With the longest winning run in the country, 21 games, the Huskies will head to Houston. This is the tenth in a row when the final score was within ten points.
Joining Tom Brady as Brian Griese's backup quarterback and team leader Charles Woodson in winning the Heisman Trophy in 1997, the Wolverines will be vying for their first national championship since they shared it with Nebraska that year.
The backbone of Michigan's defense this season is a unit that has allowed just 10.2 points per game and 243 yards, both of which are FBS lows. They have the nation's best pass defense, allowing only 150 yards a game and seven touchdowns allowed.
Along with Ohio State, Michigan is the sole Big Ten squad to have advanced to the College Football Playoff final.
Including a 31-10 victory in 2021 at Michigan Stadium, the Wolverines' record against the Huskies is 8-5 all-time.
In their previous two semifinal appearances, Michigan lost to TCU and Georgia. An erratic regular season preceded the Wolverines' breakthrough. As a result of three suspensions for recruiting breaches and three games related to the sign-stealing incident, Jim Harbaugh was unable to coach for six games.
Prior to its upsets over top-10 Penn State and Ohio State (for the third year in a row), Michigan's strength of schedule was also called into question.
The altercation began in Week 1, according to quarterback J.J. McCarthy. "Everything we've faced, every obstacle... Without overcoming such challenges, our team would never be able to achieve our goals. We responded and persevered through all of that to an outstanding degree. We still have one more game to play, so we're far from done. Washington and Michigan to Face Off in Next College Football Playoff Final.