Unlike the vast majority of the Big Ten, the Michigan Wolverines did not take the field this past week. They used the break to make determinations about how to attack the remainder of the season, opting to keep Bryce Underwood as the starting quarterback and Jason Beck as the offensive play-caller. Head coach Kyle Whittingham also dismissed the notion that Underwood's reportedly lucrative NIL deal played a role in that decision, though one's mileage may vary with that assertion.
But while the Wolverines idled this past weekend, the landscape of college football did shift around them. The slate offered plenty of upsets, including the No. 1 team in the nation going down to their archrival. The defending champions nearly joined that group, though they managed to stage a fourth-quarter comeback to remain undefeated.
All of which provides the backdrop to this week's national polling.
AP Top 25
The AP poll hasn't ranked the Wolverines since Week 4 and hasn't given them any votes since Week 5. That shouldn't surprise anyone who watched Michigan blow fourth-quarter leads in back-to-back contests. For the program to regain some traction with AP voters, it will need more than just a victory this upcoming Saturday against the Penn State Nittany Lions.
ESPN SP+ Rankings
Since last week, the Wolverines improved slightly in ESPN's SP+ metric, bumping up three spots to No. 23 in the nation. Interestingly, they slipped ahead of the Iowa Hawkeyes, who won the head-to-head matchup a few weeks ago.
ESPN FPI
Despite not playing in Week 6, the Wolverines slipped two spots in ESPN's Football Power Index, down to No. 34 overall. That places them behind eight other Big Ten programs, among others.
The Athletic's Rankings
Unlike FPI, The Athletic's weekly ranking moved the Wolverines up multiple spots. They now come in at No. 35 in the nation, up from No. 43 a week ago. That change reflects, among other things, the losses suffered by Florida State, Texas A&M, and Duke this past weekend. All of those schools ranked ahead of Michigan before Saturday.
CBS Sports Weekly Rankings
In a familiar trend, the Wolverines improved by a few spots in CBS Sports' weekly rankings this week, again due to losses suffered by other programs. Michigan now comes in at No. 45 nationally, up three spots from Week 5. Next Saturday's opponent, Penn State, comes in at No. 51, making that matchup particularly interesting from a rankings perspective.
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