Michigan Opens as 21.5-pt. Favorite Over Indiana
Some early lines on FanDuel are out. That's about where I thought we'd be. Indiana looked terrible last night against Nebraska.
Other lines of interest:
Ohio State by 26.5 over MSU
Nebraska by 2.5 over Rutgers
Utah by 2.5 over UCLA
TCU by 5.5 over Kansas
Texas and Oklahoma - one book has Texas by 2.5, one has Oklahoma by 2.5
Nevada by 3.5 over Colorado State (perhaps the worst match-up in football history)
All the lines HERE.
October 2nd, 2022 at 1:29 PM ^
UM anywhere from -20 to -24 feels correct to me.
Lousy slate of games next weekend.
#GoBlue
October 2nd, 2022 at 2:43 PM ^
Lousy slate of games next weekend.
Those are often the most interesting weekends. Hopefully for everyone except us!
October 2nd, 2022 at 2:52 PM ^
Iowa vs. Illinois is an interesting matchup. Currently running Illinois favored by 4. I think they’ll cover that, we’ll see how the line moves this week.
October 2nd, 2022 at 6:59 PM ^
Forgive my snobbery, but I have never thought of Iowa-Illinois as an interesting matchup, and I refuse to start now!
October 2nd, 2022 at 1:29 PM ^
Michigan -21.5 is an easy take for me. I could see that shifting to -24.5 by gametime
October 2nd, 2022 at 1:34 PM ^
Much like our non con, whether they cover may depend on how long the 1st string offense stays in.
October 2nd, 2022 at 2:47 PM ^
SP+ ratings suggest it should be Michigan -24.5
FPI: Michigan -20
Hope we can pile up a lead early and get the subs in -- too many quagmires against Indiana that result in key injuries (including Corum last year)
October 2nd, 2022 at 1:29 PM ^
Nebraska v Rutgers needs an El Assico type shorthand. The Frosty-Pis cup?
October 2nd, 2022 at 2:17 PM ^
The GTFO Of The B1G Trophy. Both teams get one.
October 2nd, 2022 at 5:48 PM ^
The CornRutger Assic
October 2nd, 2022 at 1:31 PM ^
Y'know Indiana's problem? They lost Mike Hart.
OMG, Nebraska may win another one.
October 2nd, 2022 at 2:19 PM ^
So if Nebraska keeps winning, do they promote the interim coach? My vote is no, go after a big name
October 2nd, 2022 at 5:40 PM ^
I said it when they fired Frost...the fact that they didn't wait and save money AND reduce the chance of having to stick with the interim was a poor strategic move. Assuming they truly have no interest in keeping him...which, I can't imagine they do.
First black head coach, in ANY sport, in Nebraska history. And I don't know what the record could be, but let's say he went 7-1 or 6-2.
Hoooo boy, you gonna fire the first black coach after that?
There would be all kinds of pressure and social interest that Nebraska wants no part of. Again, if he's a legit candidate, then you're happy and you go forward. But if you thought you'd ride it out on your way to Urban or Matt Campbell or Lance Leipold...that's is smoke you don't need.
Now he's far more likely to go 3-5 or 4-4 and get canned, but whatever. It would've been interesting.
I guess the risk was also there for Frost to turn it around and then you have a decision to make on a guy you wanted to fire after game 3. I suppose that's why ADs make the big bucks, but I would've let Frost get into October.
I'm a firm believer that the most successful coaching searches are the short ones. You fire a coach this early and now you force all the guys you're interested in to answer questions about your opening while they are still coaching. I would've fired him at the end of October.
October 2nd, 2022 at 1:34 PM ^
what is the moral choice as between sparty and ohio? common answer is of course 'meteor', but who/what do you really root for?
on one hand, seeing sparty get thrashed is wonderful and probably the most likely scenario. on the other hand, you don't want ohio to build too much momentum and once again look and play like the death star they've been the last ~20 yrs.
what is consensus pick?
October 2nd, 2022 at 1:41 PM ^
MSU is already done as far as the Big Ten East goes. Might as well have them do some damage to OSU on their way out.
We would still have to beat OSU because of head to head tie-breaker to win the East, but a loss for OSU is money in the bank. If they were to trip up again against Penn State or Maryland! then we walk right through the Big Ten East door.
