Michigan Football: Can Wolverines finally win Big Ten in 2020?

How will Michigan football fare in 2020?

Originally the Wolverines started off with a West Coast trip to play the Washington Huskies in Seattle which would have been an interesting game out of the gate. This would have been followed by home games against Ball State and Arkansas State.

Here is the Wolverines’ conference-only schedule:

• Game 1: at Minnesota (L) —Tough start to the season. Gophers have not won the Little Brown Jug at home since 1977 but PJ Fleck’s team has a lot of talent.
• Game 2: vs. Michigan State (W) — Michigan State is in rebuild mode. Wolverines clear favorite against their in-state rival.
• Game 3: at Indiana (W) — Hoosiers have not beat the Wolverines since 1987. Winning streak for Michigan in the series will continue.
• Game 4: vs. Wisconsin (W) — Wolverines avenge last year’s loss in Madison.
• Game 5: at Rutgers (W) — This will be a cakewalk game. Scarlet Knights are not on the same level as the Wolverines.
• Game 6: vs. Penn State (W) — Home team has won match-up last four seasons and Nittany Lions historically do not play well in Ann Arbor.
• Game 7: vs. Maryland (W) — Maybe not as bad as the Rutgers blowout, but still an easy win over Terps.
• Game 8: at Ohio State (L) — Wolverines must win against the Buckeyes to prove they are legit. Until they prove it, this game goes as a loss.

Prediction: 6-2

Tough draw out of the gate. Minnesota is a contender in the Big Ten West and Michigan will still be working out the kinks on offense.

The schedule gets somewhat easier after the first game, but the Wolverines still have tough match-ups against Wisconsin and Penn State. They have the talent to win both of those, especially on defense.

It will all come down to the game in Columbus naturally. Michigan must beat Ohio State one of these years, but this year does not look like it will be a win. The Buckeyes just have too much to predict the Wolverines can upset them.

A 6-2 season with a chance to pick up a seventh win in the conference’s cross over ninth game and an eighth win in a potential bowl game, this would not be a bad season given the circumstances. But until the Wolverines beat the Buckeyes and make it to Indianapolis for a Big Ten championship game, it will still be viewed as a disappointment by much of the fanbase.