Other than 97' your favorite UM Bowl Victory, most repugnant loss?
My favorite was the revenge Rose Bowl of 93, after UW embarrassed us the year before. That was a great UW team whom we left no doubt we were better than. And my god, Wheatley, 87 yards on the first play of the second half to completely send UW the message that they had no answer and better be prepared to shoot it out. Despite the 38-31 score, the defenses played well. These were just great offenses loaded with talent. My runner up would be another tight and unexpected offensive battle, and that being UM's only victory over Urban. We dominated that game against the serial infidel and golden boy and self-declared Virgin Tim Tebow, and it would have been a blowout had Mike Heart not inexplicably fumbled at two pivotal moments. Sent Lloyd out in style.
To me, the worst bowl loss was the 32-18 Rose Bowl loss to USC in 2007. They were a great USC team, a dynasty, and we'd just lost the game of the century by a targeting call (that was the correct call). It was 3-3 at halftime with the two great defenses dominating. Then USC came out with a totally different gameplan after the half and scored 29 in the second interval, including 16 in the 3rd, while we scored zero. By the time we finally adjusted it was too late. Lloyd was grossly outcoached. Runner up game would be the Rose Bowl loss to USC in Bo's last year. I was in HS, but remember it just looked like another Rose Bowl where we were picked apart late by a passing attack we didn't know how to deal with. I would say the Vince Young Rose Bowl, but, that was a tip-your-hat game to one of the greatest, and we hung in as equals with Henne as a true freshman.
December 29th, 2023 at 10:01 AM ^
One of my favorites is the 2000 Orange Bowl. Tom Brady and David Terrell were unstoppable. And a win over Bama is always great.
The 2011 Gator Bowl was painful. Getting destroyed by Mississippi State is bad enough, but then factor in having to listen to those darn cow bells all game as you're getting your ass kicked.
December 29th, 2023 at 11:25 AM ^
Logged in just to upvote as these were both my picks as well. My runner up favorite would be the 2008 Capital One Bowl against Florida, absolute beast of a game from one of my favorite teams prior to 2021.
That Mississippi State game was a horrid end to the Rich Rod era, that in the last season was just cringe to begin with. I had hoped it would work out for him, but after that season he had to go and that game the team had no fire or desire....and them cow bells.
December 29th, 2023 at 12:10 PM ^
So many great moments in this one... can't do it justice... will there ever be another victory so glorious...
Mikey S says "Yes there will!"
December 29th, 2023 at 12:46 PM ^
I'm surprised the video calls that an "upset." The game was considered about a tossup coming in, IIRC.
December 29th, 2023 at 10:08 AM ^
I had a pleasure of being at the 2007 Rose Bowl and remember ranting to my son about how SC had adjusted at the half and we had not. Still, the worst Rose Bowl loss for me was the Charles White fumble TD. Cost us the game. Such an obvious blown call.
December 29th, 2023 at 11:39 AM ^
Lock the thread. Ron Simpkins was a Dude!
December 29th, 2023 at 2:11 PM ^
John Brodie making stupid comments like "I can't tell from this angle." and "We aren't on the goal line so we shouldn't say anything."
The ball was clearly out of his hands at the 3 yd line and bounced on the 2 yd line. And the ref is shaking his head as if he saw a TD. It was never in the endzone, even after the recovery.
At least the juice basically told Brodie, in nicer words, to shut-up, that's a fumble and not a TD.
December 29th, 2023 at 10:14 AM ^
The best win was either Lloyd's last against Florida, or Brady's game against Bama in the Orange Bowl. Probably the Orange Bowl... The worst? That Miss St game that bum-rushed Rich Rod out the door. I was so disgusted by that game - everyone quit, except DRob. And he wasn't smiling so much... Fuck you, RichRod, for doing that to Michigan football.
The other worst? A Rose Bowl loss to USC in 1979. That game was a win.
December 29th, 2023 at 10:14 AM ^
I mean, TCU 2022 is up there. 8 point favorite in a national semifinal. two pick sixes, a fumble on the opposing 1 yard line, a first and goal from the 8 that led to no points. total disaster.
December 29th, 2023 at 10:19 AM ^
Not just no points. I believe we lost yards on the play as well because it was the dumbest call we had all year.
December 29th, 2023 at 11:42 AM ^
This was one of the few bowl games that we could have run base sets and walk away with a big win. Instead we "change things up" for the sake of changing things up.
December 29th, 2023 at 12:23 PM ^
We tried just running base sets in the first half (except for the terrible Philly Special call) and it didnt work. After that first huge run by Edwards TCU pretty much kept him from doing much of anything. We were gonna have to pass the ball to win and we started too late.
