What Jim Harbaugh And Michigan Need To Do To Slow Down Michael Penix Jr. And the Huskies Offense

750 The Game Staff

Tonight’s national championship game promises to be a good one as No. 1 Michigan is favored by 4.5 points against No. 2 Washington. John Canzano is live on the scene in Houston and will call in with reports from NRG Stadium every hour on today’s Bald Faced Truth radio show (3-6 p.m.). Don’t miss it as the Huskies and Wolverines kickoff at 4:30 p.m. to vie for the national title.

Canzano is picking the Huskies to once again win as an underdog and claim the top prize, largely because of how remarkable Michael Penix Jr. has played at quarterback.

“Don’t you think everybody’s thrown every possible – let’s get pressure on Michael Penix Jr., no, let’s drop eight and not pressure Michael Penix Jr. – don’t you think everything has been tried in two seasons against this guy?,” Canzano said on 750 The Game. “There’s nothing new that you do to him.”

As for what Jim Harbaugh and the Michigan Wolverines will do to try and slow down Penix and co., Canzano says Arizona State’s defense provided the best template in their Oct. 21st game in Seattle.

“If you’re going to pressure Penix, Arizona State had the blueprint,” Canzano said. “Early in the season, 15-7 win by Washington, Arizona State had Washington on the ropes blitzing the A-gaps. That’s all they did. They got right in Penix’s face and they hurt him. And I still think Penix was hurt entering that game. I still think he wasn’t right going into the game. But they went right at him at the point of attack.”

Offensively, Canzano knows the ground game will be Michigan’s priority, and for good reason.

“I’m thinking two things if I’m Jim Harbaugh. I got to run the ball on Washington because it does two things – one, it shortens the game, two, it keeps Michael Penix Jr. off the field. And it is kind of what Michigan wants to do. So if I’m Jim Harbaugh, yes, I want to come in and run the football on Washington. I saw what Texas did, I saw what Oregon did in the first game, that’s something I want to do.”

In what has been an epic final football season for the ‘Conference of Champions’, Canzano says it’s only right for the conference to go out with a bang and a national championship.

“I’m betting on the Pac-12. That’s what I’m betting my prediction on. I had a good feel for the bowl games. I went 6-1 in the bowl games I predicted against the spread.”

Canzano will be calling in live from Houston during Monday’s radio show at the scene of the CFP National Championship game. Be here 3-6 p.m. on 750 The Game for John Canzano and the Bald Faced Truth.

Listen to Canzano’s take on the title matchup at the start of the podcast below.