Michigan football vs. Rutgers: Can Wolverines overcome struggles against Schiano?

Since being hired as head coach of the Rutgers football team (again), Greg Schiano has yet to see a winning season with his Scarlet Knights. That said, it has become a yearly tradition that he gives Jim Harbaugh a close game — so far, he is 3/3 in accomplishing that goal. In 2020, Michigan football vs. Rutgers went to overtime; the year after, Michigan escaped with a 20-13 win, and finally, the Wolverines overcame a halftime deficit and took home the win last year.

Michigan football vs. Rutgers in 2020 seemed to change quite a bit

Seeing as Michigan football vs. Rutgers will kick off this weekend — officially starting Big Ten play for both teams, who are currently 3-0 — this undefeated conference matchup is shaping up to be a good one. On Saturday, can Jim Harbaugh and Michigan football finally get past their struggles against Greg Schiano and Rutgers football?

The 2020 Michigan football vs. Rutgers matchup is iconic; not because the Wolverines played well — they didn’t — but it seemed to mark a turning point in Michigan history. Cade McNamara replaced Joe Milton as the starting quarterback after Michigan found itself trailing by 17 early in the game, eventually leading the Maize and Blue to victory in overtime over the Scarlet Knights.

After the game, McNamara uttered six iconic words: “What if we win out, huh?” Michigan football didn’t win out — it lost its final game of the 2020 season by 10 points to the winless Penn State Nittany Lions the following weekend; however, the following season, McNamara and the Wolverines finally put Michigan football back at the top of the Big Ten. Since that Rutgers speech, Michigan is 28-4 overall with two Big Ten titles, two CFP appearances, two wins over Ohio State, and more.

Rutgers football continues to give Michigan football fits

Still, despite all of this success, Greg Schiano continues to be a hurdle that Jim Harbaugh cannot clear without some struggles. The 2021 Rutgers game was rough, seeing as the Wolverines had to rely on their defense to get a late turnover and avoid an upset at home. Even last year, Rutgers football kept things close, taking a 17-14 lead into the half over one of the best Michigan football teams in the past two decades.

“We’ve been playing them a long time. Coach (Greg) Schiano, we have tremendous respect for,” Jim Harbaugh said on the Big Ten Network. “His team is always gritty, is always tough. They can always run the ball. They play exceptional defense. They play their systems. But then they know how to throw all the trickery and magic. They’re so creative in everything that they do, especially on special teams, especially on offense.

“(We are) on our toes, on high alert. This is one that we want to win by any means necessary. Win by one point. Every time we go against Rutgers, we know that it’s one of those that, for lack of a better analogy, you’ve gotta bring your lunch pail.”

Jim Harbaugh favored to down Greg Schiano for the fourth year in a row

Michigan football has an 85% chance of victory over Rutgers football this weekend, per the ESPN FPI. Additionally, the Wolverines are 24.5-point favorites heading into their Big Ten opener, though so far, Michigan remains winless against the spread this year.

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