Overview
- Kickoff is set for 12:00 p.m. CT (1:00 p.m. ET) with ESPN carrying the broadcast.
- Northwestern finished 6-6 and secured bowl eligibility with a 38-35 win over Minnesota at Wrigley Field on Nov. 22.
- Central Michigan went 7-5 under Matt Drinkall, leaning on a senior-led defense featuring Michael Heldman and Jordan Kwiatkowski that produced 19 takeaways.
- Northwestern enters with five straight bowl victories and this marks David Braun's second bowl in three seasons.
- The programs have met only once previously, a 2010 Northwestern win, and Ford Field offers a regional setting about a four-and-a-half-hour drive from Evanston.