But it's a moot point. OSU will kill Sparty like they did last year.
October 2nd, 2022 at 1:46 PM ^
OSU killing Sparty will help with Sparty losing some of the commits. I am rooting for PSU to beat OSU and of course UM beating PSU first. Sparty needs to be done and done for the foreseeable future.
October 2nd, 2022 at 1:53 PM ^
Yeah, the play is to root for Sparty bottoming out so recruits flee.
October 2nd, 2022 at 7:47 PM ^
They won't lose commits.
Ishbia is paying players big time. Those kids are not leaving 1m or 750k on the table
October 2nd, 2022 at 8:09 PM ^
curious as to which sparty is getting a cool mil
October 2nd, 2022 at 2:36 PM ^
OSU has to go to Maryland the week before The Game. I am rooting for UMd to be 9-1 and in the Top 10 entering that game. If that happens, the Terps will be totally amped for the game. Of course OSU will win, but it is the best distraction we could have in their penultimate week.
October 2nd, 2022 at 2:44 PM ^
We have Illinois the week before the Game, which they could be a very challenging game.
October 2nd, 2022 at 3:48 PM ^
Username checks out
October 2nd, 2022 at 1:43 PM ^
I’m fine with either honestly. With that, if Sparty is to lose, they have to lose big (and I mean really big!).
October 2nd, 2022 at 2:07 PM ^
49-6. Backup comes in during garbage and throws a TD, but Mel goes for 2 because he’s too proud to lose by 42.
October 2nd, 2022 at 5:19 PM ^
OSU is on the road, so they're limited to their travel roster - no walk-ons. That could get Rutgers 2016 78-0 ugly.
October 2nd, 2022 at 8:13 PM ^
you know, i've never thought about that factor
October 3rd, 2022 at 2:49 PM ^
Yeah, that really was the biggest reason that game was 78-0 instead of something like 56-0. Sure, Rutgers was really bad, but I can all but guarantee they were better than Colorado St., Hawaii or UConn this year. But when you can only travel with 70 players, you don't even have your full third string with you (since you have ST specialists included as well). Which means that unlike some of these cupcake games where walk-ons you've never heard of are playing the fourth quarter (we played EIGHT QBs and 100+ players against UConn), we finished that Rutgers game with a few second-string guys still on the field, simply by virtue of the fact that we didn't have room for their backups on the travel roster.
You don't necessarily think about it until you start wondering why we put up 78 in that game, and otherwise in recent history have only put up 67 (in 3OTs against Illinois, although that game was 45-45 at the end of regulation) and 65 once each, with a smattering of 63s before you get into the 50s. Especially since we got off to such a slow start against Rutgers, too (if we actually scored on our first few possessions we could have put up close to 100...). You need the perfect storm of a really bad opponent, plus being on the road, preventing Harbaugh from playing the deep bench.
October 2nd, 2022 at 1:46 PM ^
It depends on the season but this time around I want to see OSU hang 70 on Staee. I do not want to see anything good happen to Tuck or his boys. The more misery for that program the better. OSU is a fully formed juggernaut and it is what it is. We either beat them and realize our destiny or we don’t. No one else is going to. Whatever momentum Tuck has in recruiting or otherwise needs to be put down before it gets going.
October 2nd, 2022 at 1:48 PM ^
I’d rather Sparty get thrashed yet again and continue to bleed out. We can fully eliminate any signs of life when we get to them. We still play both of them so we control our own destiny anyway. Let’s save all the hate and anger towards Ohio St at the end of the season and make it two in a row and really put the heat on “born on 3rd base Day”.
For this one, I’m rooting against Sparty
October 2nd, 2022 at 1:54 PM ^
I think for best chance to win the East you want an MSU victory but it won't happen and we can enjoy OSU putting up 49 in a half again. Hopefully that will start an exodus of their recruits and MSU will continue to suffer under Tucker and that contract.
October 2nd, 2022 at 1:57 PM ^
Gotta go with OSU here.
OSU is what it is. Even if the game's played in another monsoon like 2015 and Sparty somehow wins, OSU's prestige as a program won't change. They're too established as a program for one game to matter.
