Southern Methodist 7th American Athletic5-7
Michigan 3rd Big Ten10-2

Southern Methodist @ Michigan preview

Michigan Stadium


No. 22 Michigan looks for its second straight win when it wraps up the non-conference portion of its schedule at home against SMU on Saturday. The Wolverines bounced back from an opening week loss to eighth-ranked Notre Dame with a 49-3 victory over Western Michigan, which ended a four-game slide dating to last season, and Michigan hopes to stay on the winning track by beating an American Athletic Conference opponent for the third straight year.

"We want to start fast and play an entire 60 minutes," Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh told reporters. "I like the way our team approached last week as they had an edge to them and I want to see that again this weekend." Michigan routed Central Florida 51-14 in 2016 before taking down fellow AAC foe Cincinnati 36-14 last season and are 24-5-1 against teams currently in the American, including a 3-0 record since the conference's inception in 2013. The Wolverines have won 10 of their last 11 non-conference games in the regular season and hope to knock off the Mustangs in their first meeting since 1963. SMU is off to a rocky start following back-to-back losses, including a 42-12 setback to 14th-ranked TCU in the Battle for the Iron Skillet, and hope to get back on track by notching a signature win under first-year head coach Sonny Dykes.

TV: 3:30 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network. LINE: Michigan -35.5.

ABOUT SMU (0-2): Ben Hicks was limited to 111 yards on 18-of-38 passing as the Mustangs were held to 242 yards on offense en route to their seventh straight loss to the Horned Frogs. "We've just got to find a way to stay on the field and sustain some drives," Hicks told reporters. "I think that's something we've done a poor job of in the last two weeks." Junior running back Braeden West was the lone bright spot on offense as he rushed for 78 yards and a touchdown to help put him over 100 all-purpose yards for the second straight game this season and for the 13th time in his career.

ABOUT MICHIGAN (1-1): Shea Patterson completed 12-of-17 passes for 125 yards and three touchdowns, including a 44-yard scoring strike to Nico Collins, which was the first TD pass from a Michigan quarterback to a wide receiver since Sept. 9, 2017. Karan Higdon ran for 156 yards and a touchdown while Chris Evans added another 86 on the ground to go along with a pair of TDs as the Wolverines racked up 308 rushing yards against Western Michigan. Nose tackle Aubrey Solomon will be sidelined for the next few weeks after undergoing surgery on his right knee while fellow defensive lineman Lawrence Marshall is week-to-week with an undisclosed injury.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Michigan is 12-2 in the month of September under Harbaugh.

2. The Wolverines are 9-0 in non-conference home games since 2015.

3. Michigan has surrendered six points in the last six quarters.

PREDICTION: Michigan 45, SMU 10

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