The Michigan Wolverines and the Washington Huskies square off Monday night in Houston for the College Football Playoff National Championship.
The end of the 2023 college football season has arrived as two undefeated teams vie for the national championship.
Michigan and Washington are looking to become just the sixth team in major college football history to finish a season 15-0.
The matchup at NRG Stadium in Houston is between two teams that will play against each other as conference foes next season as Washington departs the Pac-12 for the Big Ten in 2024.
Both programs are looking to break lengthy national championship droughts and will be playing in their first CFP title game.
Michigan last won the national title in 1997 (shared with Nebraska) while Washington’s last championship was in 1991 (shared with Miami).
It will be a matchup of opposite strengths as Michigan’s dominant defense takes on the high-powered offense from Washington.
Let’s take a dive into what to look for as Michigan and Washington play for the final four-team playoff trophy. No. 1 Michigan vs. No. 2 7:30 p.m. ETWashington Huskies: 14-0
The Washington Huskies will again enter the championship game as underdogs after being underdogs in their last two games against Oregon and Texas.
It’s been a season of close calls for Washington, winning their last 10 games by 10 points or less.
Despite not winning pretty to end the regular season, the Huskies continued to win with the best passing offense in the country.
Led by Heisman Trophy runner-up Michael Penix Jr., Washington leads the country in passing yards (350.0) and has two wide receivers who have gone over the 1,000 mark in Rome Odunze and Ja’Lynn Polk.
Their offensive line was voted the Joe Moore Award winner as the top group in the country and has allowed Penix to be sacked just 11 times this season, tied for the fourth-fewest in the country.
