The Michigan Wolverines enter this week feeling good after taking down Penn State amid a quarterback swap, going from Bryce Underwood to Tommy Carr. Now, the true freshman gets his first start, and it will not be an easy one.
Indiana (6-1, 3-1 Big Ten) just lost its first game after a 22-game win streak, losing by inches to Ohio State. Michigan (4-2, 1-2) will likely need to lean on its mighty defense to hand the Hoosiers their first losing streak in the Curt Cignetti era.
Can the Wolverines pull off the upset against IU football? Our five experts make their predictions:
Jeff Seidel
Call me crazy. Call it a wild hunch that goes against all the betting experts. But Michigan has a tremendous defense. And I firmly believe that if you just give the Wolverines
some mistake-free offense, they can play with anybody. With Tommy Carr at QB, it changes everything for Michigan. If the defense can force a few turnovers (granted, I know, that’s super hard against Indiana) and if Carr can avoid mistakes, the Wolverines can pull off a huge upset. The pick: Michigan 23, Indiana 20.
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Carlos Monarrez
The Tommy Carr era is expected to officially start. But it’s going to be rough sledding because the Curt Cignetti era has been going strong for a while and surely motivated to bounce back after a tough loss to Ohio State. Just consider a turnover-free game and a couple of touchdown drives a moral victory for Carr and the Wolverines. The pick: Indiana 31, Michigan 19.
Shawn Windsor
Tommy Carr gets his first official start, and against most other teams the uptick in offense would be easy to spot. It'll be harder to spot against the Hoosiers defense. Fortunately, Indiana isn't the offensive machine it was a year ago, and U-M's defense will keep it in the game until the fourth quarter. The pick: Indiana 23, Michigan 16
Rainer Sabin
It’s hard to believe, but over the last three seasons, Indiana has been a much better program than Michigan. The Hoosiers now have championship DNA, and it will be evident on Saturday when their stingy defense – ranked among the nation’s best – puts the clamps on the Tommy Carr-led Wolverines. While Carr gives Michigan’s offense some more juice, it won’t be enough to outscore a team that remains a legitimate title contender. The pick: Indiana 24, Michigan 20.
Tony Garcia
Indiana hasn't lost consecutive games in the Curt Cignetti era, which dates back more than two-and-a-half years. The Hoosiers also haven't lost the turnover battle in the past 31 games. U-M has continued to shoot itself in the foot, which was the main reason it made a switch at quarterback. While the hope is this operation will be cleaner, there's no guarantee. IU has given up more than 17 points once this year. It's hard to imagine this offense will be the one to break any of those streaks. The pick: Indiana 20, Michigan 13
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football vs Indiana predictions, picks in Big Ten game
