The Notre Dame/Michigan series, one of college football's best rivalries, is going to be going on hiatus after this year and both teams are looking to end things with bragging rights.
With all of the conference shifting that has been going on in recent years Notre Dame, who will remain independent for football, struck up a compromise with the ACC that has them playing five ACC opponents per season in the upcoming years. Thanks to this deal the Irish will have to cut off some of their more local traditional opponents, South Bend is very far from the "Atlantic Coast" the conference is named after, and Michigan is one of the ones they have cut.
As has happened many of the times that they have played both schools are ranked going into the match up; Michigan is ranked No. 17 and Notre Dame is No. 14. Despite being on the road the Fighting Irish are four point favorites over the Wolverines.
While both teams are undefeated after the first week of the season but it's still difficult to tell if either team is any good, ESPN analyst David Pollack told the Detroit Free Press.
"It's so tough when you play cupcakes," Pollack said. "Temple and Central Michigan, or Western Michigan, whatever directional Michigan, it doesn't really show you much."
Pollack thinks that the key to the game will be in the trenches.
"It's the interior line of Michigan versus the defensive line of Notre Dame," Pollack said. "Inexperience versus the best 1-2 punch and defensive line in college football. It's going to be a tough matchup, if Michigan can neutralize that matchup, then I think they have a chance to win."
It'll be disappointing to not have this game to look forward to in the years to come; if nothing else Michigan/Notre Dame games have always been entertaining, especially the shootouts the teams have had the last half dozen years or so. Michigan leads the all time series 23-16-1, according to SB Nation.
This will also be the last time, for a while, that two of the most iconic college football uniforms are on the same field together. Michigan's maize and blue sharing the field with the white unis and gold helmets of the Irish if truly a thing of beauty.
A live stream of the game can be seen here starting at 8:00 p.m.EST.
