Daily Brews: 2 Michigan games in top all-time bowl games

Welcome in to the final Brews of the week.

In case you missed it in the madness of the early signing period and everything else in between, some good news came out that six of Michigan’s 2020 commitments who signed their letters of intent will go through Citrus Bowl practices.

Running back Blake Corum, linebacker Nikhai Hill-Green, offensive lineman Zak Zinter, defensive backs Makari Paige and Andre Seldon, as well as defensive end and No. 2-ranked state of Michigan recruit Braiden McGregor are able to practice as the Wolverines prepare to play Alabama in the Citrus Bowl on Jan. 1.

The article goes on to explain how early enrollees are able to participate in bowl prep:

According to NCAA bylaw 14.2.1.1, “a student-athlete may practice during the official vacation period immediately preceding initial enrollment, provided the student has been accepted by the institution for enrollment in a regular, full-time program of studies at the time of the individual’s initial participation; is no longer enrolled in the previous educational institution; and is eligible under all institutional and NCAA requirements.”

The fact six players are immediately becoming entrenched in Michigan’s practice style and becoming familiar with the offensive and defensive game plans is nothing but good news. Even if it’s strictly conditioning, I’d expect the early experience to benefit those six players.

Michigan featured in two Top-150 bowls

The University of Michigan was involved in two bowl games featured in the CFB150 list of top bowl games.

The Wolverines’ 35-34 victory over Alabama in the 2000 Orange Bowl came in at No. 9 on the list. The 2005 Rose Bowl, in which Michigan lost 38-37 to Texas, ranked No. 12.

Both games probably weigh heavily on Wolverines fans’ minds, but for different reasons. The 2000 Orange Bowl was the icing on the cake for Tom Brady’s Michigan career. He’d earned the nickname “Comeback Kid” during his collegiate career for various performances, but his performance in the Orange Bowl only solidified that persona as Brady led Michigan back from a 28-14 third-quarter deficit for the overtime victory.

The 2005 Rose Bowl, however, is remembered for different reasons. Sure, the game showed off Michigan’s potent offense that year, led by freshmen Chad Henne and Mike Hart. But it also quickly became the Vince Young show.

The game was one of the first examples of spread offensive teams and mobile quarterbacks giving Michigan and Jim Herrmann’s defenses fits. Lloyd Carr probably said it best after that game, referring to the Wolverines’ woes in tackling Young:

“He was tough to tackle, but we should have gotten to him several times,” Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said. “I was disappointed with the loss and with the tackling.”

Other Brews

• Bowl season begins today with a pair of games featuring MAC squads. Buffalo will take on Charlotte in the Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl. The game will begin at 2 p.m. and can be watched on ESPN. Utah State and Kent State match up in the Tropical Smoothie Cafe Frisco Bowl at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN2.
• Texas coach Tom Herman apologized Wednesday after being caught on camera flipping a pair of birds.
• It was highly publicized Ohio State grabbed a number of Top-100 players in its 2020 recruiting class, but it did lose out on one player. Clark Phillips, a four-star defensive back, flipped from Ohio State and committed to Utah. The move, albeit not something that would make any huge waves, garnered attention when Utah poked fun at Ohio State on Twitter: