Aidan Hutchinson fires back at Ohio State after Michigan victory

Aidan Hutchinson led the Michigan Wolverines to an excellent performance over the heavily-favored Ohio State Buckeyes last weekend, giving Jim Harbaugh a 42-27 win — his first victory in the storied rivalry in seven tries — and silenced the Ohio State faithful in the process.

Michigan needed a win to keep its hopes of making the College Football Playoff alive, and it did just that. Now, all the Wolverines have to do is beat Iowa and they’re in. Hutchinson had a signature performance in leading Michigan to victory, totaling seven tackles (five solo stops) and three sacks — on top of the box-score stats, Hutchinson excelled in advanced stats, too. According to Pro Football Focus, Hutchinson had 15 quarterback pressures against Ohio State, a stat unique to the site, which is the most in a single game since PFF started tracking college stats in 2014. Suffice to say, it wasn’t a great day for Ohio State’s lines — whether the offensive or defensive line.

After the game, Hutchinson made sure that Ohio State fans heard his response. Years of losing the storied Big Ten rivalry game made the win that much greater — and same applied for the postgame press conference.

“These guys have been disrespecting us, stepping on our jerseys, talking about hanging 100, doing all that rah rah, doing all that talk,” Hutchinson said. “But we were about it today.”

Jim Harbaugh: Aidan Hutchinson belongs in Heisman Trophy conversation

“To talk a little bit about Aidan, his performance was dominant,” Harbaugh said after Michigan’s win. “Single-season sack record already, definitely should be a strong consideration for the Heisman Trophy.”

Hutchinson, a 6-foot-6, 265-pound senior from Plymouth, Michigan is having a record year, as Harbaugh noted. He has 54 tackles through 12 games, including 32 solo stops, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery and 13 sacks. Hutchinson’s 13 sacks marks a program record, surpassing LaMarr Woodley, who held the record with 12 sacks in 2006.

“One of those guys, Hassan (Haskins) or Aidan (Hutchinson), would be our most valuable player,” Harbaugh said. “They’re the ones. They’re the ones. Without them, we wouldn’t be where we are.”

Thanks to Hutchinson’s help, Michigan has the chance to make its first College Football Playoff since the tournament’s inception. All the Wolverines will have to do is win the Big Ten Championship game against Iowa and their chances of missing out would be close to zero.

“I think the crowd was the loudest I ever heard the Big House – the most invested, rightfully so, but it was such a great atmosphere,” Hutchinson said after the win. “Talk about a good group of fans.”

Hutchinson has vaulted in NFL mock drafts with his performance, and NFL analysts have even considered the possibility that the edge rusher goes first overall in the 2022 NFL Draft.

“This was it right here. I visualized fans storming the field, the goalposts coming down – I don’t think they came down – all of that,” Hutchinson said. “I was crying, we did it, and it was something I’ve been thinking about for years now.”