Michigan heads into its first Big Ten championship game with a national playoff berth on the line when the Wolverines face Iowa -- a matchup that seemed improbable just a week ago.

The Michigan Wolverines have won their first Big Ten Conference football championship since 2004, first outright since 2003, and subsequently earned their spot in the College Football Playoff to play for a national championship.

Head coach Jim Harbaugh of the Michigan Wolverines reacts in the second half while playing the Penn State Nittany Lions at Michigan Stadium on November 28, 2020 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Michigan football has canceled its final game of the 2020 season against Iowa due to ongoing COVID-19 concerns within the program. The announcement comes two days after the Big Ten matched up the Wolverines and Hawkeyes as part of its “Champions Week” slate. LAST WEEK: Michigan cancels rivalry football game vs. Ohio State due to rising COVID-19 casesIt’s the third straight week Michigan has had to cancel due to the virus. Both the Maryland and Ohio State games were also canceled.

So it’s only fitting that the Big Ten throw some extra salt in the wound, forcing the woefully undermanned Wolverines into the fire with a “Champions Week” matchup against Iowa. The second place team in the East would play the second place team in the West, and so on. Well, Michigan, the sixth place team in the East, will play against Iowa, the No. The Maryland and Ohio State games were both canceled because the Wolverines were without dozens of players due to COVID-19, contact tracing and other injuries. While Ohio State and Northwestern play for the Big Ten title, the rest of the “Champions Week” matchups look like this: