Michigan vs. Washington 2024 CFP National Championship Game: Matchups, Head-to-Head Record, History, Titles

Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh lauded Penix’s skillset on Wednesday.

“Big-time arm talent, tremendous presence in the pocket, sees the field really well,” Harbaugh said. “He is so polished. Watching him and his accuracy, his decision making, timing, he has really just continued to have this tremendous presence of going through progression, feels pressure, will drop it off to a check-down — yeah, it’s at an elite level.”

Washington, led by AP Coach of the Year Kalen DeBoer, has been doing this all amid the backdrop of its upcoming move to the Big Ten after 65 years in what’s now the Pac-12. It makes for a CFP National

Strong Big Ten theme in the championship game: Although there has never been a Big Ten vs. Big Ten college football championship game, Monday’s matchup will be the closest thing to one since both teams will be in the conference the following year and will even face off in a rematch of the title game on October 5.

In the Pac-12’s history, Washington’s CFP appearance is only the third since the four-team Playoff format was introduced in 2015. Additionally, Oregon was unsuccessful in the 2015 title game, and the Huskies were rewarded with a CFP berth before falling in the semifinal in 2017. Before all but two of the conference’s institutions leave and the Playoffs grow to include 12 teams, Washington has an opportunity to win the CFP for the first time.

But as unconventional as the looming conference jump has made Washington’s season, it doesn’t hold a candle to what’s taken place in Ann Arbor this year, and it all swirls around – you guessed it – Harbaugh.

His ninth year at the helm in Michigan has been another turbulent one, bookended by two separate three-game suspensions: one university-imposed at the start of the season amid an NCAA investigation into alleged recruiting violations during the coronavirus pandemic, the other levied by the Big Ten at the end of the regular

season for the supposed sign-stealing plot by the Wolverines. In the regular season finale, Michigan defeated archrival Ohio State at The Big House, earning their most memorable victory (at least until the Rose Bowl) under interim head coach Sherrone Moore.

Star running back Blake Corum, who is in his senior year and has already carried for 1,111 yards and 25 touchdowns, has paced Michigan’s attack this season. Just one point ahead of sophomore quarterback J.J. McCarthy, who has completed over 73% of his passes with 22 passing touchdowns and only four interceptions this season, Corum placed ninth in the Heisman voting.

But as great as Michigan’s offense can be, the team’s calling card is its defense. The Wolverines’ 243.1 yards allowed per game this year is the lowest figure in the FBS, as is its miniscule 10.21 points allowed per game.

A key battle that will determine Monday’s championship game pits Michigan’s defense against Penix, a player unlike any other that the team (or most teams, for that matter) has played this season.

Speaking about Michigan’s D, Penix remarked on Wednesday, “That’s a good team over there.” They’ve had excellent coaching. However, we will be prepared for the task. They significantly alter the image. They make an effort to deflect the quarterback’s pass. Still, we’ll be prepared for anything. We are aware of this. We are confident that we possess the necessary skills to receive a W. All we have to do is step outside, act, and complete the task.

How many football national championships has Michigan won?

If they can slow Penix, and if Corum, McCarthy and co. can break through against Washington’s defense – which ranks 53^rd in scoring and 94^th in yards per game – Michigan will have an inside track to its 10^th official national championship (though the school claims two additional titles). All came before the era of official championship games; Monday will be the Wolverines’ first appearance on such a stage in school history.

How many football national championships has Washington won?

It will be Washington’s first title game as well, and if victorious, the Huskies will win their third national championship in program history.

The other two are claimed titles from 1960 and 1991.

Who won the last matchup between Michigan and Washington, and what’s their all-time head-to-head record?

The title game is just the 14^th all-time matchup between the two schools, with Michigan currently leading the series 8-5. They’ve squared off just once in the last two decades, with a CFP-bound Michigan prevailing 31-10 in

On September 11, 2021, Ann Arbor will play a Washington team that is expected to finish 4–8 and fire head coach Jimmy Lake.

This time around, expect a different tale in terms of the margin of victory.

McCarthy stated on Wednesday that “it comes down to execution, not really thinking about too much national championship.” “It goes without saying that we all know that, but it all boils down to how we execute each play and how attentive we are to every last detail. absorbing all, fully living in the now, seizing the opportunity, and emerging victorious—after all, who remembers the person who came in second or third?

Is this Jim Harbaugh’s final game at Michigan?

Another Harbaugh storyline, for good measure: There’s a non-zero chance that Monday is his final game as Wolverines head coach. Rumors of a potential second NFL stint have swirled around Harbaugh and the Michigan program for weeks. He recently hired a new agent, Don Yee, with strong NFL ties and has tactically navigated around questions about his future.

If Monday is indeed Harbaugh’s final game at Michigan, a national championship would be quite the way to go out. Washington has other plans.

Something has to give, and it will give on Monday.