Despite a letdown season coming off of a national title, the Wolverines finished the 2024 season with a bang. Michigan took down rival Ohio State for the fourth

Alabama football and its fans felt slighted after not making the College Football Playoff as a 9-3 SEC team, despite ugly losses to Oklahoma and Vanderbilt during the season. They were MAD mad about the perceived Alabama snub, and nonsensical talk of the Crimson Tide deserving a playoff spot continued through the first-round games.

The Wolverines started the year playing Alabama on Jan. 1 at the Rose Bowl, but with both teams starting anew with brand new head coaches, they both fell short of expectations and are playing again on Dec. 31, New Year’s Eve, at the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa.