For the third straight year, Michigan football will embark upon a coveted College Football Playoff appearance, marking the last time that the invitational will be relegated to just four teams overall. The No. 1 seed in the Rose Bowl Game, the Wolverines will face off against 4-seed Alabama, a 12-1 team that lost to 3-seed Texas but beat two-time defending national champion Georgia in the SEC Championship.
The maize and blue are very similar to the Crimson Tide in terms of how each unit has performed, with the Michigan defense performing a little better overall than that of Alabama, while the Alabama offense is slightly ahead of Michigan in those same metrics.
What should be noted is that Alabama has played tougher offenses as a whole, while Michigan has played tougher defenses, generally. Though the Big Ten might be able to boast better defenses, that could be due to playing more lackluster offenses. The Wolverines have managed against Penn State, Ohio State, and Iowa, but the Crimson Tide have appeared human against most of the teams they’ve faced.
Without further ado, here are the numbers.
Michigan offense, Alabama defense, by the numbers
| Michigan offense (rank) | Alabama defense (rank) | |
| Passing | 218.8 yards/game (75) | 188.8 yards/game allowed (23) |
| Rushing | 161.77 yards/game (60) | 124.54 yards/game allowed (33) |
| Scoring | 36.7 points/game (14) | 18.4 points/game allowed (17) |
| Total | 380.5 yards/game (68) | 318.3 yards/game allowed (13) |
| First downs | 20.5 first downs/game (64) | 16.4 first downs/game allowed (11) |
| Third down conversions | 46.71% (15) | 33.89% allowed (25) |
| Red zone conversions | 88.14% (39), TD: 71.9% (18) | 81.58% allowed (53), TD: 52.63% allowed (30) |
| Tackles for loss | 44 allowed (6) | 82 (25) |
| Sacks | 18 allowed (33) | 38 (9) |
Alabama offense, Michigan defense, by the numbers
| Alabama offense (rank) | Michigan defense (rank) | |
| Passing | 228.5 yards/game (61) | 152.6 yards/game allowed (2) |
| Rushing | 172.69 yards/game (49) | 86.62 yards/game allowed (6) |
| Scoring | 35.1 points/game (19) | 9.5 points/game allowed (1) |
| Total | 401.2 yards/game (54) | 239.2 yards/game allowed (2) |
| First downs | 20.2 first downs/game (69) | 12.7 first downs/game allowed (2) |
| Third down conversions | 46.75% (14) | 30.77% allowed (13) |
| Red zone conversions | 94% (7), TD: 70% (20) | 71.43% allowed (4), TD: 42.86% allowed (7) |
| Tackles for loss | 78 allowed (100) | 73 (41) |
| Sacks | 43 allowed (125) | 33 (25) |
Also, according to ESPN SP+, Michigan has the No. 1 team overall, the No. 9 offense and No. 2 defense. Alabama has the No. 8 team, the No. 13 offense and No. 8 defense.
The Wolverines and Crimson Tide will play on January 1, 2024 at the Rose Bowl Game at 5 p.m. EST.