Michigan Football: Revised game-by-game predictions for Wolverines

September

Instead of opening the season at Washington, Michigan football will host Purdue as part of four games in September.

Sept. 5 vs Purdue (W)

Purdue has been on the rise and the Boilermakers have Rondale Moore, one of the most exciting offensive skill guys in the Big Ten. This will also be the first start for either Dylan McCaffrey or Joe Milton. However, the defense and running game will be too strong for Purdue.

Sept. 12 at Minnesota (W)

This is the first change from my previous prediction. There are two differences in this matchup. For one, it’s likely there will be no fans or very few, which will negate the Gophers home-field advantage, which became obvious last season.

The loss of Rashod Bateman will also hurt the Gophers in this one and while Minnesota may have the edge at QB, the Wolverines have the edge basically everywhere else.

Sept. 19 vs Penn State (W)

Penn State is a really good team and Sean Clifford is a solid quarterback, but I don’t think he’s any better than McCaffrey or Joe Milton. And without Micah Parsons, the Nittany Lions defense won’t be as good either. Penn State is still tough, but James Franklin hasn’t won in Ann Arbor and he won’t get his first win in 2020. Michigan wins this easier than expected.

Sept. 26 at Rutgers (W)

New head coach Greg Schiano will make Rutgers more competitive and you can already see the results on the recruiting trail. But there is still a huge gap between the Scarlet Knights and Michigan. It will be a tougher game, but the Wolverines will win by 2-3 touchdowns.