Game balls from Michigan's 26-0 Big Ten title win over Iowa
The Michigan Wolverines grabbed a third straight Big Ten Championship on Saturday night in Indianapolis with a 26-0 victory over the Iowa Hawkeyes. There were no shortage of standout performances in the win, which set U-M up for the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.
The Wolverine’s Anthony Broome, Clayton Sayfie and Chris Balas give out their game balls after the U-M victory.
Anthony Broome: Graduate defensive back Mike Sainristil
Two years ago when Michigan came to Indianapolis looking for Jim Harbaugh’s first Big Ten title, Mike Sainristil was playing wide receiver. Since then, he has emerged as one of the best defensive backs in all of college football and the heartbeat of the Wolverine defense. In a Big Ten bar fight with Iowa on Saturday night, the two-time Michigan captain once again flexed his big-play muscle when it was needed most.
Sainristil has shown a knack all season for coming up with a game-altering play when it presents itself. Given Iowa’s pathetic offense, the Wolverines were never truly in danger of losing Saturday’s game. But when things were tight, Sainristil stepped up and forced a pair of fumbles that helped him earn game MVP honors.
You do not hear a lot about his transition to defensive back these days because he looks like a natural out there and is a disruptive presence on the back end. If Michigan is going to survive what appears to be a balanced CFP playoff field, it will keep leaning on timely plays from its defensive leader.
Clayton Sayfie: Senior running back Blake Corum
On Dec. 2 a year ago, Michigan senior running back Blake Corum was ready to go into surgery after suffering a knee injury two weeks prior.
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On Dec. 2 this year, Corum was in his element, a captain leading his Wolverines to their third straight Big Ten championship. Most of the guys on the roster don’t know anything but winning titles at this point, and the Maize and Blue dominated with a 26-0 win thanks to great defense, field goals and a pair of Corum touchdowns — from 2 and 6 yards out, respectively.
Corum is now tied with Anthony Thomas with 55 rushing touchdowns, the most in a career by a Michigan Wolverine in the modern era. Tonight, he surpassed 1,000 yards for the season, becoming the first Wolverine to have back-to-back 1,000-yard rushing campaigns since Denard Robinson in 2010 and 2011. The 5-foot-8, 213-pounder wasn’t planning on being here at this time last year, but plans change. And from the way he talks, there’s nowhere he’d rather be, and as Corum said postgame, the job’s not finished.
Chris Balas: Freshman wide receiver Semaj Morgan
Saturday night’s game started out slowly for both teams, but it was the freshman wide receiver from Belleville, Mich., who injected some life into the team and the fan base in the first quarter. Morgan — who appeared in a punt return role for the first time this season — had an 87-yard return that set up Michigan’s first touchdown of the night. He could have scored but ran out of gas toward the end and had to watch Corum score a few plays later.
Morgan brings some sizzle and flair to a Michigan squad that will need it during this College Football Playoff run. He has a bright future in Ann Arbor.
