College Football Week 14 Winners and Losers: Michigan, Ohio State Lead

Michigan 13, Ohio State 10.

Looking back at how each team reached the last Saturday in November, there was almost nothing to suggest the Wolverines would pull off this upset.

But there were two factors that appeared to be overlooked. One thing was history: Michigan had won three straight in this rivalry and humiliated Ohio State so much that the No. 2 Buckeyes essentially reinvented themselves to regain a foothold in the series.

Another was Michigan’s defense. While this group didn’t quite reach the standard set a year ago, it led the Wolverines to the postseason without being helped by one of the worst offenses in modern program history.

History, defense, key plays in crucial moments, the ability to ultimately dictate the flow of the game despite Ohio State’s best efforts, another dominant fourth quarter – that’s how the Wolverines pulled off something that would go down as one of the biggest upsets in the rivalry’s history .

For Michigan, the victory overwrites an often miserable year under new coach Sherrone Moore. His tenure now has a defining moment where he can lay the foundation for a future Big Ten or national champion.

In the near future, the Buckeyes will not reach the conference championship game. No. 1 Oregon will instead face No. 4 Penn State, which closed the regular season with a win over Maryland. If Ohio State doesn’t play for the Big Ten crown, it will have to contend with the final College Football Playoff rankings and see where its postseason journey begins.

And overall, this is a nightmare moment for coach Ryan Day. He is the first Ohio State coach to lose four straight times to Michigan since John Cooper from 1988 to 1991 and the first coach to lose to an unranked Michigan team since Cooper in 1993.

BURN TIME?:The recent loss at Michigan brings Ohio State’s Ryan Day under fire

This is the worst loss of Day’s tenure and one of the Buckeyes’ worst losses in this series. Despite his success in the regular season against teams other than the Wolverines, Day may never make it past this game.

The Buckeyes, Wolverines and South Carolina list Saturday’s winners and losers:

winner

Michigan

Michigan should play a bowl game in Charlotte, Nashville or Tampa, while Ohio State might end up in the playoffs, so the Buckeyes could end up having the last laugh. That’s right: The Wolverines will laugh at the Buckeyes’ expense for another year after winning the fourth quarter, continuing one of the prevailing themes of this four-game winning streak. In 2021, Michigan has outscored OSU 75-31 in the second half.

South Carolina

With his team trailing 14-10 with just over a minute left, South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers muscled his way through Clemson’s No. 12 defense for a 20-yard touchdown run, completing the 17-14 victory the Gamecocks and an incredible run through the second half of the regular season. No. 14 South Carolina finished with six straight wins, including four against ranked opponents, and is now in position to secure a wonderful playoff spot with some help from the Power Four. In a life-or-death battle for both teams, the Gamecocks intercepted Cade Klubnik on the final possession of the game and won in Death Valley for the second straight year.

Clemson

But Clemson is also a winner in some ways. Despite the loss in the rivalry game, the Tigers will advance to the ACC Championship Game due to No. 6 Miami’s loss to Syracuse. After all that, Clemson could return to the playoffs by defeating No. 9 SMU and winning the ACC for the seventh time in nine years.

Tennessee and Notre Dame

These two prominent playoff contenders secured the conclusion of the regular season with rivalry victories. Nico Iamaleava had four touchdown passes to spark No. 8 Tennessee’s 36-23 win over Vanderbilt. Later Saturday afternoon, the Fighting Irish outscored No. 5 Southern California 21-7 in the third quarter and returned two field-length interceptions for touchdowns in the fourth quarter to win 49-35. The Irish are capable of hosting a playoff opponent in the opening round. The Volunteers could do the same, depending on what happens in next week’s conference championship games.

loser

The ACC

The 42-38 loss to Syracuse puts No. 6 Miami’s playoff hopes in dire straits. But they’re not entirely dead, not given the chaos that’s ensued in the SEC and the lack of contenders with fewer than three losses. We’ll know where Miami really stands based on Tuesday night’s penultimate playoff rankings. The Hurricanes’ case rests on at least five wins against bowl teams, led by wins against Duke and Louisville. Broadly speaking, though, it’s the story of the ACC: Clemson and Miami losing on Saturday most likely makes this a one-bid league for the playoffs.

Ryan Day

It’s hard to describe how disastrous Saturday was for Day, who overachieved at Ohio State in every way except the two important ones: beating the Wolverines and winning national championships. He may still have a chance to achieve the latter thanks to the playoff expansion. But regardless of what happens in the next two months, this loss to Michigan will one day never be overcome. While the idea of him being replaced after this year remains difficult to imagine, Day must at least beat Michigan in the 2025 season, play for the Big Ten crown and advance deep into the playoffs to secure his future with the Buckeyes .

Kansas

The second-half magic ended just short of the finish line for Kansas, which won three straight ranked victories over Iowa State, Brigham Young and Colorado but lost 45-21 to Baylor, falling just short of bowl eligibility. The Jayhawks trailed 21-10 at halftime, but allowed three touchdown drives of at least 62 yards in the third quarter and trailed 42-17 early in the third quarter. This was the first game of the year to get out of hand: the Jayhawks’ remaining six losses resulted in a combined 30 points.

College Football Week 14 Winners and Losers: Michigan, Ohio State Lead

ByAmelia Pressman

By Amelia Pressman

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