Analyst says Michigan football has one key matchup advantage against Northwestern

The No. 18 Michigan Wolverines travel to Chicago this Saturday to take on a scrappy Northwestern football team that has five wins and has been mostly competitive in Big Ten play all season long.

With the College Football Playoff well within Michigan's grasp if Sherrone Moore's team can win out, the Wolverines cannot afford to let down against a Wildcats team who will present some challenges.

However, even though Northwestern is expected to battle, there is one matchup that will be particularly problematic for the Wildcats when going up against Jordan Marshall and the Wolverines' rushing game, according to On3's J.D. PicKell.

"If you want to simplify things for your true freshman quarterback, man, you run the football," PicKell said. "And, unfortunately for Northwestern, they're allowing five yards per carry—I don't love that formula with what Michigan has been identity wise over the course of the season."

Northwestern's 4.7 yards per carry allowed ranks 100th in college football, and the Wolverines, even absent of Justice Haynes and with a passing game that has struggled the past two weeks, have shown they can still have success running the football with the legs of Jordan Marshall, Bryce Underwood and a good offensive line when it comes to run blocking.

"There's a world where Michigan wins this game and we see a Bryce Underwood stat line like he had against Michigan State, PicKell added. "Less than 100 yards passing, efficient through the air. Maybe one touchdown, maybe one touchdown on the ground as well. But you don't need to ask all that much of Bryce Underwood, at least as it stands right now breaking down this thing as maybe you will those games in the future. If I'm Northwestern here—it's a good school now. There's probably some good self awareness on that side in the Northwestern locker room—I think they probably know they can't stop Michigan up front with an honest box. I would be wildly surprised if we don't see Northwestern sell out to stop the run."

PicKell's prediction

With what look to be clear matchup advantage for Michigan up front on both sides of the ball, PicKell said he sees the Wildcats' path to victory as too narrow and is going with the Wolverines to improve it 8-2 on the season.

"There's too much there for me to fell good about Northwestern pulling off the upset," said PicKell. "If it's going to happen, it means that Bryce Underwood had some kind of gutter balls game. And that would be surprising because if Bryce Underwood starts to have a shaky start, at that point then, Michigan would just turn around and run the football. So, it would take both stupidity and a freshman game from Michigan to ultimately lose this football game. I think we see Michigan win. I think Michigan cover, and we keep on hurdling towards that game the last week of the season, Michigan and Ohio State with Michigan having a chance, if they win that game, to punch their College Football Playoff ticket.

PicKell's prediction

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