BCS Bowl Predictions: Shoelace Will Lead Michigan by Virginia Tech in Sugar Bowl

Michigan and Virginia Tech will meet in the Allstate Sugar Bowl, according to Stewart Mandel. It's a game not many analysts were predicting when the day began, but it's certainly an intriguing game between two teams with huge fan bases.

Denard “Shoelace” Robinson will be the most dynamic player on the field and should have enough weapons at his disposal to lead Michigan to victory on Jan. 3.

It's been a roller-coaster season for Michigan. The Wolverines reached No. 11 before a loss to rival Michigan State and got back up to No. 15 before falling to Iowa.

Losing to the unranked Hawkeyes was suppose to be the final nail in their BCS coffin, but a myriad of upsets over the final few weeks gave them new life. And Michigan took full advantage. A three-game winning streak, including victories over Illinois, Nebraska and Ohio State, was enough to convince the voters that Michigan belonged in a BCS game. Apparently, the Sugar Bowl officials agreed.

As surprising as Michigan's late charge was, Virginia Tech's BCS inclusion is even more shocking. The final at-large bid was thought to be a three-way race between TCU, Boise State and Kansas State. So when word started to leak that the Hokies would actually claim that final spot, it left a lot of people scratching their heads.

After dealing with so much heartbreak when it comes to the NCAA basketball tournament, maybe Virginia Tech had saved up enough sympathy points to sneak them in over those aforementioned schools.

The Hokies only lost two games, both against Clemson, so it's not like they're undeserving of a spot. However, they only knocked off one ranked opponent, which makes it hard to comprehend how they were deemed more worthy than the other contenders.

But Virginia Tech isn't going to complain, they have a lot of work to do to prepare for a solid Michigan football team from top to bottom.

The Hokies offense, which has two elite top-notch performers in Logan Thomas and David Wilson, came up small when it mattered most. They scored just 13 points in the two Clemson games.

They'll need to bring a better game plan to the table against Michigan, which has been scoring at will in recent weeks. This game definitely possesses shootout potential. Even though both defenses rank inside the top 10, they haven't faced many opposing offenses with as much firepower as they will next month.

All told, look for Michigan to emerge victorious after a back-and-forth affair that exceeds expectations in terms of quality of play and excitement.

Prediction: Michigan 34, Virginia Tech 28