The Michigan Wolverines take on the Minnesota Golden Gophers. Check out our college football odds series for our Michigan Minnesota prediction and pick. Find how to watch Michigan Minnesota.
The Michigan Wolverines were ready for their first road game of the season last week in Nebraska. They crushed the Cornhuskers in a game which was never close and never remotely dramatic. Michigan started the season with light work against East Carolina, UNLV, Bowling Green, and Rutgers. Everyone wondered if venturing away from Ann Arbor might create an ugly or sluggish performance, but it didn't happen. Michigan busted out of the gates quickly against Nebraska and never allowed the Huskers to be even somewhat competitive. This sets the stage for a second straight Big Ten road game for Jim Harbaugh's team, which is favored to win the Big Ten championship and return once again to the College Football Playoff.
Minnesota is in real trouble under coach P.J. Fleck. A loss to Drake Maye and North Carolina isn't problematic, but a loss to Northwestern — a bad team — certainly is. The loss itself was awful, but the way the Gophers lost the game was a million times worse than anyone could have imagined. Minnesota gacked away a 21-point fourth-quarter lead against a Northwestern offense which could barely move the ball against Rutgers in the season opener back on September 2. Minnesota allowed the tying touchdown in the final 10 seconds and then lost in overtime. A team which is bad enough to lose to Northwestern is likely to find it very hard to beat the middle-tier teams in the Big Ten (Iowa, Maryland, Purdue). Playing one of the elite teams in the conference will be a very tall order for Minnesota.
Here are the Michigan-Minnesota College Football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Football Odds: Michigan-Minnesota Odds
Michigan Wolverines: -18.5 (-110)
Minnesota Golden Gophers: +18.5 (-110)
Over: 45.5 (-115)
Under: 45.5 (-105)
How To Watch Michigan vs Minnesota
Time: 7:30 pm ET / 4:30 pm PT
TV: NBC and Peacock
Stream: fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why Michigan Could Cover the Spread
The Wolverines looked the part of a top-tier team last week against Nebraska. That's exactly how they expect to play. They allowed only seven points. They scored more than 40. They were physical. They were athletic. They were focused and prepared. They dominated for 60 minutes. What else could one hope for or expect? Michigan showed it can still play at a high level. This was the Wolverines' best performance of the young season. The team seemed bored in the first few games against clearly inferior competition. Playing on the road in the Big Ten seemed to give this team some urgency and fire. If Michigan plays with the same level of passion this week, it should hammer a Minnesota team which lost to Northwestern and generally can't throw the ball. It is hard to see how Minnesota will score more than 14 points maximum against this quality Michigan defense. As long as Michigan scores 34 or more, it should win by at least 20 and thereby cover the spread.
Why Minnesota Could Cover the Spread
The Michigan team which just beat Nebraska has to play a second consecutive road game. You might see a little fatigue and a little bit of boredom from the Wolverines, who have shown that they can drift through the motions in a game. They did not play anything close to their best football on offense in September. They had a hard time scoring 35 or more points against teams they should have been lighting up for at least 50 points (East Carolina, UNLV, Bowling Green). Minnesota won't win the game outright, but playing at home and at night with a lot of motivation should enable the Gophers to limit the Michigan offense. If the Gophers hold Michigan to 28 points, they will score at least 10 and cover.
Final Michigan-Minnesota Prediction & Pick
The gap in talent and quality between these teams is massive. Michigan should win by at least 24 or 25 points.
Final Michigan-Minnesota Prediction & Pick: Michigan -18.5
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