Undefeated Michigan and unbeaten Washington will meet next Monday in the US College Football Playoff championship game after capturing dramatic semi-final thrillers on Monday.
Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy threw three touchdown passes and Blake Corum ran for the winning overtime touchdown as the Wolverines beat Alabama 27-20 in the Rose Bowl at Pasadena, California.
“We were going to overcome anything that was inside this stadium,” said Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh, whose team lost in the semis the past two seasons.
In next Monday’s final at Houston, the Wolverines will face the Washington Huskies, who outlasted Texas 37-31 in the Sugar Bowl at New Orleans, stretching their two-season win streak to 21 games.
Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. completed 29-of-38 passes for 430 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions.
“The guy was on a mission,” Huskies coach Kalen deBoer said. “Each and every drive he made the plays to help us win.”
Dillon Johnson ran for 49 yards and two touchdowns before getting hurt in the final seconds, an injury that prevented Washington from running out the clock, giving Texas a final chance.
“You’ve just got to move on when tough breaks come your way and not let negative thoughts get in your head,” deBoer said. “I’m just proud of the way the guys were out there just battling.”
The Longhorns drove to the Huskies 12-yard line before a last-second pass fell incomplete.
“It was amazing,” Penix said. “We just find a way to win and that’s what we did today. It was a great one.
“Our goal was to win a national championship. Now we have the chance to do it.”
The contests featured some of the top prospects for April’s NFL Draft.
Both Rose Bowl rivals were controversial entries into the gridiron final four, Alabama after being chosen despite a loss, while an unbeaten Florida State squad was denied a place in the title fight.
Michigan suffered through a signal-stealing scandal that brought a three-game suspension on Harbaugh.
“Everything we’ve been through, all the adversity, we just did a tremendous job of responding through all of that and pushing through it,” McCarthy said.
“We’ve got one more game left so the job is not finished yet.”
McCarthy completed 17-of-27 tosses for 221 yards without an interception while Corum rushed 19 times for 83 yards, including the game-winning 17-yard touchdown run on the second play of overtime.
“We had some adversity today, a little sloppy, but we came together as one,” Corum said. “My brothers have my back and I told them, ‘If we tie this up and go to overtime, we’re going to win.’
“We came out tough and I’ll see you in Houston.”
‘All the little details’
Jase McClellan’s 3-yard touchdown run 30 seconds into the fourth quarter gave Alabama the lead and Will Reichard kicked a 52-yard field goal with 4:41 remaining to give the Crimson Tide a 20-13 edge.
But the Wolverines responded with an eight-play, 75-yard scoring drive to equalize at 20-20, McCarthy hitting Roman Wilson with a 4-yard touchdown pass with 94 seconds remaining to set up overtime.
“It was everything we were battling all year,” McCarthy said. “It was waiting to come out in moments like these where we just perfect all the little details and we’re ready to go execute.”
After Corum put Michigan ahead, the Wolverines’ top-ranked defensive unit stopped Alabama for the victory.
“We just didn’t finish the game,” Alabama coach Nick Saban said. “We’re all disappointed.”
After an early 34-yard McClellan touchdown run, Michigan responded as McCarthy threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to Corum and a 38-yarder to Tyler Morris. A 50-yard Reichard field goal lifted Alabama within 13-10 at half-time.
At New Orleans, the teams were deadlocked 21-21 at halftime before Washington seized command.
Penix tossed a 19-yard touchdown pass to Jalen McMillan and Grady Gross kicked field goals of 26 and 40 yards to give the Huskies a 34-21 lead early in the fourth quarter.
Quinn Ewers flipped a 1-yard touchdown pass to Adonai Mitchell with 7:23 remaining to lift the Longhorns with 34-28.
Another exchange of field goals set the stage for the closing drama.