Coming off the bye week, the Michigan Wolverines will reach the midway point of their season after Saturday’s game vs Penn State. Both programs are in the first year of a new regime, and neither has gotten off to the start they had hoped for with both being winless in conference play. That will change this weekend in Ann Arbor.
Michigan Wolverines vs Penn State Nittany Lions
- Day: Saturday, Oct. 17, 2026
- TV: CBS
- Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
- Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan
- Weather: 52 degrees, partly cloudy
- Odds: Mich -6.5, O/U: 42.5
Two programs that are questioning their head coaching hires, one will leave Saturday with even more doubt. Penn State is in the midst of a three-game losing streak to Wisconsin,
Northwestern and USC, with two of those games happening in Happy Valley. Their only wins come against Temple, Buffalo, and Marshall.
Meanwhile, the Wolverines have some legitimate challenges on the offensive side of the ball. It’s never good when you’re midway through the season and your head coach has to confirm that your five-star quarterback will remain the starter and that your offensive coordinator will keep calling plays.
Bryce Underwood will continue to commandeer an offense that ranks 108th in yards per game. There has been an assignment from Whittingham for this team to get into a flow of running the ball downhill, something that hasn’t really been done yet. At only 3.8 yards per rush and 135 rushing yards per game, Michigan is severely underperforming on the ground compared to the expectations for this program.
Ironically, Penn State has had a very similar challenge. The overall offense has been better, but the Nittany Lions have been unable to moved the ball with consistency on the ground. And on the other side, they are equally as bad at stopping the run.
That creates the perfect opportunity for Michigan to take advantage and start to implement something new to see what works. Offensive line play this season has been skeptical, at best, with several different rotations being used due to injuries. Jordan Marshall and Savion Hiter haven’t really gotten going this season, so maybe we see a little more from them to ease the load from Underwood with his legs in this one.
I like Michigan in this game, but I’m nervous about the 6.5 points, as anyone should be for how anemic this offense has been. If they can find any semblance of consistency, the Wolverines’ defense has been among the best in the country and should be able to keep this Penn State offense at bay.
The play: Under 42.5
Other top games
- Sat, Oct 17 @ Noon ET on FOX: No. 4 Ohio State Buckeyes vs No. 5 Indiana Hoosiers
- The Bet: OSU – 3.5
- Sat, Oct. 17 @ Noon ET on ESPN: No. 16 Mississippi State Bulldogs vs No. 22 LSU Tigers
- The Bet: LSU -14
- Sat, Oct. 17 @ 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC: No. 2 Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs No. 8 BYU Cougars
- The Bet: ND -10.5
