The oldest trophy game in college football hits its 100th renewal, and this year it doubles as the first real road test of the Kyle Whittingham era in Ann Arbor.
Bush’s Picks
MICHMINN
MICHMINN
OverUnder
Best BetMichigan
Michigan's the side with more top-end talent and, soon, a proven head coach, even on the road — Whittingham's track record and a loaded skill group in Marshall and Hiter make the Wolverines the cleaner pick to win outright. Minnesota's floor is genuinely respectable under Fleck, but Lindsey still has to prove he can out-execute a Michigan defense with this much speed. Back the Wolverines to leave Minneapolis with the jug.
Michigan
+Blueblood pedigree: Whittingham went 177-88 at Utah
+Loaded backfield with Marshall and 5-star Hiter
+Dominates series historically, 78-25-3 all-time
−Offense ranked 68th nationally in scoring last year
−Underwood's rookie passer rating below FBS median
−Brand-new staff still installing a new system
Minnesota
+Nine straight bowl trips and bowl wins under Fleck
+Returning starters Lindsey, Taylor, and both Smiths
+Home crowd for milestone 100th Jug meeting
−CFN projects a modest, middle-of-pack 7-5 season
−Michigan has dominated this rivalry historically
−Lindsey must take a real leap to matter
Bryce Underwood versus Drake Lindsey is the actual football story here. Underwood, the five-star headliner of last year's recruiting class, posted a modest 134.5 adjusted passer rating as a true freshman — good enough to avoid disaster, nowhere close to what Michigan hopes he becomes under new offensive coordinator Jason Beck, who followed Whittingham over from Utah. Lindsey is the known quantity on the other sideline, and how far his game grows this fall is what separates a solid Minnesota team from a real second-tier Big Ten threat.
Michigan's whole operation looks different than it did a year ago: a 68th-ranked scoring offense last season, a coaching change that brought in Whittingham off a 177-88 run at Utah, and a new play-caller trying to get more out of Underwood's legs and arm at once. Minnesota, meanwhile, keeps doing what Minnesota does under P.J. Fleck — nine straight bowl trips, nine straight bowl wins, and a program that Fleck insists has the makeup for a sneaky run deep into November if Lindsey takes the leap.
Show fees
11:00 PM CT
Spread
ML
Total
MICH Michigan
MINN Minnesota
This is also the 100th meeting for the jug itself, a series dating back to 1892 that Michigan has dominated overall at 78-25-3. That history means little to a Minnesota team that gets Huntington Bank Stadium rocking for a milestone edition of the rivalry, but Michigan's sheer roster talent — led by returning back Jordan Marshall and five-star freshman Savion Hiter — still makes the Wolverines the more talented team even on the road.
Michigan Wolverines
Sep 25?vs Iowa—
Sep 19?vs UTEP—
Sep 12?vs Oklahoma—
Sep 5?vs Western Michigan—
Minnesota Golden Gophers
Sep 25?@ Washington—
Sep 19?vs Akron—
Sep 12?vs Mississippi State—
Sep 3?vs Eastern Illinois—
Recent form.
Marshall's return matters more than it might look on paper for a Wolverines offense trying to rebuild its identity — Whittingham and Beck want Underwood using his legs more than last year's staff ever asked, and a physical run game buys a young quarterback time to grow into the job. Minnesota counters with Darius Taylor in the backfield, plus Anthony Smith and Jalen Smith among the returning names Fleck is leaning on to keep the bowl streak alive.
Michigan Wolverines
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Minnesota Golden Gophers
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Injury report — info via ESPN.
None of that settles who actually walks out of Minneapolis with the jug, but it frames the matchup honestly: a blueblood program with a new coach and unproven quarterback talent traveling into one of the sport's steadiest mid-tier operations, fighting over a trophy that's been contested since 1892.
