For each Big Ten preview, Michigan writers Dave Birkett and Michael Rothstein will jaw back-and-forth with words, parting shots and general opinions about why we selected each team to finish where we did.

Sometimes we'll agree. Other times, we won't.

Michael Rothstein: I really like what Pat Fitzgerald is doing at Northwestern. Long a tough place to win in any revenue sport (see Bill Carmody's basketball issues), Fitzgerald seems to be on the right track. Injuries last season will actually help this team as fifth-year senior Mike Kafka received playing time when C.J. Bacher went down with an injury midseason. While you really like Bucky and his Badgers as a surprise team, I'm high on the Wildcats. They replace a lot, but Fitzgerald seems like the real thing in Evanston. Plus, the defense should be good enough to keep Northwestern in games and the offensive line is experienced, which should help any learning curve the Wildcats have at the offensive skill positions.

Dave Birkett: Northwestern's a bowl team in my mind, too. Assuming they survive that brutal start to the season against Towson and Eastern Michigan, that is. Corey Wootton's a legitimate NFL prospect at defensive end. He might not get 10 sacks again as teams gameplan for him more, but he's big and disruptive and a good fit for Fitzgerald's defense. Offensively, Kafka showed he can run the offense when he shredded Minnesota for 217 yards rushing last year. My only concern with him, and running back Jeravin Matthews for that matter, is health. Northwestern's skill players always seem to get banged up in the Big Ten, and the Wildcats can't afford to lose either of those guys this year.

MR: Hey, don't hate on Towson. Pat Kennedy is a decent coach. Oops. That's basketball. This is football. Never mind. Northwestern rolls. Actually, they should only lose one game at home -- Penn State -- definitively. Combine that with wins on the road at Purdue and Syracuse and Team Purple should be bowl-bound again. Actually, Northwestern could be 6-0 heading to East Lansing on Oct. 17. I like Wootton, too. Who knows why Northwestern keeps getting its skill players hurt. You could point to bad luck or training issues but I'm going to go with the former. If Northwestern stays healthy, and since it avoids Ohio State and Michigan, it could be a huge season for the Wildcats.

DB: Their injuries have a lot to do with the system, too. They've got small running backs and fragile quarterbacks who carry the ball a lot in the rough and rumble Big Ten. Tyrell Sutton was dynamite as a freshman, but broke down the rest of his career. Matthews is bigger, but not as thick. He is more athletic, though, so maybe that'll help him survive the rigors of the season. Regardless, I think wins will be a little tougher to come by for the Wildcats this year, and if they don't start at least 5-1 they cold be in for a long season.

MR: You bring up a good point with the fragility and lack of size in the running backs and quarterbacks. But a lot of programs have that. Then again, if there's one thing the Big Ten definitely is is big, so that is an issue, for sure. Being a former Big Ten player, I'm guessing Fitzgerald is probably trying to remedy that. Then again, Fitzgerald was an undersized linebacker, so maybe he likes those types of players. I like Northwestern to actually make it through the season fairly injury-free compared to last year ... and because of that I see the Wildcats at 8-4 with losses at Michigan State, Iowa and Illinois and a home loss to Penn State.

DB: My Wisconsin is your Northwestern, and vice versa. I don't think Northwestern has the guns to get to eight wins, not with five of its last six games against probable bowl teams. There's something bubbling there, though, and I think Northwestern's just good enough to qualify for the postseason for a second straight year. Mark me down for six wins and a berth what might just be the last Motor City Bowl.