This is what the Michigan Wolverines have been focused on all season long. After coming up short in the semifinal rounds of the College Football Playoff each of the past two seasons, Michigan has been on a mission to not only get back to the playoff for a third consecutive season but win it all. And with the top seed in the four-team field and a spot in Pasadena locked in for the Rose Bowl semifinal, everything has fallen exactly where Michigan wanted it. But first up is a matchup with the playoff era’s most successful program, the Alabama Crimson Tide.
It has been a few years since Alabama reigned supreme on the College Football Playoff field, but this year’s team has the look of a serious contender that could cause some problems for Michigan the way no other team has been capable of this season. After a bit of a shaky start to the season, Alabama has gotten in gear and taken advantage of a miraculous road victory in the regular season finale against Auburn. Alabama knocked Georgia out of the playoff hunt and now looks to make some noise as it is back in the playoff.
The Big Ten is 1-2 against the SEC so far this bowl season with Ohio State and Penn State each taking losses to Missouri and Ole Miss, respectively, in their New Years Six bowl games. Maryland picked up the win against Auburn in its bowl game. New Years Day will feature three Big Ten vs. SEC bowl matchups with Wisconsin battling LSU in the ReliaQuest Bowl and Iowa facing Tennessee in the Citrus Bowl. Can the Big Ten gain an upper hand on the SEC in head-to-head matchups this year?
Here is how to watch Michigan face Alabama in the first College Football Playoff semifinal