Michigan vs Notre Dame Series Facts

On Saturday night, Michigan and Notre Dame will battle for the 40th time in history.  The Irish are 3-0 after defeating Navy, Purdue and Michigan State while the Wolverines are 2-1 after losing to Alabama and beating Air Force and Massachusetts.

The first football game between the two schools occurred on November 23rd, 1887 as Michigan shutout the Irish by a score of 8-0.  Michigan leads the all-time series 23-15 with one tie, a 17-17 final score in 1992.

From 1887 to 1909, Michigan dominated the series winning 7 of 8 meetings.  The rivalry went on hold for many years until the schools split victories in 1942 and 1943.  Another break in the rivalry lasted until 1978.  The teams have played every year since besides 1983, 1984, 1995, 1996, 2000 and 2001.  Since 1978, the series has been fairly even with Michigan winning 14 games and Notre Dame winning 13 games with the one tie.

Michigan has dominated as of late, winning 3 in a row and 5 of the last 6, but the Irish are favored by 6 in Saturday night's game in South Bend.  The winning tradition of both programs and the relative closeness in geography have made the Notre Dame - Michigan rivalry one of the greatest in sports history.

Enjoy the game!