Inside the Numbers: Michigan's OL Will Protect Patterson vs. Wisconsin

Michigan’s season again may hinge on a matchup with Wisconsin.

Last year, the Wolverines traveled to Madison with an 8-2 record, a three-game winning streak and a slim shot at sharing the Big Ten East. However, they had not yet beaten a quality opponent, and they needed to ruin Wisconsin’s unblemished record to prove that they could.

This Saturday, Michigan hosts Wisconsin with a 5-1 record, a five-game winning streak and complete control of its destiny in the Big Ten East. However, U-M has lost to the only quality opponent it's faced (at Notre Dame), and this is U-M’s next shot to prove that it can beat one.

Pretty similar, huh?

However, there is a critical difference that can and should mean everything for the Wolverines: Shea Patterson will have the time versus Wisconsin that Brandon Peters never had last year.