Purdue vs. Michigan prediction: Picks, odds for Big Ten championship game

The 2022 Big Ten Championship Game will take place on Saturday as the Purdue Boilermakers will take on the No. 2 Michigan Wolverines at 8 p.m. ET. The game will take place at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis and will air on Fox.

Purdue (8-4, 6-3 Big Ten) survived a chaotic Big Ten West division race to earn its first ever trip to Indianapolis for the league title game. After a 1-2 start, the Boilermakers rattled off four straight victories before suffering back-to-back losses against Wisconsin and Iowa. With the West division a complete mess, Purdue simply handled its business by winning its final three games, officially clinching a title game berth with a 30-16 victory over rival Indiana last week. Senior quarterback Aidan O'Connell once again had the offense moving and his go-to weapon was wide receiver Charlie Jones. Jones earned First Team All-Big Ten honors by hauling in 97 receptions for 1,199 yards and 12 touchdowns for the season.

Michigan (12-0, 9-0 Big Ten) picked right back up from where it left off a year ago and secured its first undefeated regular season since 1997. The reigning Big Ten champions vaporized their opponents this year as 10 of its 12 victories came by at least 13 points. Of course, it's biggest statement win came last Saturday when it demolished Ohio State 45-23, completely hijacking the psychological edge in that rivalry. The Wolverines were led all season by running back Blake Corum, who broke off 1,463 yards and 18 touchdowns. Corum suffered a knee injury against Illinois two weeks ago and it was announced this week that he will undergo knee surgery that will sideline him for the rest of the year.

Here's all the data you'll want, and a pick for the game!

SP+ Rankings

Purdue: 47 overall, 50 offense, 39 defense
Michigan: 2 overall, 21 offense, 4 defense

Injury update

RB King Doerue – Questionable (Undisclosed)
DT Branson Deen – Questionable (Undisclosed)

RB Blake Corum – Out for season (Knee)

ATS/Total

Purdue: 5-7 ATS
Michigan: 7-4-1 ATS

Purdue: Over 7-5
Michigan: Over 3-8-1

Current lines at DraftKings Sportsbook

Spread: Michigan -17
Total: 52
Moneyline: Michigan -800, Purdue +575

Opening line: Michigan -16.5
Opening total: 50

Weather

Domed stadium. Weather will not be a factor.

The Pick

Big Ten Championship Games can get out of hand from time to time and this is one of those matchups where the game could be over by the middle of the third quarter. It's hard to imagine Purdue being able to stop Michigan when a superior Ohio State didn't have any answers down the stretch last Saturday. Don't overthink this, take the Wolverines to cover.

  
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