College Football Picks: Michigan at Notre Dame
Two traditional powers in college football look to return to national prominence this season as the Michigan Wolverines and Notre Dame Fighting Irish square off. Each earned impressive victories in week one and have fans thinking this could be the season of turnaround. Brian Kelly is in his first season as the head coach of the Fighting Irish, while Rich Rodriguez is on the hot seat following a rocky two seasons at Michigan. The Wolverines are a 4 point underdog.
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Not many teams were more impressive than the Michigan Wolverines last weekend. They soundly defeated a very good Connecticut Huskies squad 30-10 and received a breakout performance from quarterback Denard Robinson. The kid that doesn’t tie his shoes threw for 186 yards and added another 197 on the ground accounting for two total touchdowns. The quarterback controversy that plagued Michigan last season is no longer an issue. Robinson broke the school record for rushing yards in a game by a quarterback and carried the ball 29 times. The ball hit the ground only three times in 22 pass attempts. RB Vincent Smith added 51 yards rushing and a score plus caught a key td pass in the fourth quarter. The Wolverines used their rushing attack to dominate time of possession and will need to do that once again this week to keep a talented Notre Dame offense on the sideline. Defensively, Michigan was atrocious a year ago but played much more soundly in their first game with eight returning starters. Stopping the spread attack of Brian Kelly will be more of a challenge for this unit.
It wasn’t always pretty at times for Notre Dame in their opener against Purdue, but they recorded a 23-12 victory which is the ultimate goal. Dayne Crist took over for Jimmy Clausen and was impressive in his debut throwing for 205 yards and a touchdown. He managed the game well and kept mistakes to a minimum. Armando Allen ran the ball with conviction in this his final season and gained 93 yards on 18 carries with one score. Cierre Wood was a nice surprise for the offense, picking up another 58 yards on seven attempts. WR Michael Floyd is one of the best at his position in the entire country. The junior has been plagued by injuries, but had five receptions for 82 yards in the opener and is a legitimate All-American candidate. TE Kyle Rudolph is an X factor on offense for this team and will play an important role in Saturday’s match-up. Purdue moved the ball against Notre Dame’s defense, but the Irish collected two turnovers and were stingy in the red zone. If the Domers want to start the season 2-0, utilizing a balanced offense is vital against the Wolverines.
This match-up use to feature both teams in the Top 25 annually. With a win on Saturday, one of these teams will be well on their way to returning to the rankings. Michigan’s effort vs. Uconn was shocking as the school’s football program has not had much success the past three years. I believe the number you can get on the Wolverines is valuable and would play the +4 in this one.
Play: Michigan +4
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