The Michigan Wolverines are off to an undefeated start this season and the team is looking better than it has in years under head coach Brady Hoke and at 4-0 the team will host Big Ten conference rival Minnesota at the Big House at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor on Saturday at 3:30 PM with coverage coming on ESPN or ABC.
The Wolverines will open conference play with the Gophers after pulling out a close 24-21 victory two week ago against Connecticut and that came after another close win against Akron that was by four points. Playing those types of games against teams of that level is troubling, but since the Wolverines were able to come out on the winning side, two weeks is plenty of time for corrections and Hoke is hoping for a better overall performance from his team on Saturday when Minnesota comes to town to see Michigan.
The Wolverines lost some offense to the NFL draft in Denard Robinson and so far Devin Gardner has been a solid replacement, throwing for over 800 yards with seven touchdowns over the first four games while also rushing for over 300 yards and five touchdowns. The team opened the season with a big offensive performance against Central Michigan before beating Notre Dame 41-30 in early September and now the team is 4-0 heading into Big Ten conference play.
Michigan has a tough late schedule and they will next play on the road against Penn State after playing Minnesota. Indiana will be next on the schedule at home on the Big Ten Network, then the team will play state rival Michigan State in what is always a tough game from the Spartans. The Wolverines will next play against Nebraska at the Big House and then will be on the road for a tough game against number 16 Northwestern, who is playing the Ohio State Buckeyes this weekend.
Michigan will finish the season with a road game against Iowa and then the final game of the year they will host Ohio State in Ann Arbor in a game that likely will have national and conference implications. The team is averaging over 400 yards per game this season and are ranked 32nd in the nation in scoring with 38 points per game and their defense is allowing an average of 21 points per contest this year. Minnesota is a tough rushing team and they average over 200 yards per game and the Wolverines will need to be tough up front.
The Gophers are 4-1 this season after losing to Iowa last weekend 23-7 and now the team is already 0-1 in the conference and this comes after wins over UNLV, New Mexico State, Western Illinois and San Jose State. The team has a tough stretch with Michigan, Northwestern and Nebraska and then the team will play against Indiana, Penn State, Wisconsin and Michigan State.
Click here for the Michigan Live stream coverage from ESPN and the coverage from the Big Ten conference.
