What they're saying after Michigan's statement win at Penn State

The Michigan Wolverines moved to 10-0 on the year with a 24-15 win over the Penn State Nittany Lions on Saturday afternoon in Happy Valley. Coming off an extremely hectic week, especially at the end of it with head coach Jim Harbaugh’s suspension, there were plenty of reactions from across the college football world.

The performance drew plenty of reaction from local and national voices. Here is a sampling of what prominent outlets were saying after Michigan’s statement of victory

Ryan Van Bergen, The Wolverine podcast

“No Jim Harbaugh, all the distractions in the world and this team to me, just like you said, proved why I think there’s so much attention on them and why there are so many people around us trying to tear the Michigan program down. This team came out in the second half and I don’t know if I’ve ever seen it before, but had no pass attempts that counted. We got the one pass interference call, but no pass attempts that counted and took it to a Penn State team that James Franklin is quoted as earlier this year saying was one of the best defenses in the country, which I don’t know that I disagree with him, but to be one dimensional and let them know what you’re going to do in their place on a team that has the self-proclaimed best defense in the country.

“I couldn’t be more proud of not just the way that these guys got it done, but the fashion in which they did it and the circumstances in which they were able to achieve it. Not enough can be said about what this team has been able to do, considering all of the different things occurring around them that are not football-related, that are trying to take this team down.

“So super proud as an alum, super proud as a guy that wore the helmet and I’m just on the edge of emotional for these guys, for this win.”

Chris Balas, The Wolverine

Michigan 24, PSU 15: Notes, quotes, and observations … ‘you needed it — you got it’

Michigan interim coach Sherrone Moore finally felt the pressure lift in the waning moments of a 24-15 U-M win at Penn State, and the emotions took over. He was shouldering a mass of them, and not just for himself, suspended head coach Jim Harbaugh or the program. They included those of an entire fan base, alumni base, and everyone else who saw the smear campaign against a group of coaches and players who have been so dominant the last few years that a few networks have gone so far as to promote the narrative, “they only won because they cheated.”

Networks shamefully put graphics up of the years prior compared to the last three as “evidence” they only won because they stole signs by illegally scouting games in person, and their talking heads beat on them and their character relentlessly. Some even dragged Blake Corum‘s name through the mud because of a document found with his name next to alleged sign-stealing mastermind Connor Stalions, convinced the mob to follow their lead … and in doing so, squarely put the pressure on Michigan to “prove us wrong.”

Moore didn’t want to comment on the “only won because they cheated” angle, and he didn’t. But senior running back Corum, his face bloodied and heart still pounding after carrying 26 times for 145 yards and 2 scores, said it for him.

“You needed it,” he said to those who tried to explain away their success. “You got it.”

ESPN.com staff weighs in with CFP picks

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

David Hale, ESPN.com

College football Week 11 highlights: Top plays, games, takeaways
Michigan played its fourth game of the season without head coach Jim Harbaugh. Harbaugh began serving his second suspension of the season after the Big Ten imposed a three-game ban for breaking sportsmanship rules against on-site scouting of opponents’ signs. And the Wolverines played, for the first time this season, against an opponent that actually seemed as if it might have a shot to win.

All of this constituted potentially seismic shifts in the Big Ten’s power structure, and yet, when the dust settled on Michigan’s 24-15 win, we were left with the same story we’ve seen all season.

Michigan won, and although the game was ostensibly close for much of the way, the Wolverines were never in real danger.

Penn State lost, and James Franklin is now 4-16 against Michigan and Ohio State in his career in Happy Valley.

Harbaugh’s future remains in doubt, but his impact was felt all the same, as Michigan’s players spent Friday on social media promising to send a message and spent Saturday on the field at Beaver Stadium emphatically punishing Penn State for perceived crimes against them levied by — well, as their beanies and T-shirts indicated, everybody.

(If you’re keeping track, it’s “Michigan vs Everybody” and “Ohio State vs. the world.” We’re not entirely sure either side wants to take on the SEC, though.)

Austin Meek, The Athletic

At Penn State, Michigan didn’t need Jim Harbaugh, a judge or a sign-stealer to keep rolling
Michigan didn’t need a judge, a jury, a sign-stealer, a passing game or even its coach.

