The first week of college football had its usual smattering of stunners, and perhaps none were bigger than then-No. 20 Washington losing at home to Montana from the FCS. Now, the Huskies will try to conduct some damage control against a Michigan team that handled its overmatched foe with ease.

Michigan is a 6.5-point favorite at home on the current college football odds table against Washington. The teams meet on Saturday at 8:00 p.m. ET.

How much weight can you put in the Wolverines’ blowout? Likewise, was the Huskies’ gaff a one-off or an indication of things to come? Check out our college football picks for this matchup in the article below.

Odds are current as of publication. Betting sites may indicate odds changes closer to kickoff.

5 Keys to Washington vs. Michigan

Ronnie Bell’s season is over: Bell caught a 76-yard touchdown for Michigan last week, but he was later carted off with a knee injury. On Monday, Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh confirmed Bell will miss the rest of the season. The senior led Michigan in receptions (26) and yards (401) last year.

Washington’s worst loss ever?: Washington’s 13-7 loss to Montana marked the first FCS upset over a ranked FBS team in five years, and it happened in the Huskies’ house. Ouch. Somehow, after scoring a touchdown on the game’s first drive, the Huskies were held quiet the rest of the way.

82-0 for McNamara The sample size isn’t very big, but Michigan quarterback Cade McNamara has played mistake-free football so far as a collegian. After his 9-for-11 performance with 136 yards and two scores, the junior has now started his career with zero interceptions in 82 passes. He also received Pro Football Focus’s highest grade among Power Five quarterbacks in Week 1.

Where’s the offense? In its four-game season last year, Washington averaged 30.2 points and 402.8 yards per game. They returned nine offensive starters, although the two losses were their two best wideouts (both transferred). Surely quarterback Dylan Morris and Co. have more life in them than we saw last week.

First road game since 2019: The weirdness of the 2020 pandemic season prompted Washington to play all of its games at home in Seattle, which is also where the Huskies began this season. Saturday will serve as their first true road game since Nov. 23, 2019, when they lost 20-14 to Colorado.

Washington vs. Michigan Weather Forecast

The 100,000-plus fans that pack Michigan Stadium on Saturday night are in for moderate temperatures (low-70s) and just a 20 percent chance of rain. Wind gusts of 14 mph will not be a factor.

Washington vs. Michigan Moneyline

A week ago, you never would’ve expected sportsbooks to give you a chance to more than triple your money on a Washington ( +205 on FanDuel ) moneyline wager. But here we are.

As enticing as that sounds, the Huskies’ total dud in Week 1 is difficult to look past. Add that to the fact they’re now playing on the road for the first time in over 21 months, and we’ll stick with Michigan ( -260 on FanDuel ) straight up.

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Washington vs. Michigan Point Spread

The tricky thing is that Washington really isn’t accustomed to the life of a college football betting underdog. They’ve been favored in their past nine games, dating back to November 2019, so we don’t have a relevant precedent here.

This team is built on defense, which did its part against Montana and can keep the Huskies close again. Given that everyone initially expected Washington to be favored in this game, we’ll take the 6-points that betting apps are offering and roll with the underdogs at DraftKings .

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Washington vs. Michigan Total

Both teams hit the Under in Week 1, Michigan won’t have its top receiver and Washington only managed to score seven points against an FCS team. What more is there to say?

Though 50.5 points isn’t insurmountable if McNamara stays hot, we definitely expect him to have a tougher task against Washington than he did against Western Michigan. Take the Under all the way.