The Northwestern Wildcats are the current darlings entering the GameAbove Sports Bowl, as they face Central Michigan in Detroit, boasting bowl momentum, strong stats, and a Big Ten pedigree.
Northwestern and Central Michigan are both rolling into bowl season with momentum — and now they’ve got a proving ground to cash it in.
No pressure or anything, but the GameAbove Sports Bowl has quietly turned into one of the sneakiest must-watch bowls on the calendar. This game almost always delivers. Whether it’s a scrappy Power Four squad or a top-tier Group of Five outfit, somebody shows up ready to throw hands for four quarters.
This year’s clash kicks off Friday, Dec. 26 at 1 p.m. ET, live on ESPN, from Ford Field in Detroit. Dome game. National stage. One last shot to end the season with a victory.
According to BetMGM, the Wildcats are 10.5-point favorites against the Chippewas. Betting lines also set the over/under at 43.5 points.
The GameAbove Sports Bowl lines up a classic Power Four vs. Group of Five showdown, with the Northwestern Wildcats out of the Big Ten squaring off against the Central Michigan Chippewas from the MAC. CMU punched its ticket at 7–5, while Northwestern comes in at an even 6–6, looking to finish the season above .500 and keep its postseason heater alive.
For Northwestern, this bowl is another checkpoint in the David Braun rebuild. The Wildcats are back in the postseason after hitting reset, and a win would add another notch to a résumé that’s quietly getting sturdier by the year. They’ve been money in bowl season lately — five straight wins — including the 2023 Las Vegas Bowl takedown.
From a matchup standpoint, this one tilts toward the Wildcats in the trenches and in the details. Central Michigan has struggled to get off the field on third down, ranking 93rd nationally while allowing conversions at a 41.3% clip. Northwestern’s offense ranks 37th, moving the chains on 41.3% of third downs.
Ball security could be the swing factor. Northwestern sits 100th nationally with a minus-four turnover margin, while Central Michigan has been opportunistic, ranking 20th at plus-eight. If the Wildcats keep the ball clean, they neutralize CMU’s biggest edge.
Discipline favors Northwestern as well. The Wildcats rank ninth in the FBS in penalty yards per game, rarely beating themselves, and once they cross the 20, they cash in. Northwestern is 20th nationally in red-zone efficiency, scoring on 91.1% of its trips — exactly how you put games away.
Expect this one to be a time-of-possession slugfest. Both teams want to shorten the game and lean on clock control. Northwestern ranks 11th nationally, holding the ball for an average of 32:44 per game, while Central Michigan isn’t far behind at 19th with 32:07. Long drives, limited possessions, and a lot of trench warfare.
Some Big Ten teams might sleepwalk into a post-Christmas bowl trip to Detroit against a MAC opponent — Northwestern isn’t wired that way. The Wildcats were fired up just to punch their bowl ticket with a dramatic win over Minnesota at Wrigley Field, and they’ve consistently shown up when the lights are on. Central Michigan should have a crowd boost at Ford Field in its first bowl appearance since 2021, but the Chippewas struggled badly against Power Four competition this season, taking lopsided losses to Pitt and Michigan. Northwestern, meanwhile, survived a much tougher weekly grind.