Sugar Bowl – Michigan vs. Virginia Tech
The Big Ten’s Michigan Wolverines invade the Superdome in New Orleans on Tuesday, Jan.3 to tangle with the ACC’s Virginia Tech Hokies in this season’s Sugar Bowl. The game is set to get underway at 8:30 p.m. (ET) and it will be broadcast nationally on ESPN.
Allstate Sugar Bowl- No. 13 Michigan Wolverines (10-2) vs. No.11 Virginia Tech Hokies (11-2)
Date/Time: Tuesday, January 3 8:30 p.m. (ET)
Venue: Superdome, New Orleans, LA.
Broadcast: ESPN
Wolverines vs. Hokies lines by BetOnline.com
Point spread: Wolverines -2.5 Over/Under: 51
Michigan finished the season with three straight-up wins over Illinois, Nebraska, and Ohio State to end-up 10-2 SU overall on the year and 6-2 SU in conference play. It covered the spread in three of its last five games to finish 8-4 ATS. The total went 5-7 in its 12 games this season.
Denard Robinson may have not lived-up to all the preseason hype, but he still had a highly productive year with 2,056 yards passing and 1,163 yards running the ball. Running back Fitzgerald Toussaint was also a force with an additional 1,011 yards rushing on 174 carries. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Virginia Tech also has a duel threat in Logan Thomas. He threw for 2,799 yards and 19 touchdowns and added another 416 yards on the ground. The primary weapon in the Hokies’ rushing attack was David Wilson. He rushed for 1,627 yards on 266 carries while averaging 6.1 yards an attempt.
If the Hokies could have found an answer for Clemson they could have possibly been playing for a national title, but two losses to the Tigers by a combined score of 61-13 dropped them to 11-2 SU overall and 7-2 SU in the ACC. Virginia Tech went just 4-9 ATS this season with the total staying ‘under’ in eight of its 13 games.
Michigan is 5-2 ATS in its last seven games as a favorite and 9-2 ATS in its last 11 non-conference games. The total has gone ‘over’ in 10 of its last 11 bowl games.
Virginia Tech is 5-2 ATS in its last seven games as an underdog of three or less points, but 0-4 ATS in its last four games played outside the conference. The total has stayed ‘under’ in four of its last five games as underdogs.
These two teams matchup against one another extremely well on both sides of the ball, but the advantage in this game goes to the Wolverines, as the Hokies have shown a tendency to play their worst football on their biggest stages in recent years.
The Pick: Michigan 28 vs. Virginia Tech 23
