ESPN FPI favors Michigan in National Championship over Washington
The Wolverines are the favorite over Washington, according to the ESPN FPI.
The Michigan Wolverines are headed to the College Football Playoff National Championship for the first time and will take on the Washington Huskies. The Wolverines got their first CFP win on Monday night when they beat Alabama, 27-20, in overtime.
The win moved the Wolverines to 14-0 for the first time in program history and has them looking for their first national championship since 1997, when they shared the title with Nebraska.
The Wolverines are the top seed and, according to ESPN FPI, are the favorite to beat the Huskies and win the title. The computers are giving Michigan a 75 percent chance to beat Washington, a team they will soon be in the same conference with.
Michigan was also the favorite to win the Rose Bowl against Alabama, according to the FPI. Michigan will now hope to prove the computers right again and win the championship.
With the win over Alabama the Wolverines stayed in the top spot in the rankings, while the Crimson Tide dropped a spot to No. 6. Georgia, which missed the CFP but whooped Florida State in the Orange Bowl, moved up to No. 2. Ohio State dropped to No. 3 despite losing to Missouri in the Cotton Bowl.
Washington moved up one spot, but still sits way back at No. 12. The computers don’t love the Huskies, but they have continued to find ways to win as quarterback Michael Penix Jr. continues to dazzle with his arm.
The National Championship is set for Monday, Jan. 8 from NRG Stadium in Houston at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.
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Get ready to pay if you’re a Wolverine fan who wants to go to the National Championship game
ANN ARBOR, MI – Michigan football fans had nearly a month to plan for the Rose Bowl after the Wolverines earned the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.
After a 27-20 overtime win over Alabama on New Year’s Day, the turnaround to go to the national championship game is just one week.
The Wolverines play the University of Washington Huskies on Monday, Jan. 8, in Houston for the College Football Playoff National Championship. From flights to game tickets to lodging, the compressed timeline has travel costs soaring for Wolverine fans traveling from Michigan, .
Non-stop flights leaving from Detroit on Sunday, Jan. 7, have pretty exorbitant prices at this time. A flight on United is more than $1,300, while a flight on Delta is about $2,300.
A more affordable option is a flight on Spirit Airlines for more than $530, though that comes with a stop. Other less expensive options require hours-long layovers.
How to get tickets to see Michigan in college football national championship
Michigan football will play in its first ever national championship game on Jan. 8, and tickets are available.
Michigan beat Alabama on Monday 27-20 in overtime in a semifinal matchup at the Rose Bowl. The Wolverines, the No. 1 seed, improved to 14-0 for the first time in program history and qualified for the national title (another first) in Houston. Michigan claims 11 national championships, but none have come during the era true national championship games.
StubHub, Vivid Seats, SeatGeek, and Ticketmaster have tickets available for the game, which will be played next Monday night at NRG Stadium, home of the NFL’s Texans.
This Michigan squad won’t have that problem. A win over Washington or Texas would make Michigan the unanimous national champion.
As of Monday evening, the cheapest ticket across those sites was listed at $1,458.
Michigan awaits the winner of the Sugar Bowl between Washington and Texas. The Wolverines last won a national title during the 1997 season after winning the Rose Bowl. That was during an era in which teams were slotted to bowls based on their regular-season success and conference affiliation, and voters determined the No. 1 team. Michigan shared a title with Nebraska that year.
