Notre Dame Football: 3 toughest games on 2019 schedule
By Dakota Cox
2. Michigan Wolverines
I honestly believe that this might as well be an elimination game for both teams. This will be a great game, but there are tougher opponents for both teams. If Notre Dame loses this game, they will likely be out of the College Football Playoff chase, as they will likely need to go 12-0. Although Michigan can easily make the CFP if they go 12-1 with a conference championship, it is unlikely that they will beat every other team if they can’t beat the Fighting Irish.
Offensively, these teams are actually similar. Both relied on skill players last year, but they will have to focus more on the passing game in 2019. Without Dexter Williams and Miles Boykin, the bulk of Notre Dame’s offense will be on Ian Book’s shoulders.
Similarly for Michigan, the Wolverines relied on Karan Higdon too heavily last year. When they open up the passing game, Shea Patterson will have more freedom than he ever has in college. It will be interesting to see how this changes the offense for Michigan.
Michigan has a reputation for not playing well in big games under Jim Harbaugh. I don’t think this guarantees a win for Notre Dame by any means, but it will be interesting to see if that gets into the heads of the Wolverines after coming off of a disappointing loss to end last season in their bowl game.
This game will be fun to watch, and the results are still up in the air in my eyes. Since the game is at Michigan, I’ll give them the slight edge right now. However, this might simply come down to which team comes into this game with the most momentum.