Michigan football opens as another huge betting favorite vs. Rutgers

Michigan’s failure to cover the spread this season has not deterred oddsmakers, nor sharp bettors, this week.

The second-ranked Wolverines opened as 23-point betting favorites for their Big Ten opener against Rutgers on Saturday (Noon, Big Ten Network) at Circa Las Vegas, and the number has only gone up since.

A recent check of domestic sports books show Michigan as 24.5- to 26-point betting favorites for the game in Ann Arbor. You can get the Wolverines at the lower number (24.5) at FanDuel and BetRivers, Michigan -25 at Caesars, Michigan -25.5 at Wynn, and Michigan -26 at DraftKings.

Jim Harbaugh is due back on the sidelines this Saturday, his first game of the season after serving a school-imposed, three-game suspension amid an NCAA investigation. And while his team boasts a perfect 3-0 record, they have failed to cover three large point spreads in wins over East Carolina, Nevada, Las Vegas and, most recently, Bowling Green.

All three games began with Michigan as five-touchdown favorites or higher. While this number is not nearly as high, it’s still a big number for a conference game.

Meanwhile, Rutgers enters with a 3-0 record as well, with victories over Northwestern, Temple and Virginia Tech. Even more impressive, the Scarlet Knights covered the spread as home favorites in all three.

Michigan has dominated the all-time series between the two schools, boasting an 8-1 record against Rutgers and winning the last eight games. Last year’s meeting in Piscataway saw the Wolverines win 52-17 and cover the 26-point spread, but the game in Ann Arbor in 2021 was much closer, with Michigan winning 20-13 but failing to cover a 20-point spread.