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Fun. This is the only word to use when talking about Week 11 of college football. While Week 10 had some great games, Week 11 just saw a lot of fun, high-scoring games.
While Georgia vs. Mississippi was never close and Missouri dismantled Tennessee, there were some games that turned out the way we had hoped.
From Michigan defeating Penn State in a close game without Jim Harbaugh to Utah vs. Washington coming down to the final drive. We were lucky to have these games this week as Week 12 looks to be a dud of a slate. The SEC plays its usual late-season gimme game and we still have to wait another seven days for Ohio State vs. Michigan. Let’s look at three of the most exciting games of Week 11 in our review.
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No. 2 Michigan Wolverines: 24, No. 12 Penn State Nittany Lions: 15
After starting slow with two straight punts, Michigan made Jim Harbaugh proud by Bringing in extra offensive linemen and just deciding to run the ball down the throat of the Nittany Lions offense. While J.J. McCarthy finished with just 8 pass attempts for the game, the Wolverines spent the second half of the game running the ball. 32 straight running plays is how Michigan played in the second half. There was one pass play. But this ended in a defensive pass interference penalty -- a penalty that caused it not to be deemed a play in the books.
After the game, Blake Corum, who finished with 145 yards and two touchdowns on 26 rushes, was completely bloodied by the physical manner in which Michigan decided to play. He did not seem to mind though. This was not an exciting game if you love offense.
This was a classic Big Ten battle with neither team getting past 300 yards of offense with Michigan getting to 287 and Penn State only getting 238. But it turned out to be the game Michigan wanted to play. After running for more than 400 yards on Penn State in 2022, Michigan again found its only success by running the ball with McCarthy having just 70 passing yards on the day.
This was the final straw for James Franklin as he fired offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich on Sunday. With games remaining against Rutgers and Michigan State, Penn State will be fine for the rest of the season. It must hope to find the answer at the position this offseason though as this will be the sixth offensive coordinator in the 10 years Franklin has been at the helm of the Nittany Lions.
For Michigan, they finally passed a legitimate test after a brutally easy start to the season. Another easy game comes this week against Maryland before its final and the most difficult test will come against Ohio State in two weeks. Win out and the Wolverines will again make the playoffs. A loss against Ohio State and it will be difficult for them to make it without help from others.
No. 5 Washington Huskies: 35, No. 16 Utah Utes: 28
For a 10-minute period at the end of the first quarter and into the second quarter, Utah QB Bryson Barnes played like -- well like Michael Pennix. He led the Utes to four straight touchdown drives and gave Utah a 28-24 lead heading into halftime. But 28 points is not enough points to outscore Washington and no points came forth in the second half of the game for Utah. With Washington able to put up 11 points, Utah’s upset bid came up just short.
The Utes had a chance to tie the game on the final drive. Unfortunately, they came up just short and Washington escaped to live another day as an undefeated team.
Utah is now out of contention for the Pac-12 title game. But Washington is very much alive as it will take on Oregon State on the road this week. An Oregon State team that just defeated Stanford 62-17 on Saturday. If the Huskies can pull off a win there, their final game will be against a Washington State team that has fallen off a cliff in recent games.
Utah will continue to follow the lead of its head coach Kyle Whittingham and play hard. But there is nothing to play for except pride at this point for the Utes.
No. 6 Oregon Ducks: 36, USC Trojans: 27
Oregon made this game closer than it appeared at the end. With a game next week against Arizona State and a final game against Oregon State the following week, the Ducks took a big lead and decided to coast the rest of the way.
Scoring was not an issue for Oregon. Against a USC defense that has allowed 34.5 points/game this season and who just fired defensive coordinator Alex Grinch, Oregon jumped out to a 38-14 lead. After the backups went in, USC and Caleb Williams were able to get a few points. Nothing of note for Oregon, but extremely upsetting to the people in Las Vegas who had Oregon -14.5.
Despite losing to Washington, Oregon looks like the best team in the Pac-12 in recent weeks. If both teams can win out, a rematch will be ahead in the conference title game. According to Fan Dual Sportsbook futures odds, the rematch would see Oregon favored by 7 after being 3-point underdogs in the initial game in Seattle. This shows what Oregon has done since the loss while also considering how pedestrian Washington has looked since that showdown.
Either way, Oregon and Washington look to be on track for a rematch and it should be a great game. The Biggest test for both teams will be the Oregon State team which Washington will take on in Corvallis and whom Oregon will get to play in Eugene on the final Saturday of the regular season.
