BCS Rankings 2011: Why Michigan Is Biggest BCS Pretender

The Michigan Wolverines finally proved how overrated they were Saturday with a 28-14 loss to Big Ten and in-state rival Michigan State, 28-14.

With the victory, the Spartans claimed the Paul Bunyan trophy and equaled their longest ever winning streak over the Wolverines at four games.

The Wolverines have been the biggest BCS pretender for weeks, beating up on cupcake opponents, and now they realize how hard it is to win college football games in the second half of the season.

After beating the likes of Western Michigan, Eastern Michigan and San Diego State, the Wolverines got beaten by a Spartans team that was hungrier for the win on Saturday.

After jumping out to a 7-0 lead in the first quarter, Michigan was outscored 28-7 the rest of the way.

Wolverines quarterback Denard Robinson only managed 165 total yards with a passing and rushing touchdown along with an interception. His only interception was returned for a touchdown which iced the game.

He was unable to be the dynamic force he's been for most of this season, and against a talented Spartans defense, it was clear that Robinson couldn't win the game by himself.

With the loss, Michigan won't be in the top 10 of the BCS standings, and they shouldn't even be in the top 15, maybe even top 20.

They have zero quality wins and haven't beaten an opponent that is currently ranked in the Top 25.

The Wolverines don't play a currently ranked team for another four weeks when they travel to No. 16 Illinois, and the week after that they host No. 14 Nebraska.

The following week is their rivalry game with the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Michigan only rushed for 82 yards today while giving up over 200 rushing yards to Michigan State. The Wolverines are not good enough offensively to beat quality teams, and as their conference schedule gets tougher they will continue to lose games.

Michigan is the biggest BCS pretender in America, and despite their impressive record on paper at 6-1, the Wolverines have a lot of work to do before they can call themselves a top team.