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The Michigan football team is headed to the Big Ten Championship for the third straight season, and they will take on Iowa football in that game for the second time in those three years. The two teams met in the 2021 title game, and the Wolverines won that one 42-3.
Michigan had to take down No. 2 Ohio State last weekend to get back to the championship, and the Wolverines got the job done. A big reason for the win was a crucial interception from Will Johnson in the first quarter. That set up the first touchdown of the game. Johnson is a key player on defense, but he might not be able to play for Michigan this weekend.
Will Johnson is one of the best players of the Michigan football defense, but he suffered a slight injury against Ohio State on Saturday. It's nothing major, but he might have to sit out this weekend against Iowa in the Big Ten Championship.
“Hopefully, (Will Johnson) gets close to being able to (play), to give us some snaps,” Michigan defensive coordinator Jesse Minter said, according to an article from Blue By Ninety. “What a credit to the other guys. (Johnson) didn’t play from about the eight- or nine-minute mark of the third quarter. For us to still to be able to maintain what we were able to do, make some plays at the end with Ja’Den McBurrows hugely stepping up and sliding in and playing nickel. Mikey (Sainristil) has the ability to go from inside to outside.”
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The good news for Michigan is that they are huge favorites this weekend against the Hawkeyes. The spread currently favors the Wolverines by 21.5 points, and Iowa doesn't have a very good offense.
Anything can happen in college football, but most people are expecting Michigan to easily when this game with or without Johnson. They are obviously giving the Hawkeyes their attention, but the Wolverines don't want Johnson's injury to get worse as they have a potential College Football Playoff game looming. Minter has a plan in place to do the best thing for the defense.
“We’ll do the same thing this week,” Minter continued. “If Will (Johnson) is ready, we play him, and we’ll try to keep him at a snap count that we can manage for his situation. We have a lot of confidence in the other guys to get the job done. There’s some more — that’s really, in my opinion, we’re still trying to get that next guy or two really game-ready. The guys continue to work really hard in practice. Hopefully, this is a game where maybe we can throw some more guys in there.”
Michigan football seems prepared for whatever happens with Johnson this weekend. The Wolverines obviously aren't looking past Iowa, but they want to be smart and stay healthy for the rest of the postseason. Michigan is currently ranked No. 2 in the country, and a win this weekend will punch their ticket to the CFP. If they lose, they will be anxiously watching Sunday's CFP selection show.
