Guess at Final Week Crossover Matchups
All caveats about this season being a disaster acknowledged, but I thought it was interesting to think about what the final week matchups are looking like. I had to make a few assumptions on this (obviously). The most relevant being that I am expecting Michigan to beat Penn State and Maryland and lose to OSU (best case scenario). Other than that, basically expecting trends for the other teams in the B1G to continue.
Championship - Ohio State vs Northwestern
2nd Place - Indiana vs Iowa
3rd Place - Michigan vs Purdue
4th Place - Maryland vs Wisconsin
5th Place - Penn State vs Illinois
6th Place - Rutgers vs Minnesota
7th Place - Michigan State vs Nebraska
One big liberty I took was moving Wisconsin down to the 4th place game. I expect them to come in second in the west, but their two crossovers in the regular season are Indiana and Michigan, so to avoid a rematch, I moved them down to 4th and slid Iowa and Purdue up. I also considered that if Wisconsin or Indiana looks like an outside shot for a second B1G playoff spot, they might have them play again to bolster the record / resume for the winner.
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:17 AM ^
We...are in third place? So much for B1G East dominance.
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:28 AM ^
Agree that it seemed ridiculous, but in this scenario it would be something like
1. OSU 7-0
2. Indiana 7-1 or 6-2 (depending on their game at Wisconsin)
3. Michigan 4-4
4. Maryland 3-3
5. Penn State 2-6
6. Rutgers 1-7
7. MSU 1-7
Lose to PSU and / or Maryland and move down accordingly.
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:51 AM ^
Msu would be 1-6 because they didn't play Maryland.
November 23rd, 2020 at 12:32 PM ^
I'm going to be pissed forever that we lost to this MSU team. Inexcusable
November 23rd, 2020 at 2:58 PM ^
Totally agree. That game infuriates me, and wj until we beat them next year.
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:24 AM ^
So, you're looking at a 4-4 record, heading into that game which is about where I see things ending up but also possibly 3-5 and 4th place and a matchup against Illinois.
November 23rd, 2020 at 2:27 PM ^
Illinois has performed better the last 2 weeks than Michigan has.
November 23rd, 2020 at 6:58 PM ^
I'm eager to see Cade play again. When he was the QB we scored 35 points in 35 minutes in regulation. That's on pace for a 60 point game. Rutgers caveats and all, but the offense was moving with him at the helm.
November 23rd, 2020 at 7:17 PM ^
Wow! 60 points against Ohio State should keep us in the game, but we’ll still lose by 40.
November 23rd, 2020 at 8:13 PM ^
That's not that tough...
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:25 AM ^
I’m still not convinced UM wins another game. I see them playing Illinois because they’ve already played Minnesota.
November 23rd, 2020 at 12:12 PM ^
Agreed. 3rd place for Michigan is very generous.
November 24th, 2020 at 8:46 AM ^
But typical
November 23rd, 2020 at 12:33 PM ^
Yep. Realizing that Cade is the better QB only allowed us to barely escape a comeback and shootout with Rutgers. The defense is still trash
November 23rd, 2020 at 5:35 PM ^
In fairness, if Cade had played the whole 60 minutes, we probably would have won comfortably. We outscored them 48-25 when he was in the game.
November 23rd, 2020 at 6:59 PM ^
And he came in with only 5 minutes left in the half, down 17 points. It's probably a comfortable win if he starts.
November 23rd, 2020 at 7:19 PM ^
If we beat Penn State, third place is a reasonable assumption
November 23rd, 2020 at 5:59 PM ^
I tend to believe we will end up 4-4 with shootout wins against PSU and Maryland and the annual auto loss to OSU.
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:29 AM ^
I highly doubt UM beats Maryland. They'll rack up 600 yards and score at will.
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:44 AM ^
I know PSU is 0-5 but I do think they match up well with UM.
Iowa pounded them on ground, something that UM will not be able to do.
Im worried about Clifford/Dotson having a field day against our secondary; especially since UM does not have much of a pass rush.
Plus, it would be fitting for PSU to get their 1st win of the year against UM.
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:58 AM ^
I have a feeling our last TD drive in regulation against Rutgers will be the plan going forward. Lean heavily on the run, kill clock, and try to keep the D off the field as much as possible. Should've been the game plan all season, regardless of who the QB is.
November 23rd, 2020 at 12:02 PM ^
That's a recipe for 0-3. We needed 40 to beat Rutgers for fucks sake.
