J.J. McCarthy, Jim Harbaugh, and Blake Corum (image via Mark Terrill/AP)
Michigan was the better team. I predicted a 27-24 loss to the Crimson Tide, so I wasn’t too far off on how the game would feel – I thought it would be a close game that came down to the end. But from the get-go, it seemed like Michigan had the superior team on a down-to-down basis. They sacked Jalen Milroe on four out of his first six dropbacks, and the offensive line was holding up fairly well. Alabama’s offense averaged 4.36 yards per play, while Michigan’s averaged 5.95.
Michigan dominated the all-conference selections in 2023, which is to be somewhat expected with a 12-0 record.
FIRST TEAM QB J.J. McCarthy (Coaches, Media) RB Blake Corum (Coaches, Media) OL La’Darius Henderson (Coaches) OL Zak Zinter (Coaches, Media) C Drake Nugent (Coaches, Media) TE Colston Loveland (Coaches) DL Mason Graham (Coaches) DB Will Johnson (Coaches, Media) DB Mike Sainristil (Media)
SECOND TEAM WR Roman Wilson (Coaches, Media) TE Colston Loveland (Media) OL Karsen Barnhart (Coaches) OL La’Darius Henderson (Media) OL Trevor Keegan (Coaches, Media) DL Kenneth Grant (Coaches) DL Kris Jenkins, Jr. (Coaches, Media) LB Junior Colson (Coaches, Media) DB Mike Sainristil (Coaches) K James Turner (Coaches)
THIRD TEAM OL Karsen Barnhart (Media) DL Mason Graham (Media) DL Kenneth Grant (Media) LB Michael Barrett (Coaches) DB Rod Moore (Coaches) P Tommy Doman (Media)
HONORABLE MENTION WR Cornelius Johnson (Media) TE A.J. Barner (Coaches, Media) DL Jaylen Harrell (Coaches, Media) DL Braiden McGregor (Coaches, Media) DL Derrick Moore (Coaches, Media) DL Josaiah Stewart (Coaches) LB Michael Barrett (Media) DB Rod Moore (Media) DB Makari Paige (Coaches) DB Josh Wallace (Coaches, Media) K James Turner (Media) P Tommy Doman (Media) RET Semaj Morgan (Coaches, Media)
I believe every single Michigan starter is represented here except FB/TE Max Bredeson (1 start), OL Trente Jones (2 starts), WR Tyler Morris (2 starts), safety Keon Sabb (4 starts). Even a full-time backup in Derrick Moore – who has yet to start a single game – was named Honorable Mention by both the coaches and the media.
Do you see any snubs?
Personally, I think Mike Sainristil should have been 1st team to both coaches/media. Meanwhile, I’m surprised Barnhart was valued so highly since he struggled in pass protection so much, especially over the last three weeks of the season.
I apologize for the delayed/short post. I had a crazy busy weekend and I was on the road for much of it, so I didn’t have much of a chance to write.
Great win. It shouldn’t be underestimated how great of a victory this was, in light of all the distractions in recent weeks. Michigan went into Happy Valley missing its head coach, a head coach that was stupidly suspended at the end of the day on Friday with zero new information in the previous week. I postulated last Monday on Rivals that the Big Ten might make a decision late on Friday, making it impossible or at least unlikely that Michigan would be able to get an injunction/temporary restraining order in time to get Harbaugh available for Saturday. Sure enough, that’s what happened. Supposedly, commissioner Tony Petitti released the suspension to the media before notifying Michigan itself, so M heard it first through the media. From a public perception standpoint, Petitti is lucky Michigan won this game, because the uproar would have been deafening if suddenly the Wolverines lost a game less than 24 hours after its head coach was suspended for such stupid reasons.
Who cares if Sherrone Moore cried? It was an emotional victory, for all the reasons mentioned above and more. I wish he didn’t cuss a couple times on national TV, but he’s not paid to be interviewed in an emotional moment after games. You know who is paid to do that? Jim Harbaugh. If the Big Ten wants family-friendly interviews after games, maybe they should let the guys who are head coaches coach the games and be interviewed, since that’s part of their job. The cussing would be a bigger deal if it was Harbaugh, who has two decades of head coaching experience. So f*** the Big Ten.
I was a little nervous. Something was gnawing at my brain going into this game, and that was whether Michigan would look sloppy against the Boilermakers in the midst of Sign-gate. I was never nervous about the outcome of the game, but just about whether it would be a tight contest. Maybe something like a 14-10 contest at halftime. Or 17-13 in the third quarter before pulling away. The distraction of Sign-gate combined with the rustiness of coming off a bye week concerned me. So I was glad to see Michigan jump out to a 17-0 lead almost immediately. But the second quarter was boring for Michigan. Michigan was outgained by Purdue, as well as outscored 6-3, sending it to halftime at 20-6.
Michigan 49, Michigan State 0 (image via AP/Al Goldis)
Emotional edge FTW. Going into this game, I felt like Michigan had more of a reason to win this game. I mean, aside from the fact that Michigan State sucks and surely really wanted to win because sucking isn’t fun, Michigan should have had more of a reason. This stems mostly from the fact that Gemon Green and Ja’den McBurrows were viciously attacked in the tunnel last year. But this past week’s cheating allegations probably cheesed off the Wolverines quite a bit since their accomplishments were considered to be tainted by some. But it seems like emotion sometimes forces players and/or coaches to press. So in my game preview, I predicted a 34-10 victory. I thought Michigan might come out a little slow, might get caught by a trick play, etc. But it turns out Michigan didn’t have any trick plays up their sleeve. They didn’t really have much of anything up their sleeve.
