There are a lot of experts that believe this is the year the No. 7 Michigan Wolverines return to glory. Michigan has one of the easiest schedules in the country and doesn’t have to go on the road until October 8, playing its first five games in lovely Ann Arbor. That will give the Wolverines plenty of time to find the one thing they are missing if they want to make a run at a title, a quarterback. They will kick off their season in College Football Week 1 against the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors.
Kickoff for this regular season Week 1 game is set for Saturday, September 3, 2016, at 12 p.m. ET at Michigan Stadium. The game will be broadcast on the ESPN.
College Football Odds at BookMaker.eu
Hawaii +40
Michigan -40
Over/Under 54.5
Odds Analysis
Hawaii is one of the biggest underdogs of the opening week and after its first game of the season it’s not hard to see why. The Rainbow Warriors were torched by California in Australia on Friday and struggled to stop either the run or the pass. The spread has moved slightly down from the opener, but still remains pretty hefty at 40.
Matchup to Watch
No matter who starts at quarterback for Michigan, they should have a big game against Hawaii. The Rainbow Warriors were gashed by Davis Webb and Cal last week, allowing over 440 yards, and now have to travel all the way to the other side of the world to face an entirely different attack in Michigan. The Wolverines use a pro-style offense as opposed to Cal’s version of the Air Raid and that should mean a big game for Jake Butt.
Hawaii struggled with wide receiver Chad Hansen’s physical style and Butt will be a nightmare for the unit to contain. He was a Second Team All-American in 2015 and has all the tools needed to thrive as a tight end. At 6’6 250, Hawaii has no one that can match his size and speed.
Letdown Spot
It’s hard for this to not be a letdown game for Hawaii. The Rainbow Warriors are going to end up traveling almost 10,000 miles in a week’s time and that’s hard for any person, let alone a group of young adults.
Not only that, but Hawaii will have to prepare for a completely different team in Michigan. The Wolverines, unlike Cal, actually play defense and value time of possession. Michigan also plays a very physical style of football that will be very tough for a weary Hawaii team to stop.
Free ATS Pick
The oddsmakers feel like Hawaii will have an extremely tough time scoring against Michigan with a projected score of 47-7 taking into account the spread and the total. Hawaii was able to light it up against Cal last week, but Michigan is a completely different monster defensively. The Rainbow Warriors are a pass-first team and that plays right into the Wolverines’ hands.
Michigan can name it’s score offensively. The Wolverines have a major size advantage along the offensive line and De’Veon Smith is going to have some massive holes to run through. Smith will break off at least one run for a touchdown and both quarterbacks for the Wolverines should see some action here.
As much as some people in the media like to harp on Jim Harbaugh, he’s not one to run up the score. Last season, Michigan didn’t score more than 35 points on any of the out-of-conference opponents it defeated despite being able to move the ball at will against all three opponents. Although the Wolverines might pass a little more than they would in a circumstance like this in order to get both of their quarterbacks some real game experience, they won’t go overboard and cover the spread.
College Football Odds: Wolverines 38, Rainbow Warriors 7
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