This Michigan game is preemptively annoying me.
UW is a small underdog, matching what the computers think. This gives me hope, probably too much.
If UW loses, it functionally doesn't have an impact on the season. A win is found money. But a loss will send many UW fans into more of a tizzy. If they lose close, "why can't they beat good teams in crunch time?" If they're blown out, why can't they compete? And that'll scramble the numbers.
UW is mostly chasing win volume now. Losing to Mich doesn't make anything notably worse, but it'll be treated as such.