Betting lines, game preview, and prediction for Michigan vs. Northwestern

Late in November, Michigan is in a fight to stay in the bowl game.

The defending national champion has lost two straight games and four of its last five.

If it fails to win its home finale against Northwestern, it will need to beat Ohio State, which would be much more important than any bowl game, in order to get to six wins and the swag bag.

Even though Ohio State beat Northwestern badly last week at Wrigley Field, Northwestern is still in the running for six games and a bowl game. To end the regular season, it plays at Ann Arbor and then at home against Illinois. It has lost three of its last four games.

Michigan vs Northwestern: How to Watch and Game Preview

Date: Saturday, November 23, 2024
Game Time: 3:30 pm ET
How To Watch: FS1
Venue: Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, MI
Teams: Michigan (5-5), Northwestern (4-6)

Why Northwestern Will Win

Do you know that thing that kids these days are really into? Michigan no longer does that.

The defense is still good; two weeks ago, it did a good job against Indiana. But the offense has not thrown for 300 yards in five of its last six games. When defenses loaded up and did not think the Wolverines would pass, the ground attack lost its spark.

And Northwestern needs that very much. The defense works well. It needs to keep the score low and all of its other stats in check.

Then it just needs to wait for the big break to happen. When they give up more than 355 yards, the team is 0-4; when they give up less, they are 4-2.

But…

Michigan only got past 355 yards once.

Why Michigan Will Win

The offense for Michigan looks like the Greatest Show On Turf when compared to the offense for Northwestern.

Some games, like against Eastern Illinois, Purdue, and one game against Indiana, were really big, but do not even try to get to 300 yards of total offense. In four of the last seven games, it has not gone over 260 yards.

It is not going to run at all on the Wolverines.

The run defense is not as good as it was last year, but it is still the tenth best in the country. The team is 4-1 when it does not give up more than 100 yards and 1-4 when it does.

Northwestern runs the ball for an average of 115 yards per game, but they failed to get to 100 yards five times.

Michigan vs Northwestern: Who Will Win?

Michigan has been shockingly bad at stopping drives in the third down, even though they have a great defense. That is fine, because Northwestern is terrible at moving the chains and has no plans to get better soon.

Fans of Michigan will take it, even if it is not pretty. It is on to Columbus after you get in and D up.