November 23rd, 2020 at 12:13 PM ^
good plan if you can score.
November 23rd, 2020 at 12:15 PM ^
Run the ball and play defense? When we can't do either?
November 23rd, 2020 at 7:54 PM ^
We have no idea who will or will not be available on their roster due to covid issues.
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:39 AM ^
Looks like Illinois or Purdue are the likely UM matchups
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:41 AM ^
I wish the thread below wasn’t locked. I want to mock Dabo and the OP.
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:43 AM ^
With a 4 team playoff, there's no second B1G spot. Wisconsin forgetting they had to play Northwestern ensured that.
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:46 AM ^
Probably not, but say ND beats Clemson again, Alabama beats Florida in the SEC title game, Texas beats Iowa State and no one does much in the PAC 12 with its tiny schedule. It's really unlikely, but a 8-1 Indiana team with two wins over Wisconsin and a one score loss on the road to OSU is probably in the discussion.
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:47 AM ^
Agreed. A 1-loss OSU to NW would not jump 1-loss ND and Clemson if they split. And of course Alabama.
Now if OSU is a 1-loss B1G champion and their loss isn’t to an undefeated NW team, I believe they are a lock.
It gets interesting though if OSU loses to a 1-loss or more B1G West champion and if ND beats Clemson again.
Does a 6 game Pac 12 team get in? Do we finally get a group of 5 team like Cincy or BYU?
November 23rd, 2020 at 12:14 PM ^
I'll eat my shirt if OSU beats NW by less than 20pts.
November 23rd, 2020 at 12:36 PM ^
I'm a bit wary after thinking OSU -20.5 was a gimme vs Indiana two days ago...
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:43 AM ^
If the teams are at least close, they should try to schedule the schools that were supposed to play in 2020's 9th conference game.
For Michigan, of course, that was hosting Purdue.
It's rather absurd to think that a conference member (Purdue) hasn't visited AA in 9 years. If it doesn't happen this year, it will become 12 (scheduled for 2023).
November 23rd, 2020 at 12:04 PM ^
If Purdue comes to A2, we need to significantly downgrade the visitor's locker room.
November 23rd, 2020 at 12:37 PM ^
Agreed. But I would draw the line at making an injured player have to wait in traffic to get to a hospital.
November 23rd, 2020 at 1:17 PM ^
And shut down UM hospital to all out-of-towners for the afternoon. Make them take their QB with a broken back via ambulance to Beaumont or Henry Ford.
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:47 AM ^
Just avoid Iowa please!
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:48 AM ^
Is it wrong that I'm kinda hoping we play Illinois for the Brandon Peters revenge factor?
November 23rd, 2020 at 12:16 PM ^
or he comes out and kicks our butts... Wouldn't that just be a great way to cap this shitty season.
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:50 AM ^
MSU vs. Nebraska would be the next Game of the Century.
November 23rd, 2020 at 11:59 AM ^
None of those matchups look exciting to me. And unless they play OSU v Northwestern in a blizzard, that will probably be the most lopsided of all the games.
November 23rd, 2020 at 12:01 PM ^
my guess is Iowa, maybe Purdue
I am just hoping McNamara shows he is a game changing QB and plays with consistency the rest of the way. I really think finally finding a good/ great QB is what this program needs to change our fortunes going forward.
Unlike many of you, I hope he saves Harbaugh's job. He has a lot of eligibility left. Make some coaching changes on defense in the off season and see what the team looks like with a real QB the next couple of seasons.
It's too early to tell though. But at least we now have a reason to watch.
November 23rd, 2020 at 3:17 PM ^
Your second paragraph is so far beyond pathetic. How about the coaches save their own damn jobs!!!
November 23rd, 2020 at 12:09 PM ^
No way we beat PSU unless we somehow figure out a way to get TOs.
November 23rd, 2020 at 1:00 PM ^
Well, we don't really seem good at tracking the ball for INTs, but fumbles are completely random so we got a chance there!
November 23rd, 2020 at 1:36 PM ^
TO's? We still get 3 per half, even though Harbaugh usually seems clueless on using them to our advantage.
November 23rd, 2020 at 1:21 PM ^
Hall vs Oates
November 23rd, 2020 at 4:39 PM ^
3rd place is pretty optimistic. With our defense I don’t see that happening.
November 23rd, 2020 at 5:04 PM ^
Are the champions week games at a neutral site?
November 23rd, 2020 at 6:04 PM ^
The 2020 B1G football teams are an upside down rag tag bunch of misfits.