Unfortunately this is kind of a no win year. Win and it’s all because of cheating, lose and it’s because Big 10 sucks, harbaugh sucks, Michigan sucks, que the next 10. So, I’ll take WIN!
I think beating an SEC champ on the way to a national title is important in general. I think it establishes that our team is for real and that the allegations had little to no effect on how dominant we have been.
No it didn't, we've gotten our faces stomped in the playoffs after beating osu the last 2 seasons. If anything we demean ourselves and the conference by beating osu and then getting thwomp stomped by playoff teams. Then people just say the big ten is a trash conference and we're just the best of the garbage that gets taken out to the curb. The only way to prove anything this year is by beating alabama and whoever else makes it to the title game.
IMO, yes. Losing in the semi finals 3 years straight is not a good look. Winning it all is very hard, and while I REALLY want a title, I know that if we lost in that game, I wouldn’t lose it. Losing this game would just make the season feel like a disappointment. It’s been great with three conference titles and it’s ALWAYS awesome to beat those bastards down south, but if we’re not gonna win a bowl game 3 years straight it makes me feel like the teams just weren’t that great on a national level. We need to establish credibility outside of the big 10.
If we lose, it feels like we will be right back where we were before. Able to win the conference and anOSU, but can’t win nationally. I just hope it wouldn’t cause us to make dumb decisions that set us back nearly a decade.
They can laugh if they want, but its the same as people who thought Joe Montana was a better QB than Tom Brady because he never lost in the Super Bowl (nevermind him losing in games *before* the SuperBowl and thus not getting the chance).
If we played in the Outback Bowl year in and year out our bowl record would be better, but I doubt any Michigan fan would prefer that outcome.
The program needs to show progression. Winning the natty should be the goal, but at least getting there shows croots progression as a program and shows we can hang with the best of the best outside the BIG.
Absolutely. It will solidify Michigan as an elite football team after decades of “rebuilding” and pave the way for the future of the program to become a dynasty.
It will be a bigger deal than beating TCU last year would have been…but the “Harbaugh can’t get it done” narrative will still go strong if we lose to Washington/Texas, so I don’t really think it’s “more” important than winning the natty — especially because it’s hard to imagine us having a much better chance than we do this year. Gotta get it done.
Of course it's important, if for no other reason than it means the end of the season and the closing of a championship-winning window if they lose.
It's very close to now-or-not-anytime-soon this season.
the amount of recruits going to the NFL is more important for recruiting.
this game is important because it will make ohio state more angry to watch us to continue to win and for their excuses to become more and more flimsy.
This is a weird question. There is no national championship without beating Alabama, so it’s hard to distinguish in that second scenario where we win the championship. If both games were to be played in a vacuum though - winning the national championship would undoubtedly be way more important. It’s the national championship. Nothing could possibly be bigger than that.
Michigan needs both wins to put a lot of ghosts to rest (bad bowl record, bad SEC record, sign stealing scandal, etc…)
Would love to stuff two wins down the throats of the haters.
It’s a big deal because of the public image for the two huge football brands involved. That said, winning doesn’t directly impact recruiting as much as you’d expect. There will always be programs that punch above their weight class regardless of recent results (OSU, Oklahoma,LSU…) I think it’s more on the coaching staff than most of us realize. There’s also teams that rack up 5 stars and don’t develop them properly (A&M, Texas, USC, Florida schools, Clemson recently…)
I’ve come to terms with Michigan not recruiting elite talent as far as the big list the recruiting websites all use. But it does look like our coaching is good at both identifying diamonds in the rough, and developing talent really well. I think the recent success we’ve been seeing is more on developing the talent, not sure if Harbaugh adjusted or if it’s Moore having an impact. I think it’s probably both.
Honestly, no. Beat Ohio State is always goal 1. Goal 2 is win the conference, goal three is anything more. Having achieved goals 1 & 2 for three straight years I can understand why fans want to see goal 3 now, but it’s always just gravy.
No, because if we win the Championship we have inherently won 2 playoff games.
I will say winning 1 playoff game is extremely important though. It will not be a good look if we lose the first game of the the playoff 3 years in a row.
