No. 2 Michigan vs. No. 16 Iowa: Best Bets For Big-10 Championship

Michigan vs. Iowa: Best Bets For Big 10 Championship

Conference Championship weekend is here in college football, so the end of the season is getting closer and closer. It's the money-making season here at BetQL, and we are going to continue to crush it. This week features several marquee matchups, and one of those is Michigan vs. Iowa.

The Michigan Wolverines are -21.5 favorites over the Hawkeyes in the Big 10 championship, which will be broadcast on FOX at 8 p.m. ET at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

BetQL has you covered for everything college football, so let's dive right into this contest.

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#3 Michigan vs. #17 Iowa: Live Odds

Michigan Wolverines Outlook

Another season where Michigan ended their year at 12-0, and they concluded it with a huge win over rival Ohio State to put an exclamation point on the year. They even did it without head coach Jim Harbaugh, who had been suspended for possibly having knowledge his team was cheating last year. However, he will be back for this championship game, so they will be at full force coming into this one. The Wolverines finished 6-5-1 ATS on the season, which isn't bad, but also not good either. They were favored in every game they played, and that is no different here, as they are huge favorites against the Hawkeyes.

Offensively, they have been a pretty successful unit, ranking 31st in the nation in yards per play. While that clearly is lower than some other ranked teams, they have just been a very efficient squad that will tear you apart on long touchdown drives, and also tire out opposing defenses. What is perhaps most impressive about this offense is their ability to convert on third down, where they rank sixth in the FBS, and convert on 49.6% of their attempts. When you are able to continuously extend drives like that, it's no wonder they have been so good this season.

The Michigan defense is even better than their offense. They rank fourth in all of college football in yards per play allowed, and they just never allow explosive plays down the field. They have been a strong unit all season long and should have a field day here against Iowa. They are quick to shut down opponent drives, and are actually ranked second in the nation at preventing opponent first downs, allowing just 13.2 per game.

Iowa Hawkeyes Outlook

Iowa might be the worst 10-win team of all time. They have a whole lot of issues and have been winning a ton of close games this season, which always screams "luck." They managed to defeat Nebraska, 13-10, in their final game of the regular season and were actually +2.5 underdogs in that game to a team with a losing record. If that doesn't tell you what the market thinks about them, then maybe being huge 21.5-point underdogs in this game will. No one believes this team is any good, and they can thank one part of their team for that.

This Hawkeye offense is beyond words at this point. It's hard to believe a team could be this bad, but they have accomplished the rare feat of being considered the worst of all time. Consider this: they are 21.5-point underdogs in a game that has a total of 34.5. That's just unreal. Indeed, they are ranked dead last in the country in yards per play, and I'm not sure they have had what one might consider an explosive play all season. They are also dead last in first downs gained, garnering just 13.5 per contest on average. Up against a defense as good as Michigan, it is hard to see them scoring. They very well could get shut out here.

The only reason this team is here is the defense, which is one of the very best in the country. They rank second in the country in yards per play allowed, which is even better than Michigan. Imagine how good they have to be to pull that corpse of an offense to 10 wins in a season. Iowa very rarely gives up explosive plays, and even with an offense as good as Michigan, the total of the game is still below 35. I feel really bad for them to be honest. All of their efforts will go to waste because they will likely have to score points as well as prevent them in order to win this game.

Michigan vs. Iowa Best Bet

My Pick: Michigan -21.5 (-110, PointsBet)

I legit think that the Hawkeyes might get shut out in this game. Their offense is so bad it's almost unwatchable, and now they will play perhaps the best defense they have played all season. I expect a huge win and cover for Michigan.