ESPN analyst just gave Michigan extra Ohio State motivation with new CFP rankings out

Does Michigan need additional motivation to beat Ohio? Never. But it doesn't hurt to have it anyway.

The Wolverines were the fifth of six Big Ten teams in the College Football Playoff rankings, coming in at 18th, up three spots from last week. It was a productive bye week as Virginia and Louisville lost, allowing the Wolverines to push ahead of them among the glut of teams with two losses.

Rece Davis gives Michigan additional hope

Ohio remained No 1 in the CFP rankings, which means that Michigan just needs to hold the line heading into the Thanksgiving weekend clash at The Big House. This week the Wolverines are on the road at Northwestern and the following Saturday it'll be a road finale against Maryland. It goes without saying that these are all must-win games.

And Davis agrees with this. He mentioned during the ESPN coverage hour that Michigan could get into the 12-team bracket with a fifth straight win over Ohio. There are a lot of teams that the Wolverines have to jump in front of, but there's no bigger statement that can be made.

​One potential roadblock can't be ignored

USC knocked off the Wolverines last month and, with both teams sitting at 7-2 that loss continues to burn. The Trojans were ranked 17th in the CFP, one spot ahead. While they don't have an opponent as highly ranked as Ohio, the Trojans will go on the road against Oregon in a couple of weeks. 

Could a USC road win over Oregon, combined with a Wolverines win over Ohio, be enough to jump the Ducks? It's possible and certainly something to keep in mind as this logjam of two-win teams has to begin to clear itself over the next three weeks.

But Michigan can only worry about the games in front of it and that means extending the win streak over Ohio to a half decade.