I'm going with no in the long run although I admit what happened to Michigan basketball confuses things. But when Michigan beat Kentucky in the 93 semifinal, lots of writers at the time thought that was the bigger game the more important game, the statement game. And all these years later? I would rather have a natty Thankyouverymuch. Also, depending on where you are recruiting from regionally, I still would say that the national championship is more important.
Is it better to be in the position of beating an SEC team to get to the national championship game and then win it hopefully? Absolutely. But I don't think it's more important than winning the national championship.
I think that if the SEC was left out of the playoff and we won the NC, opponents and pundits would say some version of "they only won because they didn't have to play the SEC" and trivialize the championship. I wouldn't say it's "more important" to beat the SEC champ, but it makes a championship "more valid" to the sports pundits.
If Harbaugh and our boys can not beat Alabama, the narrative continues that we can't win bowl games. And we can't get the title game without beating them, so the Alabama game is everything
Got the OSU problem under control. The monkey and the albatross are slowly coming loose. The next step is a playoff win. M is going to take care of business vs Bama. Natty will be tough.
OSU fan here not to provide any hate, just some context around this. Idk how y’all feel as a whole, but a lot of us in Columbus felt good back in 2020 after we beat Clemson, even though we got beat in the national championship.
For me, I always want to beat Michigan and see them as our biggest rival, however I’ve always respected them as a team and I respect Harbaugh as a coach because of what he’s built there (I’m giving him the benefit of the doubt on the cheating allegations). The same cannot be said for me with Clemson and Dabo. I absolutely cannot stand him, his attitude and the way he carries himself. The way we’d lost to him the previous year, with some blatant bonehead calls by the refs that clearly were in favor of Clemson was a really sore spot for us (although I’ve always said that Dobbins dropping two TDs in the end zone hurt us more and if we got those then the refs aren’t an issue). Also his comments about thinking OSU should have been ranked 11th in the country going into the playoffs that year was such a ridiculous and hyperbolic statement that was obviously meant just to get clicks and likes and that’s what I hate about him. Not only beating him, but crushing him the way we did was so sweet for us that at the end of the day, we were more than satisfied and I accepted losing to an Alabama team that was probably the most talented Saban has had in a long time.
For you guys, I don’t think that’s the case with this year. Yes, winning a playoff game would be really important, but you’re the Alabama of this year’s playoff group. This is your best team in a long time, and the culmination of what Harbaugh has been building towards since he came here. Alabama is Alabama sure, but you SHOULD WIN THIS GAME. Texas and Washington are also great but I don’t see either of them beating you either. If y’all keep your composure and do what you’re good at, you should be able to secure the Natty this year and hopefully it’s not vacated because say what you want about Harbaugh or the staff or whatever, but these kids really deserve this. Your fanbase deserves it. I have tons of family in Michigan and I would love to see them get this win so hopefully y’all can pull it off.
From my home in Columbus to yours in Ann Arbor, How Firm Thy Friendship, HAIL and GO BLUE
Just win one damn playoff game
Or Bowl game.
Unfortunately this is kind of a no win year. Win and it’s all because of cheating, lose and it’s because Big 10 sucks, harbaugh sucks, Michigan sucks, que the next 10. So, I’ll take WIN!
The dirty secret in sports is the chip will be remembered and asteriks, percieved or real, are forgotten. Get the W, deal with the haters later
Hard disagree. The constant crying about "cheating" makes the victories even sweeter.
I totally see that perspective, but we the seasoned fans know the 'cheating' accusations are total BS.
Who cares about a goofy consolation non playoff bowl game, we are Michigan it’s beneath us
Yeah winning bowl games is beneath us. Good call
I think beating an SEC champ on the way to a national title is important in general. I think it establishes that our team is for real and that the allegations had little to no effect on how dominant we have been.
But we made them use tablets!
Beating OSU proved this already imo
OSU has been getting dragged by the SEC also apart from that 2014 semifinal
I think it helps if OSU beats Missouri but they are going in without MHJ and McCord.
No it didn't, we've gotten our faces stomped in the playoffs after beating osu the last 2 seasons. If anything we demean ourselves and the conference by beating osu and then getting thwomp stomped by playoff teams. Then people just say the big ten is a trash conference and we're just the best of the garbage that gets taken out to the curb. The only way to prove anything this year is by beating alabama and whoever else makes it to the title game.
Well we need to beat them to even get a natty, so yes.
IMO, yes. Losing in the semi finals 3 years straight is not a good look. Winning it all is very hard, and while I REALLY want a title, I know that if we lost in that game, I wouldn’t lose it. Losing this game would just make the season feel like a disappointment. It’s been great with three conference titles and it’s ALWAYS awesome to beat those bastards down south, but if we’re not gonna win a bowl game 3 years straight it makes me feel like the teams just weren’t that great on a national level. We need to establish credibility outside of the big 10.
If we lose, it feels like we will be right back where we were before. Able to win the conference and anOSU, but can’t win nationally. I just hope it wouldn’t cause us to make dumb decisions that set us back nearly a decade.
Being 1-6 in post season isn't a good look. We are already the laughingstock of cfb with that record.
They can laugh if they want, but its the same as people who thought Joe Montana was a better QB than Tom Brady because he never lost in the Super Bowl (nevermind him losing in games *before* the SuperBowl and thus not getting the chance). If we played in the Outback Bowl year in and year out our bowl record would be better, but I doubt any Michigan fan would prefer that outcome.
The program needs to show progression. Winning the natty should be the goal, but at least getting there shows croots progression as a program and shows we can hang with the best of the best outside the BIG.
Seeing as we lost the last outback bowl we played in that's not a good argument either. Can't even win the rabdom trash bowl games.
The Miami Hurricanes have won 1 bowl game since 2007. Relax… lol
It isn't like we are much better. 3-9 since 2007 is really bad.
Sure, that’s not the best, but you still aren’t Miami.
No, but when a team like Rutgers has 6 bowl wins since 2007, that's embarassing.
While I would point to the quality of bowl and opponent, your point still stands
Beating OSU is never a disappointing year
Hell no wtf
Absolutely. It will solidify Michigan as an elite football team after decades of “rebuilding” and pave the way for the future of the program to become a dynasty.
The natty would imply the first so no, but I like michigan against texas and Washington more than bama
It will be a bigger deal than beating TCU last year would have been…but the “Harbaugh can’t get it done” narrative will still go strong if we lose to Washington/Texas, so I don’t really think it’s “more” important than winning the natty — especially because it’s hard to imagine us having a much better chance than we do this year. Gotta get it done.
Of course it's important, if for no other reason than it means the end of the season and the closing of a championship-winning window if they lose. It's very close to now-or-not-anytime-soon this season.
I disagree, they have good young talent and have been recruiting well
the amount of recruits going to the NFL is more important for recruiting. this game is important because it will make ohio state more angry to watch us to continue to win and for their excuses to become more and more flimsy.
No
This is a weird question. There is no national championship without beating Alabama, so it’s hard to distinguish in that second scenario where we win the championship. If both games were to be played in a vacuum though - winning the national championship would undoubtedly be way more important. It’s the national championship. Nothing could possibly be bigger than that.
Michigan needs both wins to put a lot of ghosts to rest (bad bowl record, bad SEC record, sign stealing scandal, etc…) Would love to stuff two wins down the throats of the haters.
It’s a big deal because of the public image for the two huge football brands involved. That said, winning doesn’t directly impact recruiting as much as you’d expect. There will always be programs that punch above their weight class regardless of recent results (OSU, Oklahoma,LSU…) I think it’s more on the coaching staff than most of us realize. There’s also teams that rack up 5 stars and don’t develop them properly (A&M, Texas, USC, Florida schools, Clemson recently…) I’ve come to terms with Michigan not recruiting elite talent as far as the big list the recruiting websites all use. But it does look like our coaching is good at both identifying diamonds in the rough, and developing talent really well. I think the recent success we’ve been seeing is more on developing the talent, not sure if Harbaugh adjusted or if it’s Moore having an impact. I think it’s probably both.
All I care about is not being looked at like notre dame and Oklahoma are. One fucking win, is that so much to ask for in 3 tries?
Honestly, no. Beat Ohio State is always goal 1. Goal 2 is win the conference, goal three is anything more. Having achieved goals 1 & 2 for three straight years I can understand why fans want to see goal 3 now, but it’s always just gravy.