Sparty is another story. The perception of their program is totally up in the air. It was on the upswing, big time, after last year - but it was fragile, and they needed to confirm their new status. With each ugly loss this year, last year looks more and more like a fluke. That's what we want. We don't need a strong in-state competitor.
October 2nd, 2022 at 3:23 PM ^
This is a good point. Brady Hoke was recruiting at Alabama levels after his lucky horseshoe 2011 season . . . until it became clear it was all a mirage. Then the recruiting tanked.
So look for the same thing to happen to Mel.
October 2nd, 2022 at 2:19 PM ^
OSU put up 49 on MSU in the first half last year. That momentum didn’t help them much the following week.
October 2nd, 2022 at 2:22 PM ^
it might not have helped ohio much 7 days later, but it sure put a pep in my step watching that 7th first half touchdown v. sparty.
October 2nd, 2022 at 2:21 PM ^
After all the offseason cigars, mean dogs and tuckcomin tweets, my vote would be 95 ohio 0 msu
October 2nd, 2022 at 2:23 PM ^
In this case, it is imperative to root for MSU to upset OSU. That way when Michigan beats both of those scumbag teams, us fans can unequivocally lay claim that we took care of both teams while pointing to the fact that OSU got beat by both Michigan teams.
October 2nd, 2022 at 2:28 PM ^
I'm a Michigander but I really don't care about this "state pride" stuff. It means nothing to me if the other Big Ten team from Michigan beats OSU. If anything it would water down our own accomplishment.
The flip side - MSU saving its season by beating OSU - is far worse for us.
October 2nd, 2022 at 3:11 PM ^
A crappy MSU team has managed to "scare" OSU once in the last several years; in 2016, their 3-9 team played OSU to a 17-16 loss. Since that game, Sparty has lost to OSU by 45, 20, 24, 40 and 49.
If MSU makes this a contest, I'll be pretty shocked. It's going to be a blowout. Maybe not by 40 or so but around 24-30 points.
This game will be like watching two d*ckheads fighting in a bar.
October 2nd, 2022 at 4:39 PM ^
At this point I think MSU is just Rutgers with slightly better O and slightly worse D.
October 2nd, 2022 at 3:56 PM ^
MSU fans would never root for us to beat Ohio State, so why should we want them to? I say let Ohio State thrash Sparty.
October 2nd, 2022 at 7:57 PM ^
Exactly as we're going to have to beat OSU anyways and even if they stumble and lose a game (very unlikely)
October 2nd, 2022 at 11:00 PM ^
Both of those fanbases would never ever root for us. To hell with both of them. In this game it really doesn't matter but my gut says let OSU curbstomp little bro.
October 2nd, 2022 at 2:47 PM ^
A Bobby Williams era is best case with MSU. And a John Cooper one for OSU.
October 2nd, 2022 at 3:51 PM ^
hang a hundred comin
October 2nd, 2022 at 4:37 PM ^
OSU is far above Sparty on the hate meter. I’ll never root for OSU under any circumstances.
Rooting will have no bearing. Sparty will get trounced, just like last year.
October 2nd, 2022 at 5:02 PM ^
For me, MSU is "a" rival, but OSU is "the" rival. I want nothing good to happen to OSU. So go Sparty.
But it's not going to matter -- OSU rolls.
October 2nd, 2022 at 5:54 PM ^
It's hard for me to get worked up about rooting for either of these teams in this game - not so much because I want them both to lose (which of course), but because the outcome is a forgone conclusion. OSU will almost certainly curb stomp MSU, and I'm fine with that. On the other hand if by some miracle MSU should upset OSU, that would certainly grab my attention more, but I can't cheer for MSU in that event. I don't want to see anything good happen to that program.
October 2nd, 2022 at 9:29 PM ^
I'm in favor of a sparty smackdown. I want them back to the irrelevance they were for the first 4 decades of my life.
Michigan needs to take care of business against OSU which is the way it should be and always has been.
October 3rd, 2022 at 12:41 AM ^
In this case, it doesn't matter what we want. Michigan State is going to be crucified, drawn & quartered and mocked by the onlooking masses all at the same time on Saturday.