The college football season finale pits two undefeateds against each other on Monday night: No. 1 Michigan and No. 2 Washington. It is the first appearance in the College Football Playoff final for both teams and their first appearances in a national championship game period.
It is the first time since the College Football Playoff’s debut season in 2014 and just the second time since 2005, the Bowl Subdivision’s championship game will not feature at least one team from the SEC. Instead, tonight’s matchup will feature two current and future members of the Big Ten. This marks the fourth time in playoff history the championship game will pit two unbeaten teams.
USA TODAY Sports will have the latest updates, highlights, analysis and news all day long and throughout the game. Follow along.
When is Michigan vs. Washington game?
Kickoff is 7:30 p.m. ET on Monday, Jan. 8, 2024.
Where can I watch Michigan vs. Washington?
You can watch or stream on ESPN.
The Wolverines and the Huskies are playing at NRG Stadium in Houston.
The top college football betting apps favor Michigan over Washington in the national championship game. The Wolverines are 5-point favorites over the Huskies, according to the BetMGM college football odds. Looking to wager? Check out the best mobile sports betting apps offeringcollege football betting promos in 2023.
Michigan vs. Washington predictions
Here is how USA TODAY Sports’ experts are predicting tonight’s national championship:
- 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
The over-under for Washington vs. Michigan is 56, according to BetMGM.
The Wolverines are 5-point favorites over the Huskies, according to the BetMGM college football odds.
The 6-foot-3, 213-pound quarterback was 342-of-576 passing (59.4%) for 4,197 yards, 29 touchdowns with 32 picks in four years at Indiana. He has more than doubled that production in two seasons with Washington, where he’s completed 66% of his passes (698-of-1,058) for 9,289 yards, 66 TDs and 17 picks. In 2023 alone, Penix was 336-of-504 for 4,648 yards, 35 touchdowns and 9 interceptions.
The 6-foot-3, 202-pound quarterback has played in 39 games in three seasons for Michigan, completing 472 of 695 passes (.680) for 6,086 yards, 49 touchdowns and 11 picks. He’s also rushed for 601 yards and 10 TDs on 157 carries. In 2023 alone, McCarthy went 230-of-314 passing for 2,851 yards (203.6 yards per game), 22 touchdowns and four interceptions.
After the win over Alabama in the Rose Bowl, a reporter asked Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh the big question: “There’s a lot of interest in your future; I wonder if you can tell me what the chances are that the championship game might be your last one at Michigan?”
Harbaugh danced away from it: “My future consists of a happy flight back to Ann Arbor, Michigan. Can’t wait.”
So, while Harbaugh isn’t talking, there is plenty of noise about his return to the NFL. So, the drum beat is there; and if this is Harbaugh’s last game, what will his legacy be at Michigan? Harbaugh has not just brought Michigan back. He has elevated the Wolverines to a new level. The Wolverines are 39-3 in the last three years. This team will finish in the top three for the third year in a row — the greatest stretch in school history. — Jeff Seidel, Detroit Free Press
Washington running back Dillon Johnson is supposed to play tonight against Michigan, the team has said. Johnson went down in the College Football Playoff semifinal against Texas, a nagging foot injury leading him to being carted off the field.
For fans of more than half the NFL‘s teams, it’s already time to contemplate that offseason staple: the NFL mock draft. Sunday brought a close to the regular season, meaning that 18 franchises are already turning the page to the 2024 season. Draft season is officially off and running, with the College Football Playoff title game being held Monday night and the deadline for players to declare looming on Jan. 15. Only the top 18 selections have been set so far. But with a rough estimate of how the remaining slots might pan out, here’s our latest 2024 NFL mock draft. — Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz
The 6-foot-3, 215-pound Washington senior has caught 209 passes for 3,185 yards and 24 touchdowns in four seasons with the Huskies. In 2023 alone, he recorded 87 catches for 1,553 yards and 13 touchdowns.
One season-ending injury is disappointing; two is heartbreaking. Incredibly, Michael Penix Jr. had to overcome four in as many years with the Indiana Hoosiers, the final two coming just as his college career seemed to be taking flight. Penix tore his ACL three games into his true freshman season in 2018, with the injury coming as he was splitting time with starter Peyton Ramsey in a close loss to Penn State. He injured his non-throwing shoulder nine games into the 2019 season, with Indiana sitting at 7-2, matching the Hoosiers’ highest win total since 2007.
He put himself on the map during the COVID-19 season, tossing 14 touchdowns through five games before suffering another ACL tear in a win against Maryland. And he suffered another shoulder injury five games into the 2021 season, which saw Penix and Indiana struggle through a winless finish in Big Ten play.
“Yeah, man, those times were tough, but it just showed that I can get through anything. I can persevere and push through any hardship that comes my way,” said Penix. “But I’m just super blessed to be in this position now. I wouldn’t change anything I’ve been through for anything. I feel like it’s shaped me into the player and the person that I am today.” — Paul Myerberg
Kalen DeBoer has four seasons of head coaching experience — two at Fresno State before joining Washington in 2022 — and has compiled a 37-8 (.822) record in that span.