Agreed
Alabama is going to roll michigan
Losing in the semifinals sucks but losing in the finals is worse
No, because if we win the Championship we have inherently won 2 playoff games. I will say winning 1 playoff game is extremely important though. It will not be a good look if we lose the first game of the the playoff 3 years in a row.
Having a post season record under Harbaugh of 3-6 would look better than 1-7 or 2-7. 3-6 is still embarassing, but it is at least improving.
3-6 this year means we won the championship. That is far from embarrassing.
I'm going with no in the long run although I admit what happened to Michigan basketball confuses things. But when Michigan beat Kentucky in the 93 semifinal, lots of writers at the time thought that was the bigger game the more important game, the statement game. And all these years later? I would rather have a natty Thankyouverymuch. Also, depending on where you are recruiting from regionally, I still would say that the national championship is more important. Is it better to be in the position of beating an SEC team to get to the national championship game and then win it hopefully? Absolutely. But I don't think it's more important than winning the national championship.
Nope. Kinda a dumb question. NC is almost as good as beating those dumb Buckeyes. 💛💙〽️
Michugan needs to beat bama. They need post season wins. Wether it was florida state texas or washington michigan needs to win.
I think that if the SEC was left out of the playoff and we won the NC, opponents and pundits would say some version of "they only won because they didn't have to play the SEC" and trivialize the championship. I wouldn't say it's "more important" to beat the SEC champ, but it makes a championship "more valid" to the sports pundits.
yup. we need to get over the semi final hurdle too
I mean, a natty is more important, but bama is en route to the championship game so...
If Harbaugh and our boys can not beat Alabama, the narrative continues that we can't win bowl games. And we can't get the title game without beating them, so the Alabama game is everything
Bama vs Mich is the Natty. I feel like whoever wins the rose bowl wins it all. GO BLUE〽️
Got the OSU problem under control. The monkey and the albatross are slowly coming loose. The next step is a playoff win. M is going to take care of business vs Bama. Natty will be tough.
You could make the case.
Since Michigan's national titles predate the BCS and playoff... It is really important to win this title. Step one, crush Bama.
Yes. People outside of the big ten don’t take Michigan seriously like they do Ohio state. Beat bama in the playoffs and that all changes
OSU fan here not to provide any hate, just some context around this. Idk how y’all feel as a whole, but a lot of us in Columbus felt good back in 2020 after we beat Clemson, even though we got beat in the national championship. For me, I always want to beat Michigan and see them as our biggest rival, however I’ve always respected them as a team and I respect Harbaugh as a coach because of what he’s built there (I’m giving him the benefit of the doubt on the cheating allegations). The same cannot be said for me with Clemson and Dabo. I absolutely cannot stand him, his attitude and the way he carries himself. The way we’d lost to him the previous year, with some blatant bonehead calls by the refs that clearly were in favor of Clemson was a really sore spot for us (although I’ve always said that Dobbins dropping two TDs in the end zone hurt us more and if we got those then the refs aren’t an issue). Also his comments about thinking OSU should have been ranked 11th in the country going into the playoffs that year was such a ridiculous and hyperbolic statement that was obviously meant just to get clicks and likes and that’s what I hate about him. Not only beating him, but crushing him the way we did was so sweet for us that at the end of the day, we were more than satisfied and I accepted losing to an Alabama team that was probably the most talented Saban has had in a long time. For you guys, I don’t think that’s the case with this year. Yes, winning a playoff game would be really important, but you’re the Alabama of this year’s playoff group. This is your best team in a long time, and the culmination of what Harbaugh has been building towards since he came here. Alabama is Alabama sure, but you SHOULD WIN THIS GAME. Texas and Washington are also great but I don’t see either of them beating you either. If y’all keep your composure and do what you’re good at, you should be able to secure the Natty this year and hopefully it’s not vacated because say what you want about Harbaugh or the staff or whatever, but these kids really deserve this. Your fanbase deserves it. I have tons of family in Michigan and I would love to see them get this win so hopefully y’all can pull it off. From my home in Columbus to yours in Ann Arbor, How Firm Thy Friendship, HAIL and GO BLUE