ESPN Moves Michigan Football Down In Latest Rankings

Michigan football struggled on the road against the Maryland Terrapins on Saturday, earning a 31-24 win all said and done. While the Wolverines’ offense stuttered, and the team needed a pair of special teams scores and a scoop-and-score defensive touchdown, they still managed to get the job done, earning their 11th win of the season and their 1,000th win in program history. Still, the latest ESPN Football Power Index rankings were not too impressed, now jumping Ohio State back to No. 1 heading into “The Game” next Saturday.

ESPN Football Power Index moves Michigan football down following Maryland win

In six days, Michigan football and Ohio State will clash for the fourth time in the Ryan Day-Jim Harbaugh era. So far, Harbaugh is 2-1 against Day, earning back-to-back blowout wins in 2021 and 2022. Last year, the No. 3 Wolverines marched into Columbus and crushed the No. 2 Buckeyes 45-23 en route to a second-straight Big Ten title and College Football Playoff berth — this year’s game has all the same similarities, yet will be hosted in Ann Arbor, MI.

Ohio State back to No. 1 heading into “The Game”

Last weekend, when Michigan downed No. 10 Penn State on the road 24-15, the ESPN Football Power Index jumped the Jim Harbaugh-less Michigan Wolverines to No. 1 in their rankings. Still, with Ohio State cruising past Minnesota and Michigan failing to impress against unranked Maryland yesterday, ESPN has moved the Wolverines down a spot heading into “The Game.”

That said, Michigan and Ohio State are still No. 1 and No. 2 in the FPI rankings, respectively. It’s also worth noting that the FPI likes Michigan’s odds against the Buckeyes next weekend, giving the Maize and Blue a 54.9% chance of victory at the Big House — if correct, it would be the Wolverines’ second-straight 12-0 season, and they would face Iowa, who won their division yesterday, in the Big Ten title game the following weekend.

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