Opponent Preview - Michigan
Welcome to the Opponent Preview, a weekly article featuring insights from experts on the Oklahoma Sooners’ upcoming opponents. For week one, Payton Guthrie spoke with Von Lozon, from Maize N Brew about what to expect from the Wolverines as they take on the Oklahoma Sooners.
Opponent Preview: OKLAHOMA VS. Michigan
Payton Guthrie - What are your thoughts on the Michigan season so far? Was week 1 a blip or something more major?
Von Lozon - Well, Week 1 sure was something for the Wolverines, wasn’t it?
Needless to say, Michigan fans are pretty pissed about what happened last weekend. As four-touchdown favorites, there’s no reason the Wolverines should have been in the situation they were in at the end of the game. It’s embarrassing, and the coaches and players said as much after the game.
I hope it’s just a blip, but Michigan fans could be in for a long season, especially if this weekend is a blowout loss against the Sooners.
Payton Guthrie - When Michigan is on offense, how will they try to get out of first gear against this aggressive Oklahoma defense?
Von Lozon - I think Jason Beck and the Wolverines will continue to try and get back to what they have historically done best — run the football. They tried it last weekend, but to not much success.
Running backs Jordan Marshall and Savion Hiter combined for 59 rushing yards on 16 attempts, and quarterback Bryce Underwood actually led the team in rushing on Saturday with just 47 yards.
It was a really abysmal performance on the ground, so the goal will be to turn that around this weekend to wear out that vaunted OU defense, set up the play-action pass, and own the time of possession battle.
Payton Guthrie - Oklahoma has shown a willingness to play “bully ball” so far in 2026. How will Michigan try to limit John Mateer & the revamped OU offense?
Von Lozon - I think the key will be to contain Mateer in the pocket and make sure he doesn’t burn the Wolverines on the ground. He ran for 74 yards and two touchdowns against Michigan last year, and while there’s a brand new coaching staff in town that was not here for that game, Whittingham and company are still aware of how big a threat Mateer is with his legs.
Even if he wasn’t picking up first downs running the ball in the matchup last year, he was still routinely extending plays and giving his receivers quality chances to make a play.
New defensive coordinator Jay Hill will certainly have his hands full with that this weekend.
Payton Guthrie - What is your prediction for the general flow of the game?
Von Lozon - Despite how poorly Michigan played and how well Oklahoma played last weekend, I still think this is going to be a grind-it-out type of game just because of how good both defenses are.
I think much of the first half will be about both teams trying to figure out what the opponent is doing and making adjustments after that. Once the second half hits, I expect Oklahoma to put its foot down on defense and start suffocating the Wolverines offensively.
Payton Guthrie - Score Prediction?
Von Lozon - Oklahoma 27, Michigan 14