On a beautiful day in South Bend, Indiana, the Michigan Wolverines looked to claim their first-ever Big Ten Championship. Due to their win over rival Ohio State two weeks prior, the Wolverines received a favorable draw, facing Illinois and Minnesota in their pool. Michigan would advance to the Big Ten playoffs, narrowly defeating rival Michigan State before falling in back-to-back contests to Indiana and host Notre Dame. Although they fell just short of top three placement, the Wolverines hope their performance has been enough to secure a berth in the Collegiate Rugby Championship.
Pool D Game 1: vs Minnesota
The Maize and Blue opened their Big Ten 7s slate with an unfamiliar opponent; Minnesota. The Wolverines and the Golden Gophers last met in 2019, with Minnesota winning 33-12. Michigan came into the game heavily favored and looked to use the matchup to rest some key players. The Wolverines looked the part of a favorite early, dominating field position and came up with two early tries by Tommy Hendricks and Conor McNabnay to take a 12-0 lead.
However, the Gophers scored a penalty try to end the half and used the man advantage to take a 14-12 lead with only 4 minutes left in the game. On the ensuing kickoff, Shea Loughnane received the ball in the 15-meter channel and raced down the sideline to regain the lead. The Wolverines chewed the rest of the clock with stalwart defense and eked out a 17-14 win to start the tournament.
Pool D Game 2: vs Illinois
After a closer-than-expected first matchup, the Wolverines looked to finish out pool play strong against Illinois. Despite an earlier Illini win over Minnesota already solidifying Michigan’s spot in the playoff, a win would give the Maize and Blue a much more advantageous path to the final. The Illini provided some threats in the first half, but the Wolverines snuffed them out, and long tries by Devan Ekbote and Armen Vartanian resulted in a 12-0 halftime lead.
Michigan ended any hopes of an Illini comeback on the opening kickoff of the second half when George Janke scampered 70 yards for a try. The Wolverines again stopped two Illinois attacks before Luke Zana iced the game with another long try. Michigan finished their pool schedule with a 26-0 win, securing their playoff spot with a bend but don’t break style of defense that only let in 2 tries, and punishing their opponent’s mistakes.
Quarterfinals: vs Michigan State
The Wolverines opened up the playoffs against in-state rival Michigan State. The two teams had met earlier in the season, with the Wolverines coming out on top 15-7. Another close affair was expected between the two sides, and the game did not disappoint. Michigan came out with aggressive defense, leading to two Nathan Feldman tries and conversions. However, just one missed tackle led to a Michigan State try, and the two teams went into halftime with Michigan holding on to a 14-7 lead.
The second half was characterized by two things, penalties, and missed tackles. Michigan failed to score on multiple breaks and kept Michigan State in the game with untimely penalties and missed tackles as the Wolverine’s aggressive nature came back to bite them. The Spartans scored midway through the half to make the score 14-12, but the Wolverines hung on to secure a matchup with Indiana in the semifinals.
Semifinals: vs Indiana
Michigan found itself just one game away from playing for a Big Ten Championship, however, this game would be the toughest of the day. Indiana, led by two players with USA Eagles experience, had not lost a game on the season. The Hoosiers showed this skill early, scoring off a beautiful set piece to take a 7-0 lead, and then taking advantage of Michigan errors to push their lead to 12. The Wolverines weren’t done, and a Langston Sholl try brought the score to 12-5 at the half.
The Wolverines came into the second half needing just one try to pull even with the defending champs. The Maize and Blue played great defense and time and time again threatened deep into Indiana territory. Unfortunately, they found out the hard way that rugby at the top level is a game of inches, and each attack came away with no points. The Wolverines had one final chance with a lineout at midfield, but a not straight call ended Michigan’s hopes for a Big Ten Championship.
3rd Place Game: vs Notre Dame
After their emotional loss to the Indiana Hoosiers, Michigan found themselves playing hosts Notre Dame for third place. Whether it was mental or physical exhaustion, the Wolverines came out flat. The hosts jumped out to a 12-0 lead, and any fight that was left in the Wolverines was drained when Tommy Hendricks came down with what looked like a major injury near the end of the first half. The Fighting Irish closed out the half with another try to take a 19-0 lead into the break.
Michigan came out in the second half with more fight, with George Janke punching in a try to bring the score to 19-7. However, it proved to be too little too late, and the Irish scored once more to finish the game at 26-7. Michigan finished the competition with a 3-2 record, but ending the tournament on two losses surely left a sour taste in the mouths of many. The Wolverines hope that their performance was enough to earn themselves a spot in the Collegiate Rugby Championship from April 28-30. Selections will be announced Saturday, April 22, at 7pm on The Rugby Network.
Second Side:
Michigan’s second side came into the weekend with dreams of a Big Ten crown of their own. Their first matchup was supposed to be against Illinois’ second side, however, the Illini withdrew last minute, and Michigan’s third side was thrust into the spot. The second side prevailed 33-17, with tries from Brendan Willis, Nic Granchalek, Michael Ackerman, and two from Emerson Kekhoua.
The second side then faced Michigan State’s second side, the third meeting of the season between the two squads. The Wolverines trounced their in-state rival, winning 36-0 behind tries from Justin Ladd, Jamie Willcox, and two a piece from Emerson Kekhoua and Nic Granchalek. In this season’s three matchups, Michigan’s second side has outscored Michigan State’s 101-0.
In their last pool matchup of the day, the Wolverines faced Notre Dame’s second side for the opportunity to play in the Big Ten Second’s Championship Game. This game was a lot tighter than the previous matchups, as the Fighting Irish and the Wolverines went back and forth. However, the Wolverines eventually pulled away to win 31-21 behind tries from Alan Casey, Nic Granchalek, Connor Gilfillan, and two from Emerson Kekhoua. Kekhoua finished pool play with both 6 tries and 6 conversions, leading the way for a dominant Michigan Squad.
The Wolverines faced Penn State’s second side for the Big Ten Second’s Championship. The Wolverines had many chances to score, but Penn State played great defense and scored twice to take a 14-0 lead. Michigan’s Michael Ackerman would punch in a try late in the match to narrow the gap 14–7, but the Wolverine’s run would come to an end, having to settle for second place. The second side finished the year with an astounding 14-2 record.
Third Side:
Michigan’s third side was supposed to play Notre Dame’s third side in a best-a-three contest, but Notre Dame’s lack of a third side and an opening in the second side pool thrust the threes into the second side competition. They opened up the day against their own second side, falling 17-33. Tries were scored by Micah Conner and Darius Zucker, with an additional penalty try.
In their second game of the day, the third side faced Notre Dame’s second side. The Wolverines kept the game close in the first half, but the Fighting Irish’s skill proved to be too much to overcome, and Notre Dame came out on top 31-0. The Wolverines finished up pool play against Michigan State’s second side, and despite a wonderful try by Daniel Pacious, the Spartans came out on top 15-7.
The third side played their final match of the day against Nebraska’s second side. The game was tight the whole way, with tries by Micah Conner and Ryan Schmidt. Unfortunately, another potential try by Michigan was called back for running out the back, and that would prove to be the difference, with the Cornhuskers prevailing 17-14.
Despite the 0-4 finish on the day, there was much to be proud of from the Maize and Blue. For the second season in a row, Michigan is the only team in the Big Ten to field a third side. The third side consists of many players playing their first rugby ever, and they were able to hold their own against both Michigan State and Nebraska’s second side, despite a sizable gap in both experience and size.