Jim Harbaugh started his coaching career as an assistant coach at Western Kentucky in 1994 under his father. He was still playing in the NFL at the time, but held both jobs through the 2001 season. He then made the leap to full-time coaching in 2002, becoming the quarterbacks coach with the Oakland Raiders, a role he held for two seasons, which included a Super Bowl victory. He headed to Southern California to become the head coach of the University of San Diego, where he spent three seasons (2004-06), before helming Stanford (2007-10) and the San Francisco 49ers (2011-14). He has been at Michigan since 2015.
Kalen DeBoer is in his second season with Washington and earned $4.2 million in 2023 with a max bonus of $1.25 million, according to USA TODAY Sports’ database of college football coaching salaries. In 2022, he earned $3,100,008 with a max bonus of $1.175 million.
Michigan vs. Washington history
The Wolverines and Huskies have played 13 times since 1953. Michigan holds the edge, 8-5.
Behind legendary coach Don James, and following Washington‘s 34-14 thumping of Michigan in the 1991 Rose Bowl, the coaches poll (at the time administered jointly by USA TODAY and CNN) named the Huskies national champs. The Associated Press poll, on the other hand, selected the Miami Hurricanes as the No. 1 team, with the Huskies coming in at No. 2. Miami had also finished 12-0 that season, ending with a 22-0 win over Nebraska in the Orange Bowl. Because of this, Miami also claims the 1991 national championship. Some consider the 1991 Washington team one of the best college football squads of all time. — Lindsay Schnell
It’s been nearly 25 years since Michigan last claimed a national championship, last winning one in 1997. Michigan also won most of its national championship before the poll era, which began in 1936. — Jordan Mendoza
Senior running back Dillon Johnson is in his lone season with Washington after transferring from Mississippi State. With the Huskies, he’s racked up 1,162 yards and 16 touchdown on 222 carries. Over his three seasons with the Bulldogs, he played in 35 games and recorded 1,198 yards and 11 touchdowns on 229 carries.
The one constant for Washington’s winning ways is the play of quarterback Michael Penix Jr., who turned in a classic playoff performance with 430 yards and two touchdowns against Texas in the Rose Bowl. As Penix goes, so does Washington. He’s a “special individual,” said All-America wide receiver Rome Odunze. The first key question behind the championship game: Can Michigan slow down Penix, or is that even possible?
The Wolverines have yet to face a quarterback like Penix nor a cast of receivers close to Washington’s caliber. Of Michigan‘s 14 opponents, only two, Maryland and Ohio State, rank higher than 55th nationally in passing yards per game. Those two teams combined for 518 passing yards on 8.5 yards per attempt, though Michigan did force four interceptions against two touchdowns.
Although Michigan did face Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison, maybe college football’s top individual player regardless of position this season, the Wolverines will be tested by Rome Odunze, Ja’Lynn Polk, Jalen McMillan and the Huskies’ extreme depth at receiver. And the person delivering the passes will be Penix and not Kyle McCord. — Paul Myerberg
The Huskies and Wolverines last played in on Sept. 11, 2021. Michigan won, 31-10.
According to the NCAA, the Wolverines have titles in: 1901, 1902, 1903, 1904, 1918, 1923, 1933, 1948, 1997. Michigan says it also has won titles in 1932 and 1947. — Jordan Mendoza
The Huskies have two (1960 and 1991), but it kind of depends who you ask. In 1960, after beating Minnesota 17-7 in the Rose Bowl and finishing with a record of 10-1, Washington was named the national champion by the Helms Athletic Foundation. When the Helms Foundation eventually dissolved in 1969, much of its archives went to the Amateur Athletic Union. Want to know something even weirder about the 1960 national championship? The Huskies didn’t claim it until 2007 — and that’s when they had a trophy made for it. — Lindsay Schnell
The biggest factor in deciding the national championship may come down to this: Which team can dictate the flow of action on offense? Michigan will be hard to beat if running the ball effectively on first down and putting together the sort of sustained drives that would wear down the Huskies’ defense. If able to get up and down the field by sharing the wealth among three of four receivers, Washington could give Michigan nightmarish flashbacks to the humbling loss to the Horned Frogs.
“Yeah, I think the aggressiveness is just who we are,” Washington coach Kalen DeBoer said.
Don’t look for either team to shrink from the challenge. If ever in doubt in the first place, Michigan’s physical and mental toughness has been solidified by the overtime win against the Crimson Tide. Washington’s fortitude has been on display all throughout a season defined by narrow, single-possession wins. Which team blinks? Read Paul Myerberg’s full preview here.
Here’s a look:
Louis Elbel wrote “The Victors” as a music student at Michigan in 1898. Here are the main parts, you can find the full lyrics here.
Hail! to the victors valiant
Hail! to the conqu’ring heroes
Hail! Hail! to Michigan
the leaders and best
Hail! to the victors valiant
Hail! to the conqu’ring heroes
Hail! Hail! to Michigan,
the champions of the West!
Christine Lake is a sports fanatic who lives and breathes athletics. With an extensive background in sports journalism, he covers everything from major league championships to grassroots sports events. When she’s not on the field or at the stadium, you’ll find Christine coaching youth sports teams.
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