Peach Bowl 2018: Updated Odds and Preview for Michigan vs. Florida
For the third time in the last 11 years, the Michigan Wolverines and Florida Gators are set to face off in the postseason.
The two teams are some of the most familiar opponents of bowl season, and they also squared off to start the 2017 regular season.
Michigan and Florida earned spots in the Peach Bowl on December 29 as at-large teams based off the College Football Playoff rankings.
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Jim Harbaugh's Wolverines are back in the New Year's Six after a year absence, but the Peach Bowl isn't the game they expected to be playing in a few weeks ago.
As for Dan Mullen's Gators, they benefited from the strength of the SEC, as they landed 10th in the final rankings chosen by the playoff selection committee.
According to OddsShark, the Wolverines are favored by 7.5 points as they search for their third win over Florida in the Harbaugh era.
When it comes to storylines for the Peach Bowl, it's hard to manufacture excitement among the respective fanbases because they're used to seeing each other.
One intriguing story was taken away from the Peach Bowl Sunday, when Michigan wide receivers coach and former Florida head coach Jim McElwain took the head coach position at Central Michigan.
The excitement could also be zapped from the buildup to the game because of the Wolverines, who have over a month to let the deflating loss to Ohio State fester.
Not only was the defeat in Ohio the latest in a number of setbacks in the rivalry for the Wolverines, it eliminated them from playoff contention as a two-loss program without a berth in a conference championship.
Even if the Wolverines are fully prepared, there will be concerns about Harbaugh's ability to have them ready for the Peach Bowl, as he holds a 1-2 bowl record at Michigan and 2-3 overall.
If Michigan has the proper motivation, it has a chance of steamrolling Florida behind its tandem of quarterback Shea Patterson and running back Karan Higdon.
Patterson has 2,364 passing yards and 21 touchdowns in his first season as a Michigan starter, while Higdon ran for 1,178 yards and 10 touchdowns in a campaign in which he averaged 5.3 yards per carry.
Although Michigan's offense demands attention, Florida could steal the spotlight with its rushing game if it takes advantage of Rashan Gary's absence.
Following a trend started by first-round picks in recent years, Gary, who has already declared for the 2019 NFL draft, won't participate in the Peach Bowl, as Nick Baumgartner of the Detriot Free Press noted during Harbaugh's media availability Sunday.
Gary's absence should allow the Gators to find weaknesses in the rest of Michigan's defensive linemen and exploit them.
In two of their last three games, the Gators had a player rush for over 100 yards, with Jordan Scarlett doing so against South Carolina and Lamical Perine reaching that mark versus Florida State.
Although the two-pronged attack of Scarlett and Perine only produced 10 touchdowns, both running backs average 5.9 yards per carry.
Of course, Michigan has plenty of time to prepare for Gary's absence as well, but it is hard to replace a player projected to go in the top 10 picks of the NFL draft.
Expect both teams to approach the first half with a run-first mentality before attempting to open up the contest in the second half.
While the ground game will be important, whichever quarterback makes the most plays will leave Atlanta with a season-ending victory.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90
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