December 30th, 2023 at 8:40 AM ^
If we had a healthy Blake Corum, I think we could do what you suggested. But Edwards is not a run between the tackles 25-30 times and wear down a defense type of back.
TCU players acknowledged they knew UM tendencies and jumped the pick 6s because they knew what was coming. You’d think Matt Weiss and his analytics would have helped with that.
December 29th, 2023 at 11:58 AM ^
Everyone keeps calling out the pick sixes by JJ, but if we don't overly cutesy in the red zone in the first Q, we wouldn't have had to hit the panic button and start passing the ball 100 times.
JJ gets too much flak for that loss.
December 29th, 2023 at 12:15 PM ^
The ones that hurt make the good ones better.
December 29th, 2023 at 12:47 PM ^
The worst referring mistake was that they spotted the ball on the Michigan 49, when the interception had occurred on the TCU 49. Completely inexcusable. If the ball is spotted correctly, two yards ahead, the next play is academic.
December 29th, 2023 at 1:04 PM ^
That shit was painful.
December 29th, 2023 at 10:15 AM ^
Favorite: 1989 Rose Bowl
That was probably the last time we won a bowl game where I didn't care about national championships. After that year, bowl games always had a twinge of bittersweet.
Most Repugnant: 2002 Citrus Bowl
I was so tired of hearing Rocky Top. A snakebit season.
December 29th, 2023 at 11:42 AM ^
That 2002 Citrus Bowl was just a bad matchup. Tennessee was ranked #2 heading into the SEC championship game and on their way to the BCS title game until they were upset by LSU in the SEC title game. With Henson foregoing his senior year for baseball, that was just an okay UM team.
December 29th, 2023 at 1:07 PM ^
Remember how they were clowning us and saying how slow we were that day? That game is when I really began to grow tired of Lloyd's outdated style. It was downhill for him from that point on, for the most part.
The Nebraska Alamo bowl was also bad. Embarrassing how we finished that game. Shambles.
December 29th, 2023 at 10:20 AM ^
Favorite: I mean, its hard not to go with the 2008 Capital One Bowl. In a way it was bittersweet because Lloyd was retiring and he decided to use his final game as the "Okay, let's finally open up the playbook, use all this talent that we have and look like the title contender we were supposed to be at the start of the year," so in a way it was a "too little, too late" kind of game, but beating Urban Meyer and his golden boy Heisman winner Tim Tebow, right in their own backyard, when you had all the Florida players dancing at mid-field before the game probably thinking they were going to win just by showing up.....man that was sweet.
Worst: There's plenty to choose from. The 2016 Orange Bowl was hard to watch with Michigan fighting all the way back to take the lead, and then blow it in the final minute with rare special teams gaffes and an even rarer Jourdan Lewis bust on FSU's final play, but last year's Fiesta Bowl takes the cake. Michigan had zero business losing that game. Zero. The only way they were going to lose a game against TCU was turnovers and bad mistakes, and committing a lot of them. And they did. The Roman Wilson bad call didn't help, but you coughed up two pick sixes. You gift-wrapped TCU 14 points, and took 10-14 off the board for yourself with fumbling at the one yard line and with that damn botched Philly Special on the first drive.
Denied themselves a shot at revenge against Georgia for a national title. I don't think they would've beaten Georgia, but they would've been better equipped to do so than from 2021, and in a one-game scenario, who knows what could happen?
December 29th, 2023 at 12:18 PM ^
Good recap of the TCU debacle. I remember watching that ridiculous Philly special and thinking that's not a call that a confident, better team makes. I knew at that moment that game wasn't going to go well.
December 30th, 2023 at 8:43 AM ^
All I could do was laugh through the pain of the 2016 Orange Bowl loss. After Jordan Glasgow blew that tackle on the kickoff return and the defense gave up the winning TD pass, followed by Speight just collapsing on the last couple plays, it was just a brutal end and it ripped the scab off the OSU loss wound that had only started to heal.
December 29th, 2023 at 10:30 AM ^
The 2000 Orange Bowl was pretty epic. And it actually never should have ended the way it did. We should have already had that game won. With the game tied at 28-28, we put another nice drive together. Anthony Thomas then fumbled the ball away from the 1 yard line into the end zone, which Bama recovered. Then in the last drive of regulation, we drove deep again and Hayden Epstein attempted a very makable game winning field goal…which was blocked. The game never should have gone to OT. So when Bama missed the extra point, it felt like poetic justice for those two massive bullets they dodged earlier.
On the other side…the 2005 Rose Bowl still angers me to this day. A 31-21 lead over them…Texas has a 3rd and goal, none of their receivers are open. Vince Young avoided what seemed like 10 tackles (it was probably 3) and he still runs it in. This moment ended up being so pivotal. There were so many missed tackles that night but if we had stopped them here, we would have won. Chad Henne played so masterful that game. If we had won, I think he is the Rose Bowl MVP, and I don’t think a freshman had ever won it. But of course, Texas kicks a game winning field goal. We lose 38-37. I angrily punch my bedroom wall in disgust. When my parents sold the house a couple years ago, I noticed the mark from my punch was still a little visible.
December 29th, 2023 at 4:24 PM ^
WH-
Totally agree on the 2005 Rose Bowl.
I find this board's consistently inordinate, over-the-top praise for Vince Young bizarre and a bit nauseating.
December 29th, 2023 at 10:37 AM ^
the Charles White Phantom touchdown game sucked.
the BWW bowl against Kansas State was horrible. That team didn’t belong to the same field as KSU – at least that’s the way it appeared from the stands
the fiesta bowl against NU (NTNU) was a fabulous end to an (all but the Chuck Long game) amazing season
December 29th, 2023 at 10:55 AM ^
"the Charles White Phantom touchdown game sucked."
Yeah, that Trojan fumbledown still irks me. The '84 Sugar Bowl was a tough loss, losing to Bo Jackson without giving up a touchdown. Too many dropped passes. Play tough against Oklahoma's Selmon brothers but coming up short was one of the most valiant efforts I can remember.
And, as posted above, RichRod's last game was disgusting. I was at that one. The players on the sideline had clearly lost interest in the game. They were off having private conversations.
Lloyd's last game was very nice. I also enjoyed the Fiesta Bowl against Nebraska. That game elevated that bowl for a good decade or so.
December 29th, 2023 at 12:25 PM ^
That loss to Kansas State was my least favorite too.
My favorite was the demolition of Mississippi in 1991, their first game vs a northern school since 1933.
December 29th, 2023 at 12:40 PM ^
December 29th, 2023 at 10:45 AM ^
Best: Most have already picked the 2008 game, so I'll pick the 2015 drubbing of Florida, marking our return from the wilderness of incompetence. It began the healing process we all needed so badly and, while there were certainly more bumps in store for us, we have had so much more to be cheerful about since that season.
Worst: There've been some dark times I'd rather forget, but the lowest low point for me and therefore the most distasteful would be the 2011 Gator Bowl against Mississippi St, which ended (mercifully) in a 52-14 rout that somehow felt even less competitive than that. The Rich Rod era was the genesis of my BPONE and this game was the repugnant cherry on top of my BPONE sundae. Dark times indeed. But not anymore! Go Blue!!
December 29th, 2023 at 12:27 PM ^
Drink MF! Drink!
December 29th, 2023 at 10:47 AM ^
Favorite: Lloyd’s send off in the 2008 Capital One Bowl
Worst: 2022 Fiesta Bowl. So many mistakes and a wasted opportunity 😩
December 29th, 2023 at 10:53 AM ^
Losing to MSU is the worst!
December 29th, 2023 at 10:56 AM ^
Best for me is the 2012 Sugar Bowl. Yes, I know we made plenty of silly mistakes but I was a student at the time and it felt like a validation of Denard and Michigan football being back.
December 29th, 2023 at 1:12 PM ^
Same here. Then my good buddy Frank made the play of the game as a freshman.
December 29th, 2023 at 10:57 AM ^
Lloyd’s last game, opening up the offense and beating urban after beginning the year with the Appalachian State fiasco.
December 29th, 2023 at 11:06 AM ^
The worst- 2005 alamo bowl
worst officiated game I've ever seen (if I remember correctly, it was a Sun Belt conference crew), and for the love of god Ecker....PITCH THE FUCKING BALL TO BREASTON!!!!!!
December 29th, 2023 at 11:15 AM ^
Like many, my favorite was Lloyd's sendoff in the citrus bowl. Beating Tebow was also satisfying and validating for that group of seniors
For me the worst was Hoke's last bowl game, in the BWW bowl that would become the Cactus Bowl
December 29th, 2023 at 11:19 AM ^
I really enjoyed Lloyd's walk-off against an Urban-led Florida squad. That win has become more impressive with the passage of time in light of that Florida team winning another national title the next season and what Urban went on to do in Ohio.
