Michigan has lost once in 2 years. How it fueled the Wolverines to this title game
Now that they are one year removed from it, the Michigan football players who were a part of the team that lost to TCU in the Fiesta Bowl can be honest about all of it.
“We underestimated them,” Michigan wide receiver Tyler Morris said Saturday. “Look at any of our interviews before we played them; we talked about their defense and how we were going to run through them.
“We didn’t give them that respect. They were in the playoffs just like us, and they didn’t get there by a fluke. They came out and they wanted it more and played better. We still talk about that loss.”
No. 3 TCU’s 51-45 win over No. 2 Michigan in the Fiesta Bowl on Dec. 31, 2022 will remain the greatest upset in the history of the four-team college football playoff. TCU was a 7.5-point underdog, and never trailed in the game.
On Saturday, the Michigan players met with the media in downtown Houston, two days before Michigan will play Washington in the national title game. Wearing hindsight’s 20/20 glasses, the Michigan players addressed TCU’s greatest moment in the modern era of major college athletics that was one of the lower times for Michigan.
“We can all say we didn’t play our best game,” Michigan tight end Colston Loveland said. “We should have won that game; we made mistakes, and they beat us fair and square. I wouldn’t say it was a fluke, because ultimately we didn’t win.
“We got out-played. Whether it was a lack of focus or lack of attention to detail on our part, but that’s kinda erased from our memory now. When spring ball started, any time anybody gets lackadaisical, just think back to that time. We never want that feeling again.”
They haven’t had it.
No. 1 Michigan has not lost since, and will play No. 2 Washington for the title. Michigan is 27-1 in the last two years.
The Michigan players across the board all agreed that loss to TCU stuck with them all year. Nearly all of them agree that the loss wasn’t a fluke; that TCU simply got ‘em.
“We were looking ahead a little bit,” Michigan defensive lineman Braiden McGregor said. “We said we were locked in and focused, but we were so focused on Georgia for what they did to us the year before, we looked past (TCU).”
Michigan’s problem was two-fold:
Problem No. 1: Georgia was on their minds.
In the 2021 Orange Bowl and college football national semifinal, Georgia kicked around Michigan 34-11. This wasn’t a close game; UGA led 27-3 at the half, and the Bulldogs won the national title the next week.
When Michigan returned to the national semifinal in 2022, the players figured they would have another shot against Georgia. Georgia would play Ohio State in the other semifinal.
Problem No. 2: that 2022 TCU team was good.
TCU jumped on Michigan, and led 21-6 at the half.
“We weren’t prepared. We were very sloppy in that game. We deserved to lose,” Michigan linebacker Junior Coleman said. “We didn’t deserve that win. I can’t bash them.”
Both teams committed three turnovers, but TCU returned two interceptions for touchdowns. On two different possessions in the first half, Michigan reached the TCU 2-yard line and did not score a point.
Every time Michigan pushed and looked like it might take the lead, TCU pushed back.
After Michigan cut the deficit to 41-38 early in the fourth quarter, TCU quarterback Max Duggan flipped a third-down pass to receiver Quentin Johnston that he took 76-yards for a touchdown with 13:07 remaining.
Michigan would never seriously threaten again.
TCU ran for 263 yards, and rolled up 488 yards of total offense. This was all against a defense that ranked seventh in the country, and allowed an average 16.1 points per game.
Any way you want to slice what was one of the most exciting games in college football history, TCU beat Michigan.
And the Michigan players know it.
“I would not say it was a fluke, but I would say it prepared us for this year and to be where we are now, definitely,” Michigan defensive back Will Johnson said. “The attention to detail; learning from our mistakes we made (against TCU).”
One week after that loss, most of the Michigan players didn’t bother paying attention to the national championship game between Georgia and TCU. They didn’t want to watch, or follow, a game they planned to play.
One year later, Michigan is in the title game and can look back at its one loss in two years as anything but a fluke.
They just got beat.
This story was originally published January 6, 2024 at 3:02 PM.
