a feel-good story about a gritty team overcoming adversity.
From the outside, Michigan looks like a team that keeps whistling past the graveyard and getting away with it. Teams that commit five turnovers don’t usually deserve to win — Michigan was the first team to win a game this season with a minus-5 turnover margin, in fact — but somehow the Wolverines keep ducking the consequences of their mistakes. Rivals in the Big Ten might say it’s not the first time.
It’s hard to separate what’s happening on the field from what’s happening in the Big Ten boardroom. Michigan has been the squeaky wheel objecting to the Big Ten’s plan to raise $2.4 billion in private capital through a deal with UC Investments, which manages the pension fund for the University of California system. If the Big Ten insists on going ahead with the deal without Michigan’s support, some of the school’s decision-makers have suggested it could fracture the conference.
Michigan is flexing its muscle as one of the Big Ten’s two most powerful schools. It’s not just empty talk: Any conference or media partner would be happy to have Michigan’s massive ratings, its worldwide fan base and its iconic brand. Michigan’s takeover of Wrigley Field was another example of why the Wolverines carry so much sway in the Big Ten. Their fans flooded Waveland Avenue before the game, filled the bleachers and rooftops with maize and blue and packed the nearby sports bars after the game.
There’s no denying Michigan’s institutional heft. But, to be frank, the Wolverines haven’t backed it up on the field. They’re 8-2 and technically still alive for a spot in the Big Ten Championship Game, but they’re not on the same tier with Ohio State, Indiana or Oregon. They got blown out by USC, notched respectable wins against Washington and Nebraska and looked shaky against several teams in the bottom quadrant of the Big Ten.
Saturday’s game was one more example. After a lackluster win against Purdue two weeks ago, the Wolverines had a week off to get healthy and tighten up their execution. There was lots of talk about playing with urgency now that November is here and the Ohio State game is approaching. When Jordan Marshall plunged into the end zone to give Michigan a 21-9 lead in the third quarter, it looked as if Michigan might get the authoritative win it has been craving.
Instead, Michigan went into meltdown mode. Semaj Morgan fumbled a punt. Freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood threw interceptions on back-to-back drives. Marshall left the game with what appeared to be a shoulder injury, and his replacement, third-string running back Bryson Kuzdzal, couldn’t handle the exchange with Underwood on a fourth-and-1 play from Northwestern’s 24-yard line.
Michigan QB Bryce Underwood had 310 yards of offense with two rushing TDs and two INTs. (Michael Reaves / Getty Images)
To their credit, the Wolverines found a way to steer out of the skid. They drove 50 yards in the final 2:10, aided by a toe-dragging catch by freshman Andrew Marsh on third-and-10. Marsh was sensational in this game with 12 receptions for 189 yards, both of which rank in the top in Michigan history. Those 12 catches included some impressive throws from Underwood, who was playing one of his best games until the fourth-quarter turnovers.
“It’s so fun to be around these kids,” Moore said. “They work so hard, prepare so hard. You want that win for them, more than anybody. For them to pull it off like that is unbelievable.”
Moore isn’t wrong to point out Michigan’s youth: the freshman quarterback, the freshman wide receiver, the three redshirt freshmen starting on the offensive line. If those players stay together for another two years, Michigan could be a team to be reckoned with. But the Wolverines aren’t worthy of that label right now, even if their record looks pretty good.
For people who say the Wolverines can’t keep winning this way, well, their schedule begs to differ. Saturday was the first time in 28 days that Michigan played a team with a Big Ten win. Next week, the Wolverines play Maryland, a team that’s lost six games in a row. Northwestern, a solid team that will need to beat Minnesota or Illinois to make a bowl game, was the toughest of the four opponents Michigan will face leading up to the Ohio State game on Nov. 29.
There’s little point in analyzing Michigan’s past few games in hopes of finding the Wolverines’ path to victory against Ohio State. You won’t find it. Whether Michigan is kicking last-second field goals or winning by 50, the Ohio State game is always its own entity.
Losing to Northwestern would have taken a lot of the air out of The Game. At least Michigan is doing its part to keep the rivalry stakes intact. But the Wolverines, for all the power they wield in matters of Big Ten governance, aren’t looking like a power on the field.
If they keep tempting fate, eventually someone’s going to make them pay.