Michigan football vs. Washington predictions: How experts are picking CFP championship game
The 2023 college football comes down to one final contest: No. 1 Michigan (14-0, 9-0 in Big Ten play) vs. No. 2 Washington (14-0, 9-0 Pac-12).
At first glance, Monday's College Football Playoff championship game might seem like a contrast of styles between Michigan's fearsome front seven and grounding offensive approach vs. Washington's high-flying aerial attack, led by Heisman Trophy runner-up Michael Penix Jr. In reality, the battle between the Wolverines' offensive and defensive lines and Huskies' is likely where the game will be won.
Washington has a potent offensive arsenal, all of which is made possible by the team's Joe Moore Award-winning offensive line. Thousand-yard running back Dillon Johnson, who is expected to play after an injury scare vs. Texas, will also be key to mixing up Washington's ground game as Penix takes aim at his talented receiving corps, led by Rome Odunze.
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Conversely, Michigan will likely continue to operate its offense through running back Blake Corum in conjunction with smart passing plays from J.J. McCarthy. Of course, no amount of predictions will determine how Monday's CFP title game between Michigan and Washington — which in 2024 and beyond will be Big Ten opponents — will play out.
That hasn't stopped the college football world at large from chiming in with predictions for Monday's game. With that, here's a roundup of how experts throughout the country are picking the Wolverines vs. the Huskies:
Michigan football vs. Washington predictions
Detroit Free Press
Tony Garcia: Michigan 34, Washington 26
Carlos Monarrez: Michigan 30, Washington 23
Rainer Sabin: Michigan 30, Washington 27
Jeff Seidel: Michigan 28, Washington 24
Shawn Windsor: Michigan 34, Washington 31
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USA TODAY
Scooby Axson: Washington 34, Michigan 24
Jace Evans: Michigan 35, Washington 31
Paul Myerberg: Michigan 27, Washington 23
Erick Smith: Michigan 34, Washington 24
Eddie Timanus: Washington 27, Michigan 21
Dan Wolken: Michigan 27, Washington 21
ESPN
Thirty-two of ESPN's 48 polled experts predicted a Washington win, with ESPN writing, "Although Michigan is the betting favorite and has the advantage based on various metrics, our experts sided with Washington by a 2-1 margin. The Huskies were the pick of 32 of our 48 prognosticators.
"Of those who picked Washington, 24 of 32 (75%) expect the winning margin to be four points or less. Michigan backers are a bit more confident, with 7 of 16 calling for a victory of more than four points." For a full list of ESPN experts' predictions, click here.
The Athletic
Eleven of 20 experts from The Athletic picked Michigan to beat Washington, with many in favor of the Wolverines pointing to the defense's front seven as the ultimate decider in the contest. Several of the experts also predicted Corum and the Michigan run game to grind out enoughd rives to keep Penix from airing the ball out.
Nicole Auerbach: Michigan win
Jayna Bardahl: Washington win
Matt Brown: Michigan win
Richard Deitsch: Michigan win (34-27)
Terry Dwyer: Michigan win
Tyler Holston: Washington win
Chris Kamrani: Washington win
Mitch Light: Washington win
Stewart Mandel: Washington win
Austin Meek: Michigan win
Grace Raynor: Washington win
Joe Rexrode: Michigan win
Pete Sampson: Washington win
Mitch Sherman: Michigan win
Daniel Shirley: Washington win
Audrey Snyder: Michigan win
Jesse Temple: Michigan win
David Ubben: Washington win
Chris Vannini: Michigan win
Justin Williams: Michigan win
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Fox Sports
RJ Young: Washington
Laken Litman: Washington
Michael Cohen: Michigan
Bryan Fischer: Washington
CBS Sports
David Cobb: Michigan 28, Washington 20
Dennis Dodd: Michigan 27, Washington 24
Tom Fornelli: Michigan 31, Washington 24
Chip Patterson: Michigan 31, Washington 24
Barrett Sallee: Washington 30, Michigan 27
Shehan Jeyarajah: Washington 31, Michigan 27
Will Backus: Washington 35, Michigan 30
Dean Straka: Washington 34, Michigan 28
Jerry Palm: Washington 31, Michigan 28
Cameron Salerno: Washington 31, Michigan 24
Jack Crosby: Michigan 31, Washington 21
Ben Kercheval: Washington 30, Michigan 28
Chris Dukes: Washington 38, Michigan 31
The Sporting News
Bill Bender: Michigan 35, Washington 28
Bill Trocchi: Washington 33, Michigan 31
Mike DeCourcy: Michigan 28, Washington 22
Crissy Froyd: Michigan 34, Washington 27
Edward Sutelan: Washington 35, Michigan 31
Nick Musial: Michigan 30, Washington 24
Vinnie Iyer: Washington 27, Michigan 24
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football vs. Washington predictions: How experts are picking game