Defense/ST Notes: Michael Barrett reacts to one final masterclass for all the marbles
HOUSTON, Texas – The Michigan Wolverines captured the College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday night in a 34-13 rout of the Washington Huskies. UW came into the contest as the nation’s top passing game and one of the best scoring attacks in all of football, and Michigan neutered them all night long.
Michigan allowed just 301 total yards on the evening against a Washington squad that was 10th in both scoring (37.6 ppg) and total yards (473.6 ypg). Huskies star quarterback Michael Penix Jr. was held to 27-for-51 passing for 255 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions in the game. All the talk was about how Michigan would not be able to hang with an elite passing offense, but defensive coordinator Jesse Minter and the Wolverines had one more masterclass in them.
Washington had 13 possessions in the game and scored only a single touchdown, which came in the late stages of the first half to narrow the Michigan lead to 17-3 right before both teams went into the locker room.
The Washington drive charge on the next went: field goal, punt, turnover on downs, punt, touchdown, halftime, interception, field goal, punt, punt, punt, turnover on downs, turnover on downs.
It was an incredible showing for the Michigan defense, who held the Huskies to their worst scoring performance of the season. They won it with defense, and they would have it no other way.
“Dominance, man. Dominance,” graduate linebacker Michael Barrett said after the game. “We came out to prove that we’re the best defense in the country and one of the best defenses of all time. If we wanted to display that we had to go do that against the number one offense in the country.
“Coming in, executing our execution and communication on all three levels, our block destruction…just going out, tackling, making plays, man, flying around together, playing together and trusting each other. That’s how we did it.”
Barrett has been in Ann Arbor for six seasons and was part of the group that had heartbreaking blowout losses to Ohio State in 2018-19 and was also on the 2-4 COVID season. The run over the last three years made all the struggles worth it for the grizzled veteran.
“I don’t think anybody realized, especially on the team,” Barrett said. “I came from that 2-4 season, man. I came from all the losses. To watch the flip of the program, watching where we are now, man. Being able to hang this confetti over my neck, man, it feels amazing. From going from watching all of this, all my life, man, to being in this moment, it feels amazing.”
Miscellaneous Michigan defensive/special teams notes
• Sophomore cornerback Will Johnson intercepted Penxi on the first play from scrimmage in the second half. It was his fourth of the year.
• Graduate defensive back Mike Sainristil recorded his sixth interception of the year in the fourth quarter, returning it for 81 yards down to the 8-yard line. It was the second longest interception return in CFP history behind an 86-yarder from Clemson in 2016.
• Michigan forced five punts on Monday night against Washington. Their season high this year was six against Washington State.
• Washington was held to its lowest point total of the season with the 13 points scored on Monday. Its previous low as 15 points against Arizona State. It is the second-lowest scoring total in the CFP National Title game ahead of TCU’s seven points scored last year against Georgia.
• Michigan was perfect on its field goals and extra points with James Turner booting a pair of field goals and four points after touchdowns in the game.
