ESPN Updated 2012 Bowl Predictions: Michigan vs. Johnny Football?

DO NOT WANT

Posted yesterday.

please god no

And to make sure that game never happens, please Iowa, beat Nebraska. 

Michigan needs to finish its own job in Columbus.

I would love to see Michigan vs Texas A&M and I'm sure the team would love the challenge.

Good thing that some of our fans don't play for Michigan...

OMG Texas A&M NOOOOOOO, OMG OMG OMG NO!!!!!!   When did we become Indiana fans?   

This is Michigan! We fear no one but first we must take care of business and BEAT OHIO!

back in 1977, think it was. They rolled into Ann Arbor and everyone was freaking out leading up to the game. Tough Big 8 team and all that. And we stomped them, 50 something to something small, can't remember the score.

Would rather be in the Rose Bowl duh..... but if that's how it shakes out, then BRING OL' JOHNNY FOOTBALL ON!  Jake's got something for ya Johnny!

We made George Woodard look like George Jefferson.

Based on most models, this would not be an insurmountable matchup. Using the Sagarin ratings, Texas A&M would actually only be a 1 TD favorite, which I'll take. Further, they give up 245 yards per game in the air on average per game, which is lower tier in Division I, as well as 136 yards on the ground, which is a good rush defense (32nd nationally). They are also 93rd nationally in turnover margin, which is something that we are opprtunistic enough to exploit, I would think.

Could be a good game, if it does indeed happen. 

If we play TAMU, Denard Football & Devin Football will kick their asses!  Go Blue!

noooooooooooo

I ain't scurred.

Bring 'em.

That is all.

Last time Michigan played a Heisman winner* in a bowl it worked out great. 

* I assuming Johnny Football wins it this year. Hard to find a better candidate.

Don't want my 2 teams playing each other.



M is my first love, but I think A&M would win. Johnny Fucking Football is on fire and Evans is a beast. Also have top OL in the country and a projected top-5 pick on defense.

Ok, when did we all become a bunch of whiny ninnies?

Please advise.

I'm not the only MGoBlog poster with some ties to A&M -- see MichiganAggie above, and there are several others whose handles escape my memory right now.  But I'm sure they share my mixed feelings about this potential matchup.

I'm a Michigan grad, but spent most of my childhood in Texas and come from a family of Aggies - my dad and grandfather both graduated from there, and several other relatives still work there. (It's to their great credit that as much as they love the school, my dad/grandfather never pressured me to go to school there; U-M had the academic program I wanted that wasn't offered at TAMU.)  I went to dozens of A&M games both at Kyle Field and on the road as a kid. It's safe to say a little bit of maroon blood still courses through my veins, and I was thrilled to see the Aggies beat Saban's evil empire a couple weeks ago. But there's no question I'll always root for Michigan in a head-to-head matchup, as I did during the Alamo Bowl in '95.

A&M's a great school with passionate and extremely loyal fans/alums, great traditions, etc, so a bowl game b/w A&M and Michigan would represent a lot of what's great about college football -- two good teams, terrific (if very different) marching bands, lots of history and tradition on both sides. What a treat it would be to see two of the more exciting college football players in recent memory, Johnny Football and Shoelace, go head-to-head. (Aggie fans travel very well, so I'm afraid the crowd in Orlando would be hugely tilted toward A&M.)

That said -- while Michigan should never be "scared" of any opponent, I think this would be a tough matchup for us. A&M has a hell of a lot of Texas-bred athleticism on both sides of the ball. The offense would be particularly tough for us to handle, even granting the solid fundamental play of our defense and that Mattison would have a month to prepare. Their O-line is almost as good as Alabama's: A&M's two tackles, Luke Joeckel and Jake Matthews (yes, he's from *THAT* Matthews football family) are both juniors who will probably come out early and be first-rounders along w/Taylor Lewan; and their senior center, Patrick Lewis, is a David Molk-style leader/linchpin. We all know about Manziel now, but their depth and talent at wide receiver w/Swope, Nwachukwu, 6-5 freshman Mike Evans, et al. would severely test our secondary. Malena and Michael are a solid duo at RB. And of course, their Oregon-style tempo would pose a huge challenge. Their defense is pretty good too (28th in scoring D).  What's more, Kevin Sumlin seems finally to have rid this team of the "second-half-chokers" syndrome that plagued them under Mike Sherman. (This program has always been what Jackie Sherrill called a "sleeping giant," and perhaps Sumlin is the coach who will finally make them the national power that their recruiting base, fan support, facilities, etc. indicate they should be.)

I think it could be a competitive game, but I could also see a scenario in which Manziel & Co. light us up and our inability to run the ball consistently and keep their O off the field would cost us over 4 quarters. We're still a couple good Hoke recruiting classes away from having the depth and talent (particularly at the skill positions) to really stand toe-to-toe with these deep SEC teams like Alabama and A&M.