Big Ten Championship: Iowa vs. Michigan Betting Preview

Three things you need to know before betting on Iowa-Michigan: 

1. The last time Iowa and Michigan played was in 2019, when the Wolverines earned a 10-3 victory over the Hawkeyes. Iowa is, however, 5-2 straight-up in this head-to-head series since the start of the 2009 season, and six of the last seven meetings between these programs have been decided by 10 or fewer points. Overall, it's fair to say that not much has separated these teams in the past. 

2. Since the start of the 2019 season, Iowa is 8-1 against the spread when coming off a road win, with the average score in those nine games seeing the Hawkeyes winning by 16.3 points per game. Iowa is also 9-5-1 against the spread when playing as a neutral-field underdog under head coach Kirk Ferentz. The Hawkeyes are 26-12 straight-up and 29-7-2 against the spread when facing teams that rush for at least 5.25 yards per carry under Ferentz. Iowa has the 14th-best rushing defense in college football this year. Meanwhile, Michigan is 2-4 both straight-up and against the spread on a neutral field under Jim Harbaugh. 

3. Four of the last five meetings between Iowa and Michigan have gone Under the total, with the teams averaging just 36.8 points per game over those contests. The Under is also 3-0 in the three games in which Iowa has been an underdog of 7.5 to 14 points on a neutral field since Ferentz became head coach. In that same span, the Under is also 8-3 when Iowa has faced teams that commit 0.75 or fewer turnovers per game on the season. On top of that, the Under is 8-5 when Michigan has outrushed its previous opponent by 200 or more yards under Harbaugh.