What they're saying after Michigan football's Big Ten title win and the CFP opponent

The Michigan Wolverines are 13-0 and winners of a third-straight Big Ten Championship after a 26-0 win over Iowa on Saturday night in Indianapolis. But that was just the appetizer to come with Sunday officially revealing the College Football Playoff field.

Michigan could very well be the No. 1 seed when the field is revealed, but there is plenty of fluidity remaining in who will be seeded where and potential opponents.

With the dust settling on the Big Ten Championship game, here is a look around the nation with reactions from Saturday and what’s to come next.

Ryan Van Bergen, The Wolverine postgame

Wolverine TV podcast: Michigan out-Iowas the Hawkeyes in Big Ten title threepeat
“What an effort by the defense and special teams, most especially to get this win and not have a falloff after arguably one of the biggest Michigan/Ohio State games that we’ve ever had and one of the most impactful games that we’ve ever had. Even though it’s a Big Ten Championship Game, I think it’d be very easy for Michigan to come in here without maturity or leadership and not get up or not get momentum early in this game, allow Iowa to hang around longer than what they should have and make this a game. Credit to the Michigan team, the Michigan defense specifically.

“I think the defense just played out of their minds, but credit to these guys and their leadership and their maturity for being in this moment and having the composure to beat a really solid Iowa team that is good, at least defensively and on special teams. They are completely in the driver’s seat with some of the things that transpired today. I’m sure there’ll be some people waiting to see what happens on Selection Sunday, but Michigan has their ticket punched and all signs are pointing towards we will be the number one seed.

“But it’s one of those things that I don’t want to move on to the playoff just yet and enjoy this win and be excited about where we are as a program. A threepeat is a huge deal. I want to enjoy that, but I guess we’ll take the end of tonight now that it’s Sunday to enjoy this win and then look forward to where we’re going with the playoff.”

Chris Balas, The Wolverine

Michigan 26, Iowa 0: Notes, quotes, and observations

First things first after a 26-0 Michigan win over Iowa in the Big Ten championship game Saturday night … 

No apologies. Zero. Never, in fact, when you win a championship, even if the final had been 6-4 (and frankly, we’re surprised Iowa didn’t lose a game that way this year as inept as the offense was. Yes, it’s even worse in person). 

For the third straight year, Michigan suffocated an opposing offense in the second half and cruised to the Big Ten championship. The garbage “sign stealing” narrative has disappeared faster than Ryan Day’s declaration of toughness, and watching conference commissioner Tony Petitti awkwardly hand the trophy to injured Michigan guard Zak Zinter — head coach Jim Harbaugh insisted on it — made sitting through 60 minutes of relatively painful football worth it.

Quarterback J.J. McCarthy was held in check, for the most part, and so was the Michigan offense (213(!) yards). And yet there was never the sense the Wolverines had even the slightest chance to lose.

“Uncharacteristically we had some drops, and uncharacteristically we had some protection issues and things that we’ll work on,” Harbaugh said. “And definitely, Zak [Zinter] was missed. [But McCarthy] never hung his head. He never got on anybody. He has just got this demeanor, and the more you hit him, the more he is just motivated to come back, which is amazing.

“… We’re just going to enjoy this one. We’re going to enjoy this one for a few days. The team will have a week off, but our mind will get on a one-track mind to move on to the playoffs and find out who we’re going to play. Then the team still has more goals to accomplish.”

ESPN.com’s staff predicts the CFP

Andrea Adelson: 1. Michigan, 2. Washington, 3. Florida State, 4. Texas
Blake Baumgartner: 1. Washington, 2. Michigan, 3. Texas, 4. Alabama
Kyle Bonagura: 1. Michigan, 2. Washington, 3. Florida State, 4. Texas
Bill Connelly: 1. Michigan, 2. Washington, 3. Florida State, 4. Texas
Heather Dinich: 1. Michigan, 2. Washington, 3. Texas, 4. Alabama
David Hale: 1. Washington, 2. Michigan, 3. Florida State, 4. Texas
Chris Low: 1. Washington, 2. Michigan, 3. Texas, 4. Alabama
Harry Lyles Jr.: 1. Michigan, 2. Washington, 3. Florida State, 4. Texas
Ryan McGee: 1. Washington, 2. Michigan, 3. Texas, 4. Alabama
Adam Rittenberg: 1. Washington, 2. Michigan, 3. Texas, 4. Florida State
Alex Scarborough: 1. Washington, 2. Michigan, 3. Texas, 4. Alabama
Mark Schlabach: 1. Michigan, 2. Washington, 3. Texas, 4. Alabama
Paolo Uggetti: 1. Washington, 2. Michigan, 3. Texas, 4. Florida State
Tom VanHaaren: 1. Washington, 2. Michigan, 3. Texas, 4. Florida State
Dave Wilson: 1. Washington, 2. Michigan, 3. Texas, 4. Alabama

Heather Dinich, ESPN.com

Wolverines the projected No. 1 seed in the CFP
The undefeated Wolverines punctuated their résumé with a Big Ten title against No. 16 Iowa, and they did it on a night when the committee’s No. 1 team, Georgia, lost to Alabama in the SEC championship game. Michigan’s best wins are against No. 6 Ohio State, No. 10 Penn State and now Iowa. The Wolverines have had an edge in the committee meeting room over the other undefeated teams, and nothing that happened during championship weekend is likely to change that. One advantage to having the No. 1 overall seed: The selection committee will not put the top seed at a geographic disadvantage in a CFP semifinal.