The No. 3 Wolverines had everything they needed to beat No. 10 Penn State 24-15 Saturday at Beaver Stadium, capping what might have been the strangest week in Michigan history. This will be remembered as the week Michigan and the Big Ten went to war, the week Jim Harbaugh got suspended, the week Michigan players showed up at the stadium hoping for a last-minute court order that would allow Harbaugh to join them.

The ruling didn’t come. The Wolverines rolled anyway. Afterward, defensive tackle Cam Goode held up a dry-erase board with the message “Don’t have 2 cheat 2 win.” Sherrone Moore, Michigan’s acting head coach, burst into tears during an emotional postgame interview on Fox.

“I want to thank the Lord,” Moore said. “I want to thank coach Harbaugh. I f—ing love you, man. I love the s— out of you, man.”

Michigan already has the NCAA and the Big Ten on its tail. Why not the FCC, too? After everything the Wolverines have been through, the colorful language was the least of their worries.

Stewart Mandell, The Athletic

Mandel’s Final Thoughts: Michigan, Georgia erasing all doubt they belong on another level
I never bought the notion that because Michigan “hadn’t played anybody,” we had no idea how good they were. It’s hard to win every week in this sport by any margin, and the Wolverines won each of their first nine games by at least 24 points. Remarkably, they had not had to defend a play inside their own 10-yard line. And they did nothing Saturday to cast doubt on their lofty ranking. Quarterback J.J. McCarthy only attempted eight passes Saturday, but I’m fairly confident he can complete passes when necessary.

If anything, Saturday was a nice reminder that they still have Blake Corum. The top-10 Heisman vote getter last season notched season-highs with 26 carries for 145 yards, while scoring two TDs.

No. 3 Michigan (10-0, 7-0 Big Ten) will be favored to beat No. 1 Ohio State (10-0, 7-0) when the Buckeyes come to Ann Arbor in a couple weeks and if it wins will have a chance to compete for the natty … which is precisely why it’s going to court.

Nicole Auerbach, The Athletic

Auerbach’s Top 10: Alabama over Texas? Oregon over Washington? November providing clarity
There’s not much to say about the Wolverines that hasn’t already been said, either by Michigan or by its perceived enemies. This team experienced just about every possible emotion in the 24 hours leading up to their 24-15 win at Penn State, capped off by acting head coach Sherrone Moore telling suspended head coach Jim Harbaugh that he “f—ing” loved him, tears streaming down his face, during his on-field postgame interview with Fox’s Jenny Taft. There’s a lot to unpack, but let’s keep it to the field for a second.

Michigan is a very good football team, and it finally got a chance to prove it against an elite defense in a tough environment. While countless treatises will be written on Penn State’s frustrating offense in the weeks and months to come, this game offered a great deal to be learned about Michigan. After relying on an improved, efficient passing game for three-quarters of the season, it was time for the Wolverines’ run game to shine. And it did. Blake Corum (26 carries, 145 yards, two touchdowns) can run the ball for more than five yards at a time after all. That’s huge! Quarterback J.J. McCarthy didn’t need to win this game with his arm, though he probably will in some game down the road.

I’m swapping my Nos. 1 and 2 this week mostly because the Georgia team we expected to see all year has finally showed up, but also because there’s still so much uncertainty about the Wolverines — even if Harbaugh can prepare his teams for games he can’t attend in the final two weeks of the regular season. We’ll see what happens in court this week.

(That’s not a sentence I expected to type in a top-10 ranking, but here we are.)

Shehan Jeyarajah, CBS Sports

College football winners, losers in Week 11: Michigan drowns out the noise, Oklahoma State falls flat
Few in college football can understand the chaos that Michigan has experienced over the past 24 hours. The question of Jim Harbaugh’s status hung over the program until, quite literally, moments before the game started. The coach’s suspension was handed down on Friday while the team was on its flight to face No. 10 Penn State.

Yet amid all the drama, Michigan came out and stood tall. The Wolverines took a 14-3 lead in the second quarter against Penn State and would never surrender. Michigan rushed for 227 yards and three touchdowns behind a breakout performance from senior Blake Corum, and needed just eight passes from quarterback J.J. McCarthy to pull off a win.

After the game, Wolverines players and coaches were emotional. The performance was focused and impressive. Michigan remains a force to be reckoned with in the Big Ten, and a marquee matchup with No. 1 Ohio State remains circled to end the year.