The Wolverine Digest Pod

This weekend's top ten matchup between Michigan and Michigan State has so many intriguing storylines.

The quarterback matchup is interesting because so far, Michigan State's Payton Thorne has been better than Michigan's Cade McNamara. Despite being 7-0, McNamara has only thrown five touchdown passes and hasn't been asked to do much downfield. What will that mean on Saturday?

Michigan State Kenneth Walker III is a legitimate Heisman contender by himself, but Michigan's overall rushing attack is far better than MSU's with Blake Corum and Hassan Haskins both putting up big numbers. Through seven games, Walker has 997 yards and nine touchdowns, while Corum and Haskins have 1,331 yards and 20 rushing touchdowns combined.

Michigan's cornerbacks haven't been tested much this year, but the overall pass defense has been solid. The Wolverines are currently No. 4 in the Big Ten giving up just 182.4 passing yards per game. Conversely, Michigan State is dead last in the conference and gives up 285.4 yards through the air per contest. On the flip side, MSU puts up north of 250 yards through the air, while U-M manages just 189.

All in all, it just feels like a classic matchup. It's hard to predict how the game will look, which makes it hard to pick who will prevail. That's what makes rivalry games like Saturday's so special.

Michigan vs. Michigan State always has a little stank on it but this year is on another level. Both teams are 7-0, ranked inside the top ten and ready to prove they belong.

Neither team has beaten a top flight opponent but, 7-0 is 7-0. There are some legitimate questions surrounding each team but both programs are confident and think they can beat one another. We're all going to know what each program is made of come Saturday, and the entire state of Michigan is ready for it.

Even though Michigan is favored by a massive 23.5 points, it's hard to figure out exactly how the game against Northwestern will look. Pat Fitzgerald always has his teams ready and Jim Harbaugh correctly said that the Wildcats are always better in the middle and later part of the season than they are at the beginning. Throw in the fact that Michigan has won four of its last five matchups against Northwestern by an average of just 4.75 points, and you start to really wonder how much Michigan can win by.

While trying to figure out how the game will look, it's fun to get into the actual stats of the game. How many times will Cade McNamara throw it? How well will Michigan be able to run the ball against Northwestern's porous defense? How often will we see Brad Robbins and Jake Moody? Those kinds of things will determine how the game looks, even though most people expect a win for the Wolverines.

We also get into some of the other games around the Big Ten and the country. All of that and more on this episode of The Wolverine Digest Podcast.

Michigan is expected to beat up on Northwestern this weekend, but will they? Jim Harbaugh respects the hell out of Pat Fitzgerald and how and his teams approach things and knows that the Wildcats get better each week. We talk with JP Acosta of Wildcats Daily to find out exactly what the Cats will bring with them to Ann Arbor.

Not only will the game be worth watching, the newly implemented trophy honoring the life of George H. Jewett will be worth recognizing. Jewett was the first African American player at both Michigan and Northwestern back in the 1890s, which is very unique and extremely significant. The winner of the game will take home the trophy and the trophy itself rotates to face the winning team's "side" of the base.

We also launch into just how important these next six games are. On the schedule are away games at Michigan State and Penn State, and of course the regular season finalé against Ohio State. Jim Harbaugh's seventh season will be defined by the next six games.

Blake Corum joins us again to talk about Michigan's 6-0 start, his own goals as a running back, the fastest player on the roster and Mike Hart's influence through six weeks. Corum also explains why Jim Harbaugh called Sunday's practice one of the best he's ever seen.

We also touch on Cade McNamara's play through the first half of the season, what Michigan needs to do against Northwestern this Saturday and the overall vibe of the team with three incredibly tough opponents ahead.

Friday afternoon marked Michigan basketball's media day and it was definitely eventful. Head coach Juwan Howard spoke with the media for more than 35 minutes and then almost every player took the podium for 10-15 minutes to talk about the early practices, upcoming season, team chemistry and more. After that, we got a chance to watch practice for about 30 minutes, which gave everyone a chance to see the talented freshmen and transfer point guard Devante Jones for the first time. That gives us plenty of time to talk about the upcoming season before the opener against Buffalo on Nov. 10.

We also had a chance to dive into the weekend's slate of Big Ten games with Michigan on a bye this week. Iowa fell to Purdue, Rutgers lost to Northwestern and Michigan State remained undefeated with a close win over Indiana. It really makes you wonder what's going on in the Big Ten and almost sets the stage for a massive showdown between the Wolverines and Spartans in two weeks. First, Michigan will have to take care of business against Northwestern, but all things are trending towards a huge top-ten showdown between heated and hated rivals.

Michigan is 6-0 and on a bye, which gives everyone a good chance to take a step back and really dissect what the Wolverines have done so far. It's always fun to take inventory and look ahead while the team rests up and gets ready for the second half of the season. Michigan is perfect through six games, but there is a gauntlet ahead down the back stretch of the schedule.

We tackle some really tough questions revolving around Michigan's performance against Adrian Martinez and Nebraska, U-M's run game, the tough three-game slate made up of Michigan State, Penn State and Ohio State and Jim Harbaugh's approval rating through six games. All that and more on this episode of The Wolverine Digest Podcast.

Michigan is just a 2.5-point favorite versus Nebraska, but if you talk to people who cover both programs, you should come away thinking the Wolverines will handle that number with relative ease.

The Huskers are 3-3, but the wins are over Fordham, Buffalo and Northwestern. The losses, while close, are to the only teams with a pulse — Illinois, Michigan State and Oklahoma.

At the end of the day, it's a conference road game for the Wolverines, which are always tough, but it just feels like Michigan is equipped to move to 6-0. We talk with long-time Husker beat writer Dave Feit about all the above and he gives his insight as to how the game might play out.

We also get into several over/under situations, tackle some game-specific predictions and do our best to place some bets on the ranked matchups from a pretty solid college football Saturday.

All that and more on this episode of The Wolverine Digest Podcast.

Michigan is 1-0 on the road this season after a very impressive win over Wisconsin last weekend but it's not going to be any easier for the Wolverines moving forward. Jim Harbaugh and his squad will square off against Nebraska this Saturday in the middle of a Husker ascension.

As Michigan prepares to take on Nebraska, there are still some questions surrounding this 5-0, ninth-ranked team. Is Cade McNamara going to be the long term answer for Michigan in 2021 with talented freshman JJ McCarthy on his heels? Roman Wilson and Cornelius Johnson have asserted themselves as trustworthy targets, but who will lead the Wolverines in receptions when the season is all over? Finally, is Michigan truly the No. 9 team in the country? We go through the poll and answer that and more on this episode of The Wolverine Digest Podcast.

Junior defensive end/linebacker David Ojabo has always had a ton of talent. Now, he's starting to combine that with hand placement, technique, reading offensive linemen, knowledge and scheme. As a result, he has 3.5 sacks on the season and looks like a future NFL player. He stopped by to talk about his background, development, Michigan's defense, COVID and more.

We also get into the life and times of one Urban Meyer and break down our own shortcomings when it comes to last week's predictions for the Wisconsin game. All that and more on this episode of The Wolverine Digest Podcast.