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Michigan posts back-to-back top-three finishes in AP poll for first time since 1947-48

clayton-sayfieby:Clayton Sayfie•01/10/23•

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(Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)

Michigan Wolverines football went 13-0, won the Big Ten title and fell to runner-up TCU in the College Football Playoff semifinal, finishing No. 3 in the final Associated Press poll of the 2022 campaign. National champion Georgia topped the rankings, followed by No. 2 TCU. Ohio State, which fell to the Bulldogs in the other semifinal matchup, rounded out the top four.

Michigan ended with an identical ranking last season. Its back-to-back top-three finishes are the program’s first since 1947-48, when it placed second and first, respectively. It’s only the second time the Wolverines have ever accomplished the feat, with the AP poll beginning in 1936.

The Wolverines have now concluded top three in 10 different campaigns — 2022 (3), 2021 (3), 1997 (1), 1985 (2), 1976 (3), 1974 (3), 1948 (1), 1947 (2), 1943 (3) and 1940 (3). It’s also important to note that Michigan also claimed national titles in 1901, 1902, 1903, 1904, 1928, 1923, 1932 and 1933, in addition to 1947, 1948 and 1997.

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Michigan’s 13 wins stand as the most for a single season in program history. Its 25 victories over the last two years are the highest amount ever by the Wolverines in a two-year span.

The Wolverines blew through the Big Ten, winning nine regular-season conference games, plus a triumph over Purdue in the championship. The run included two wins over top-seven opponents — No. 4 Ohio State (45-23) and No. 7 Penn State (41-17). The Maize and Blue beat all of Ohio State, Michigan State and Penn State in the same season for the first time since 2000. They took down all three opponents by 20-plus points in the same year for the first time ever.

No other Big Ten team appeared in the final AP poll rankings, though Minnesota (35), Iowa (4), Purdue (3), Maryland (2) and Illinois (1) each received at least one vote.

With his eighth season having concluded, Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh has now won 74 games at the helm, the fourth-most in program history, and his .747 winning percentage ranks fifth among U-M coaches with 90-plus games. The Wolverines have suffered 25 losses under Harbaugh.

Michigan has the seventh-most victories among all college football teams since Harbaugh was hired ahead of the 2015 season (74). The Wolverines rank second in the Big Ten behind Ohio State (90).

Here’s a look at the final top 25 of the season, released by the AP following Georgia’s 65-7 beatdown of TCU in the title game.

Final AP poll top 25 rankings of 2022 season: Michigan slots No. 3

1. Georgia

2. TCU

3. Michigan

4. Ohio State

5. Alabama

6. Tennessee

7. Penn State

8. Washington

9. Tulane

10. Utah

11. Florida State

12. USC

13. Clemson

14. Kansas State

15. Oregon

16. LSU

17. Oregon State

18. Notre Dame

19. Troy

20. Mississippi State

21. UCLA

22. Pittsburgh

23. South Carolina

24. Fresno State

25. Texas

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