Five things to watch: Michigan in Super Bowl LVII
For the ninth straight year, at least one former Michigan Wolverines football player will win the Super Bowl, with the Kansas City Chiefs set to take on the Philadelphia Eagles Sunday evening at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.
Three Wolverines — defensive ends Frank Clark and Mike Danna and quarterback Chad Henne — reside on the Chiefs’ roster, while defensive end Brandon Graham stars for the Eagles.
Below, we break down five things to watch for from a Michigan perspective Sunday evening.
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1. Game wreckers
As the cliché goes, the game will be won or lost on the line of scrimmage. Whichever team puts more pressure on the opposing quarterback will have a great chance of coming out with the Lombardi Trophy.
Three of Michigan’s four players in the game are potential impact players in that respect. Both Graham and Clark, in fact, have notched game-clinching sacks in past Super Bowls.
In Super Bowl LII, Graham stripped former Michigan quarterback Tom Brady with 2:09 to go and a five-point lead, essentially ending the game. In Super Bowl LIV, Clark brought down San Francisco quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo on fourth down with less than a minute and a half to play and a four-point edge.
Both Graham and Clark have had big seasons. The former is part of a pass-rush unit with four defenders that have at least 10 sacks, having posted a career-best 11 in the regular season. Clark, meanwhile had 5 sacks in 15 games.
Danna, too, can be an X-factor. He had 3 pressures on Cincinnati signal-caller Joe Burrow in the AFC Championship game and logged 5 sacks and 3 tackles for loss this season.
2. Can Frank Clark break the playoff sack record?
Clark had 1 sack in the AFC Championship and has 2.5 for these playoffs, bringing his career postseason total up to 13, passing Terrell Suggs (12.5). He trails only former New England Patriot Willie McGinest (16) and former Buffalo Bill Bruce Smith (14.5).
Clark has a chance to pass Smith with a pair of sacks, and a monster game could surge him into the No. 1 spot on the all-time list.
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“I just care about helping my team get to this point because I know once we get here I can have my way,” the former Michigan defensive end said this week. “Once I get to the playoffs, I’m able to do the special things I do, set up some unique situations, and they move me around.”
3. Patrick Mahomes’ health
If Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes were fully healthy, perhaps the Chiefs would be favored instead of 1.5-point underdogs. But the reality is, Mahomes is dealing with a high-ankle sprain he suffered in the divisional round against the Jacksonville Jaguars. After he went down in that game, Henne led a 98-yard touchdown scoring drive to put his team up 10 points.
Mahomes played the entire AFC Championship game, but there’s no telling if he could re-aggravate the injury. He’ll do everything he can to stay in this contest, but Henne is the next man up, and he may get his shot.
4. Potential for Michigan to add to Super Bowl MVP lead
Michigan is the only school to have five Super Bowl MVP selections, with Brady (XXXVI, XXXVIII, XLIX, LI) winning four and Desmond Howard (XXXI) taking home one. There are four schools — Alabama, Georgia, Notre Dame and USC — with three Super Bowl MVP honors, but none even within one of the Maize and Blue.
There’s a chance Michigan can add to its lead Sunday evening.
According to DraftKings, Mahomes (+120) and Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts (+125) are the favorites to win the MVP award, but some Wolverines have outside chances. The sportsbook lists Graham at +8000 (if you bet $100, you’d get back $8,000), Clark at +10000 and Danna at +30000.
5. Another prop bet
Graham and Clark each have the highest over/under on sacks, which has been set at 0.75. Here’s a look at how DraftKings has it listed:
| Michigan Player | Over | Under | |
| Brandon Graham | 0.75 (+190) | 0.75 (-235) | |
| Frank Clark | 0.75 (+120) | 0.75 (-150) |
