HOUSTON — After years of hand-wringing, underachievement, close calls, questionable plays and disappointing seasons, Michigan football is one game away from winning a national championship for the first time since 1997.
It will face a hungry Washington team that hasn’t won it all since 1991, when the Huskies were in their heyday. Both teams have a great deal going for them, but anything can happen in a one-game scenario.
The maize and blue are favored, but such was the case last year in the College Football Playoff semifinal in the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl against TCU. Weird things can happen once the ball is kicked off, and Michigan is hoping to build off the momentum of beating an Alabama team that many thought would take down the Wolverines.
Though Michigan is favored, as said, a lot of pundits are wide-eyed at Michael Penix Jr. and the Washington pass game. While games aren’t played on paper, we’re giving you six reasons the Wolverines will emerge as the 2023 national champions.