Wisconsin at Michigan

Written by Steve Janus

This Saturday the No.7 Wisconsin Badgers will look to avoid a late season letdown when they go on the road to take on the Michigan Wolverines. The Badgers come into the game off an impressive 83-20 win over Indiana for their fifth straight win, while the Wolverines nearly let one get away, but were able to hang on to beat Purdue 27-16. The Badgers are just 1-17 all time at Ann Arbor, but the current football odds have Wisconsin favored by 5-points over Michigan.

Wisconsin (9-1, 5-1 Big Ten): The Badgers were without star running back John Clay last week against the Hoosiers, but it didn’t matter, as they scored 11 touchdowns in a blowout win over Indiana. Wisconsin racked up 598 yards of total offense, including 338 yards on the ground.

Montee Ball ran it 22 times for 167 yards and three touchdowns, and James White added another 144 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries. It isn’t clear whether or not Clay will be able to go this week, but either way the Badgers figure to have a huge day on the ground against the Wolverines 70th ranked run defense that comes in allowing nearly 164 yards a game on the ground.

Quarterback Scott Tolzien completed 15 of 18 attempts for 181 yards and three touchdowns against the Hoosiers, and should be able to pick apart the Wolverines 108th ranked pass defense that is allowing 270 yards a game. There is no question that the Wolverines are capable of scoring a ton of points in this game, so it will be important for the Badgers to play well on the offensive side of the ball right off that bat.

Michigan (7-3, 3-3 Big Ten): There is no doubt that the Wolverines would love nothing more than to ruin the Big Ten title hopes for the Badgers with a win this weekend. It didn’t look like there was much that could stop the Wolverines offense after they put up 67 on Illinois the previous week, but mother nature proved to be up to the challenge, as rain and wind really made conditions tough last week.

Denard Robinson had just 68 yards on 22 carries, and threw for just 176 yards and one score, while turning the ball over four times last week. Robinson will have to be at his best if the Wolverines want any chance of beating the Badgers this week, and I think he is going to come out with a big game. Whether or not it will be enough to win, will depend on the defense that has really hurt the Wolverines all season.

The Wolverines are also going to need a big game out of sophomore running back Vincent Smith, who is coming off his best performance of the season, rushing for 99 yards and a score. I also think wide out Roy Roundtree needs to come in and have a huge game. Roundtree leads the Wolverines with 51 catches for 725 yards and five touchdowns, three of which have came in the last two games.

Looking at the Odds: While the Wolverines have a chance in this one, I just think it is going to be too easy for Wisconsin to score against the Wolverines defense, and that really puts a lot of pressure on the Michigan offense to score every time it touches the football. I think Wisconsin makes a few key stops and ends up winning by at least a touchdown. My final score prediction is Wisconsin 48, Michigan 38.

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