Mark Schlabach and Kyle Bonagura, ESPN.com

Final bowl projections have Michigan in the Rose Bowl
CFP National Championship presented by AT&T
NRG Stadium (Houston)
Monday, Jan. 8, 7:30 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Michigan vs. Washington
Schlabach: Alabama vs. Texas

CFP Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game presented by Prudential
Rose Bowl (Pasadena, California)
Monday, Jan. 1, 5 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Texas vs. Michigan
Schlabach: Alabama vs. Michigan

CFP Semifinal at the Allstate Sugar Bowl
Caesars Superdome (New Orleans)
Monday, Jan. 1, 8:45 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Florida State vs. Washington
Schlabach: Texas vs. Washington

Austin Meek, The Athletic

With another Big Ten title to savor, Michigan brings its CFP goals and questions into focus
The Wolverines didn’t dazzle on offense, but they still beat the No. 16 team in the CFP rankings by 26 points. We’ll find out Sunday whether that’s enough to keep Michigan ahead of Washington in what looks like a two-team race for the top spot.

It all comes down to how much separation the committee saw between No. 2 Michigan and No. 3 Washington and whether the Huskies’ victory against Oregon was enough to close the gap. If Michigan is the No. 1 seed, the Wolverines likely will play in the Rose Bowl against whichever team wins the coin flip for the No. 4 seed. (It’s not actually a coin flip. At least I don’t think so.)

My gut feeling is that Michigan did enough to stay ahead of the Huskies, which would be significant if Florida State is the No. 4 seed. On paper, playing the Seminoles in Pasadena would be Michigan’s most desirable path to the CFP championship game.

“We’ve been in the position before,” wide receiver Cornelius Johnson said. “Now we’ve just got to do what we haven’t done.”

David Ubben, The Athletic

The CFP committee has to do the unpopular thing and exclude the SEC
The Playoff field should be Michigan and Washington as obvious candidates, along with Texas and Florida State.

The committee can’t make the case Alabama is better than Texas and it shouldn’t make the case Florida State is less deserving. A zero in the loss column has to mean something, and Florida State didn’t cook up a cupcake schedule to get it.

The games have to matter. Florida State’s 13 wins have to matter. If they don’t, what’s the point of the season? Just take Georgia and Alabama and give them a direct pass to the Playoff every single season as a reward for their unbelievable run on the recruiting trail and ability to assemble world-class rosters.

I don’t particularly want to see Florida State in the Playoff. Their win over Louisville was ugly, though Tate Rodemaker may return from a head injury for the semifinals in a month.

But it’s truly a twisted form of logic to argue a team that beat a top-15 opponent with their third-string quarterback is evidence in favor of keeping them out of the Playoff.

Florida State cannot be excluded.

Shehan Jeyarajah, Chip Patterson, David Cobb, CBS Sports

Michigan their projected No. 1 seed in the CFP
There’s little reason to overthink this. Michigan has consistently been treated with a different level of respect than Washington — before the Wolverines even played quality opponents. UM’s 26-0 win over Iowa was ugly but provides enough justification to keep it on top. Florida State didn’t look impressive offensively against Louisville, but ignoring a 13-0 season and three ranked wins because the Seminoles dealt with multiple injuries would be ridiculous. Jordan Travis isn’t coming back, but both backups will have a full month of first-team reps with their NFL-caliber receiver corps to get ready for primetime. There should be no question about whether the Noles — an undefeated power conference champion — get in. Texas went on the road and beat Alabama by 10 points. The games should matter. The Longhorns have the combination of power and resume to reach the field for the first time.

Pat Forde, Sports Illustrated

Michigan Is Going to the Playoff. Who Joins the Wolverines Is Anyone’s Guess
Prior to Saturday night, the only Championship Week development that made the committee’s job any easier this year was Washington beating Oregon. If the Ducks and Huskies had both finished 12–1, that would have added another team to the equation. At kickoff of the Big Ten and ACC games after 8 p.m. ET, Washington was the only team that could feel sure it was in the field.

The Seminoles staggered through their title game. The Wolverines didn’t exactly roll, but they also were never threatened by an Iowa team that was dragged down by the nation’s worst offense.

Given the predictable mismatch, a lot of Iowa fans didn’t bother coming to Indy. Instead, a huge Michigan crowd overran the city and took the vast majority of seats in the stadium. They got what they came for, and now will aim for something bigger.

Michigan rolls into the playoff for the third straight year and is 13–0 for the second straight season. Only two other schools have made three or more straight playoff fields: Alabama (five straight from 2014–18) and Clemson (six straight from ‘15–20).

But Michigan also is 0–2 in the playoff, having been punked by Georgia in 2021 and stunned by TCU in ’22. Those were humbling losses after breaking through the Ohio State firewall. The expectations will be for more this time around.