With each passing week, college football’s championship picture grows clearer. Florida’s loss to Auburn Saturday left three teams in control of their own destinies to reach the BCS title game: Ohio State, which has had a stranglehold atop the rankings all season; USC, which continues to find ways to win close games the year after losing two Heisman Trophy-winners from its offensive backfield; and Michigan, which continues to dominate with its defense. All the other contenders, including the undefeated Big East trio of West Virginia, Louisville, and Rutgers, will need help reaching the top two spots in the BCS standings.

Michigan is the most surprising entry on the list of contenders. After the Wolverines finished a 7–5 season in 2005 — their worst record in 21 years — coach Lloyd Carr was fending off calls for his job. But a pair of new coordinators, particularly Ron English on defense, has injected Michigan with an attitude it did not possess last season, when blown leads late in games were an all-too-frequent occurrence.

Michigan’s new approach was on full display Saturday night against Penn State before a jam-packed Beaver Stadium and a national TV audience. Michigan is no stranger to playing in front of crowds numbering in the six digits, but the 110,007 white-clad, pompom waving supports in Happy Valley created an atmosphere far more intimidating than the typical polite gatherings at Michigan Stadium.

The Wolverines entered the game without their most dangerous downfield threat, receiver Mario Manningham, who missed the game with a knee injury. Given that Manningham was responsible for nine of Michigan’s 13 touchdown receptions, his absence forced the team to go with an altered approach on offense, while leaving the game largely in the hands of its dominating defense, led by a front seven that has been virtually impregnable against the run and terrorizes opposing quarterbacks with regularity.

The approach is familiar to Michigan fans who remember the team’s 1997 season, when it shared the national title with Nebraska following a 12–0 campaign. That Michigan team also possessed a dominating defense, led by Heisman-winning cornerback Charles Woodson. Its offense, though limited at times, rarely made costly mistakes and did enough to win most games.

The 1997 team also announced its intention to compete for a national championship following a visit to Penn State in November. The Wolverines entered that game ranked fourth in the nation, and after a 34–8 domination of no. 3 Penn State, were elevated to the top spot in the polls the following week.

Saturday’s 17–10 win was not the same thrashing on the scoreboard as the one authored by the 1997 team in HappyValley, but in some ways it served as a similar announcement of Michigan’s intention to compete for more than just the Big Ten title. Even without Manningham, the Wolverines remained aggressive, passing frequently on first down and getting enough key runs from junior running back Michael Hart to keep Penn State’s tough run defense off balance.

Defensively, Michigan authored a mugging, knocking two Penn State quarterbacks out of the game with injuries while amassing seven sacks and holding the Nittany Lions to -14 rushing yards. Even as the third-stringer, Paul Ciancolo, found Tony Hunt for a 44-yard touchdown on a screen pass to pull Penn State within seven points with 3:18 to play, there was no panic from Michigan on either side of the ball. The Wolverines ground out one first down on the legs of Hart, then left it up to the defense. Four plays later, the game was over as Penn State failed to make a first down.

In 1997, Michigan’s win over Penn State snapped a three-game losing streak to the Nittany Lions and paved the way for a season-defining showdown with fourth-ranked Ohio State in what was then one of the biggest games in the history of the storied rivals.

Saturday’s win was Michigan’s eighth straight over Penn State, a stretch of dominance that has not coincided with any subsequent runs at a national title for the Wolverines, much to the chagrin of their fans.With Florida knocked from the ranks of the unbeaten at the same time Michigan was improving to 7–0, the path for the Wolverines is now clear. They must avoid a letdown at home next week against Iowa, a task that looks less daunting following the Hawkeyes’ loss to Indiana earlier Saturday. Following that contest are three games in which Michigan will be enormous favorites: Northwestern, Ball State, and at Indiana, before the showdown in Columbus against Ohio State.

Should the Buckeyes (who are not likely to be challenged by Indiana, Minnesota, Illinois, or Northwestern) and the Wolverines both arrive at 11–0 for their November 18 meeting, it will certainly be one of the most significant games in recent college football history: two storied rivals facing off for a berth in the BCS championship game. Though Michigan sits third behind Ohio State and USC in the initial BCS standings released yesterday, a win over the Buckeyes would certainly vault the Wolverines in the top two spots and into the January 8 title game.

Mr. Levine is a regular writer for FootballOutsiders.com.