PASADENA, Calif. — They said it couldn’t be done. Michigan football couldn’t beat a Nick Saban-coached Alabama team that had a month to prepare. They said that the Wolverines couldn’t win against an SEC team in the College Football Playoff — or win in the playoff at all.
Yet, the Wolverines looked the better team for much of the Rose Bowl, though momentum shifted in the third quarter toward the Tide. Michigan came back, tying the game late in the fourth before winning, 27-20, in overtime.
After the game, a somber Saban took the podium to discuss why the maize and blue were able to overcome the Crimson Tide, praising the job the Wolverines did in the Rose Bowl. Here is everything he had to say: