The GameAbove Sports Bowl brings together two programs that quietly put together solid seasons and now meet at Ford Field. Central Michigan Chippewas enter at 7–5 while Northwestern Wildcats sit at 6–6.
With no late official bowl depth charts released, the projections below are built from the most recent team depth charts and confirmed availability, offering a realistic picture of who should open the game and how rotations are likely to look.
Central Michigan vs Northwestern Projected Starting Lineup for GameAbove Sports Bowl
Central Michigan Starting Lineup
| Position | Starter |
| QB | Joe Labas |
| RB | Brock Townsend |
| WR-X | Tommy McIntosh |
| WR-Z | Langston Lewis |
| Slot WR | Tyson Davis |
| TE | DeCorion Temple |
| LT | Jacob Russell |
| LG | Dasan Smith |
| C | Ryan Blum |
| RG | Brady Ploucha |
| RT | Martin Koivisto |
| LDE | D.J. Bennett |
| NT | Jonathan Decker |
| RDE | Michael Heldman |
| WLB | Lawai’a Brown |
| MLB | Jordan Kwiatkowski |
| ROLB | Dakota Cochran |
| LCB | Brenden Deasfernandes |
| SS | Caleb Spann |
| FS | Elijah Rikard |
| RCB | Kalen Carroll |
| Nickel | Jaion Jackson |
Northwestern Starting Lineup
| Position | Starter |
| QB | Preston Stone |
| RB | Caleb Komolafe |
| WR-X | Hayden Eligon II |
| WR-Z | Griffin Wilde |
| Slot WR | Drew Wagner |
| TE | Lawson Albright |
| LT | Caleb Tiernan |
| LG | Ezomo Oratokhai |
| C | Jackson Carsello |
| RG | Evan Beerntsen |
| RT | Martes Lewis |
| LDE | Aidan Hubbard |
| LDT | Brendan Flakes |
| RDT | Carmine Bastone |
| RDE | Michael Kilbane |
| WLB | Braydon Brus |
| MLB | Mac Uihlein |
| LCB | Fred Davis II |
| SS | Garner Wallace |
| FS | Robert Fitzgerald |
| RCB | Josh Fussell |
| Nickel | Braden Turner |
Central Michigan vs Northwestern Depth Chart for GameAbove Sports Bowl
Central Michigan Depth Chart
| Position | 1st | 2nd |
| QB | Joe Labas | Angel Flores |
| RB | Brock Townsend | Trey Cornist |
| WR-X | Tommy McIntosh | Collin Payne |
| WR-Z | Langston Lewis | Justin Ruffin Jr. |
| Slot WR | Tyson Davis | Camden Kruisenga |
| TE | DeCorion Temple | Henry Dryden |
| LT | Jacob Russell | Jacob Booth |
| LG | Dasan Smith | Blake Schlegel |
| C | Ryan Blum | Apisa Poumele |
| RG | Brady Ploucha | Blake Schlegel |
| RT | Martin Koivisto | Jacob Saurbeck |
| LDE | D.J. Bennett | Joey VanWetzinga |
| NT | Jonathan Decker | Quavion Bird |
| RDE | Michael Heldman | Malik Denkins |
| WLB | Lawai’a Brown | Andre Thomas Jr. |
| MLB | Jordan Kwiatkowski | Victor Earl |
| ROLB | Dakota Cochran | Xavier White |
| LCB | Brenden Deasfernandes | Aakeem Snell |
| SS | Caleb Spann | Maddix Blackwell |
| FS | Elijah Rikard | Elijah Gordon |
| RCB | Kalen Carroll | Kyle Krebs |
| Nickel | Jaion Jackson | Keyton Jones |
Northwestern Depth Chart
| Position | 1st | 2nd |
| QB | Preston Stone | Ryan Boe |
| RB | Caleb Komolafe | Joseph Himon II |
| WR-X | Hayden Eligon II | Ricky Ahumaraeze |
| WR-Z | Griffin Wilde | Frank Covey IV |
| Slot WR | Drew Wagner | Chase Farrell |
| TE | Lawson Albright | Hunter Welcing |
| LT | Caleb Tiernan | Xavior Gray |
| LG | Ezomo Oratokhai | Idrys Cotton |
| C | Jackson Carsello | Anthony Birsa |
| RG | Evan Beerntsen | Nick Herzog |
| RT | Martes Lewis | Deuce McGuire |
| LDE | Aidan Hubbard | Anto Saka |
| LDT | Brendan Flakes | Tyler Gant |
| RDT | Carmine Bastone | Najee Story |
| RDE | Michael Kilbane | Richie Hagarty |
| WLB | Braydon Brus | Payton Roth |
| MLB | Mac Uihlein | Jack Sadowsky V |
| LCB | Fred Davis II | Evan Smith |
| SS | Garner Wallace | Damon Walters |
| FS | Robert Fitzgerald | Jon Jon Stevens Jr. |
| RCB | Josh Fussell | Ore Adeyi |
| Nickel | Braden Turner | Dillon Tatum |
How To Watch Central Michigan vs Northwestern
- TV: ESPN
- Kickoff: 1:00 p.m. ET
- Date: Friday, December 26
- Location: Ford Field, Detroit, Michigan
- Broadcast crew: Matt Schumacker (play-by-play), Dustin Fox (analyst), Ashley Stroehlein (sideline)
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