In my opinion, the most deflating bowl game loss in my lifetime was the Outback Bowl against South Carolina on Jan. 1, 2018 when we built a 19-3 lead in the third quarter and seemed to lose interest from there. Don Brown was running around the sideline looking like an escaped mental patient with his moustache dyed orange (I know, I know; it was for a good cause. But when you're in the midst of blowing a 16-point lead, it just looked ridiculous) as we handed a victory to a vastly subpar South Carolina team. Adding insult to injury, the rest of the B1G Ten went undefeated in their bowl games that year.
December 29th, 2023 at 11:26 AM ^
Best: 2008 Capitol One Bowl win over Urban Meyer's FL team with Tim Tebow.
Worst: CFP Semi Fiesta Bowl loss to Georgia 38-11. Our guys were totally dominated and got ran out of the stadium.
December 29th, 2023 at 11:28 AM ^
Two from the Moeller era:
1991 Ole Miss - 700 total yards. Total demolition of an SEC team that wasn't even fully indicated by the final score (35-3). The OL (!) was named the player of the game.
1993 Washington - a thriller. Wheatley was unreal.
Worse? Eh, I don't want to revisit those.
December 29th, 2023 at 11:29 AM ^
Greatest bowl victories after the 1998 Rose Bowl:
1) Agree with OP - 1993 Rose Bowl where Wheatley ran wild. He only carried 15 times because of a back injury but put up over 200 yards. That was also my sophomore year at UM so the revenge from the prior year was especially sweet.
2) 2000 Orange Bowl with Brady leading us over Bama in a terrific game. Lloyd finally realized we needed to throw to win and he realized this before it was too late. Many remember that we won when Bama missed the extra point in OT, but we had a chip shotbFG blocked at the end of regulation or Bama doesn’t even get to OT. Hayden Epstein was our kicker.
3) 1989 Rose Bowl - Leroy Hoard starred and we came back from a halftime deficit (which I think was 14-3) after Rodney Peete scored 2 first half TDs.
4) 1986 Fiesta Bowl. My favorite Michigan season after 1997. Harbaugh was the QB and played terrible, but Jamie Morris ran well all day and the defense forced a bunch of 3rd quarter turnovers and we rallied for a halftime deficit to win. Mark Messner was big in this one.
5) 1988 Hall of Fame Bowl. We beat Bama 28-24 on a 4th down pass from Demetrius Brown to John Kolesar. Jamie Morris ran for over 200 yards. The win capped a disappointing season and Moeller coached this game while Bo was recovering from a heart procedure.
Worst bowl game - too many to count but Kansas State blowing us out in the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl in 2013 and Mississippi State destroying us in the Gator Bowl in 2011 was also particularly bad.
December 29th, 2023 at 11:31 AM ^
Nothing original here: 2000 Orange Bowl. A team I followed as closely as any in my life, including guys that had been on the national title team, and of course Tom Brady. When I was approaching the peak of my immersion into college football, watching for hours every Saturday before and after the Michigan games that I went to. At a time when the B1G vs SEC narrative was in full swing, and I was yelling "WHERE'S THE SPEED!?!?" at Bama's players on the tv screen when Terrell would burn them for a TD. Coming back from 14 down *twice*. An utterly joyful moment.
Worst: I mean, there are so many to pick from. The 90 Rose Bowl that was stolen from us by (another) bad call. Getting trucked by Washington in 92. The Fiesta Bowl last year leaves an awful taste. Even the Peach Bowl from after the 18 season, getting housed by Florida as the cherry on bottom after that awful game in Columbus. Blowouts to Tennessee and Mississippi State.
The Fiesta Bowl is kind of a separate category because of playoff implications. I'll just throw a dart and pick the 92 Rose Bowl.
December 29th, 2023 at 11:39 AM ^
Best -- 2003 Outback Bowl win against Florida (38-30). Chris Perry had 4 TDs and finished with 193 yards. Florida was marching down the field and had a chance to tie it but Ron Zook called a WR pass (by a freshman, LOL) back to Rex Grossman that was intercepted by the great Victor Hobson to seal the game. I picked it because it was my first bowl game I attended, it was a nice sunny day, and we won.
Worst -- 2005 Rose Bowl loss against Texas (37-38). We had a 10pt lead in the 4th and, true to Lloyd form, we couldn't close it out. We got great performances from Braylon (109yds, 3TDs), Breaston (77yds and 1TD receiving, a gazillion yards on returns), and Henne (227yds, 4TDs, 0INTs). Unfortunately, Vince Young ran for 192yds and 4TDs. Michigan stopped almost zero third downs all game. Watched it from Chicago with a terrible, day-long hangover from NYE.