Northwestern certainly has a busy weekend in Ann Arbor. While field hockey punched its ticket to the national title game tomorrow, football battles the Wolverines for a chance to keep its dreams of bowl eligibility alive. Northwestern hasn’t beaten the Wolverines since 2008, a 21-14 victory in Ann Arbor. Who takes home the George Jewett Trophy? Our staffers weigh in.
Adam Beck: Michigan 21, Northwestern 17
With offensive issues galore for both squads, you might not expect a ton of points. However, disregarding the scoreboard, Jack Lausch played some of his best football all season against the Buckeyes last week, while Davis Warren has seen improvement too. It’ll be a tight battle in the second half. But the home field advantage at The Big House paired with Kalel Mullings on the ground and Colston Loveland through the air will be just enough for the Wolverines to clinch bowl eligibility.
Brendan Preisman: Michigan 20, Northwestern 14
Both of these squads have incredibly solid run defenses, with neither allowing more than 115 yards on the ground per game. However, Michigan’s rushing attack is at least slightly below average — 155.5 yards a contest — while Northwestern’s mark of 105.9 rushing yards per game slots the Wildcats in the bottom 10 of the FBS. The Wolverines have a massive edge in both trenches, and that should be enough to get them the victory. Northwestern will give The Big House a scare, but I trust Michigan to put together one more quality drive, and that’ll be the difference.
Miguel Muñoz: Michigan 27, Northwestern 16
Northwestern looked like a team that could compete with anyone in the country for the first quarter-and-a-half last week against No. 2 Ohio State. But the wheels fell off soon after, and the Wildcats struggled to put up much of a fight, eventually losing by three scores. It will be a much tougher environment this Saturday in The Big House, where a crowd of 100,000-plus will be awaiting the ‘Cats as they look to maintain bowl eligibility. Given the Wolverines’ problems moving their offense this season, I think the ‘Cats can keep this one close for a majority of the game. But the crowd will ultimately make the difference, causing too many unforced penalties and errors, especially for an offense that hasn’t yet seen a crowd nearly this big.
Ascher Levin: Northwestern 17, Michigan 13
I’m predicting Northwestern to pull off an upset over Michigan in The Big House. The Wolverines have struggled with quarterback play this season, which has significantly hampered their offense. Their passing attack is limited, with Colston Loveland being Michigan’s only player with over 170 receiving yards. Michigan leans heavily on its ground game, led by Kalel Mullings and Donovan Edwards to generate offense. On the defensive side, Michigan is loaded with talent. Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant anchor a formidable defensive line, while Will Johnson shines as a lockdown corner. This game has all the makings of a defensive battle. Northwestern, despite last week’s loss to Ohio State, showed promise. Jack Lausch looked more comfortable under center, and Bryce Kirtz’s explosiveness gave the offense a much-needed spark. While Michigan entered the season as the defending national champions, this year’s squad is far from the dominant team of last season. In a hard-fought battle, I’m taking Northwestern to edge out the Wolverines.
Ethan Weinberg: Michigan 23, Northwestern 17
Northwestern heads into its toughest environment of the season, but the competition certainly isn’t as stiff as it might’ve expected a couple of months ago. The Wolverines are a shell of their 2023 squad that won the national title, and have one of the worst passing offenses in the country. Northwestern’s defense should have its way with Davis Warren, but might struggle to stop the combination of Mullings and Edwards on the ground. Jack Lausch has also displayed improvement in recent weeks, but Michigan’s secondary will be extremely tough to crack. I think the ‘Cats keep this one close, yet the environment will be too much to overcome in The Big House.
Season Standings:
9-1: Adam Beck
8-2: Brendan Preisman, Ascher Levin, Ethan Weinberg
7-2: Natalie Wells
6-1: Miguel Muñoz
6-3: Charlie Jacobs
2-0: Patrick Winograd
2-1: Harris Horowitz, Sai Trivedi, Wyatt Audler
1-0: Weldon Genies, Calvin Kaplan
1-1: Ben Adams
0-1: Dylan Friedland
