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The No. 18 Michigan Wolverines (9-3) face the No. 13 Texas Longhorns (9-3) in the Citrus Bowl on Dec. 31. This will be the second time the two programs have played in the past two years, with Texas beating Michigan 31-12 at Michigan Stadium in September of 2024. The two programs also
face each other in Texas in September of 2027. Which means Michigan, at the very least, will play Texas in three of four seasons from 24-27, and it could wind up being four of four years if they’re to meet in the playoffs next year.
With all that in mind, are you excited about Michigan’s matchup against Texas, or do you wish it were a different opponent? Vote below.
Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian on matchup with Michigan: “I would say just in opening, it is an honor and privilege to be part of the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl against a great opponent in Michigan, having played them last year to start the season, and we are set to play them to start the ‘27 season. The opportunity to play a quality opponent for them, for our team to extend our season, is one that we are looking forward to.”
Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore on the matchup versus Texas: “Our young men are going to be super excited to go participate and have a great game against a great Texas opponent.”
It’s a good matchup for Michigan, and it’s a bowl with a great history, with this being the 80th Citrus Bowl. Orlando takes pride in holding this event. It’s a game between two big programs,s and the quarterback matchup of Texas’ Arch Manning and Michigan’s Bryce Underwood is also a fun one. However, Michigan doesn’t play SEC teams a lot, and just like fans became burnt out of facing Florida, the same can be said for playing Texas frequently. Alternative matchups against teams like Vanderbilt with Heisman candidate quarterback Diego Pavia would have been exciting, as would a tilt against teams like Notre Dame (which declined participating in a bowl).
As things stand, Michigan vs. Texas is still a cool enough matchup with good storylines to follow. At least it isn’t an outing in the Mayo Bowl where the head coach gets mayonnaise dumped on them.
