Tag: Michigan Wolverines

For Michigan men’s basketball, it will be another week sitting at No. 2 in the AP Poll Top 25 rankings, but the gap between the Wolverines and the top spot is as small as it can get.

Arizona remains the top-ranked team, receiving 1,494 points and 32 first-place votes, but Michigan is just one point behind, with 1,493 points and 29 first-place votes.

With conference play picking up for most teams in the country, now is the time where big changes tend to materialize in the polls. Teams that previously rolled through lesser competition will now regularly face in-conference foes that will provide more of a challenge. On the other hand, teams that struggled to gel early in the season could flip a switch and rack up impressive wins in droves.

The Wolverines played a tough non-conference schedule and are sufficiently battle-tested, but Big Ten play still provides a new wave of challenges. The first of which came in the form of then-No. 24 USC Friday night. 

While Michigan didn’t play its best game offensively, its defense and transition play were still plenty good enough to earn yet another 30-point win, taking down the Trojans 96-66. This convincing performance was almost, yet not quite, enough to propel the Wolverines to the top spot.

Arizona earned a big conference win of its own, besting Utah 97-78 and fending off Michigan for at least another week. 

Nebraska took down Michigan State in a thriller, jumping the cornhuskers up from No. 13 to No. 10, and dropping the Spartans from No. 9 to No. 12.

Here are the complete AP Poll rankings from Week 9:

Other teams receiving votes: Villanova, Seton Hall, USC, Utah State, Miami (Ohio), Clemson, Saint Louis, LSU, Texas, Florida, Saint Mary’s, Kentucky, California, Miami, Indiana, Auburn, TCU, UCLA, Virginia Tech.

For a while, it seemed like the Wolverines were going to need Arizona to lose in order for them to move up, but recently, their continued dominance seems to have swayed some voters.

If Michigan keeps winning, and winning big, it’ll be hard to ignore both the metrics and the eye test. It has two more tests before the next poll, the first of which comes Tuesday at Penn State.

Despite sitting at 0-3 in Big Ten play, the Nittany Lions have shown the ability to put up a fight against tougher competition. They gave Michigan State a run for its money in mid-December, and they played Illinois tough just last week. Michigan shouldn’t have a problem taking them down, but a road game in the Big Ten is almost never easy.

On Saturday, Jan. 10, Wisconsin comes into Ann Arbor. The Badgers are 1-2 in the Big Ten, but their two losses came at the hands of No. 10 Nebraska and No. 5 Purdue. They have been ranked inside the top 25 at times this season, and they have the capability to hang around with very good teams.

If Michigan can parlay two more convincing wins over Penn State and Wisconsin, that might just be enough to take over that coveted No. 1 ranking.

The No. 2 Michigan men’s basketball team convincingly answered another question Friday night: Will the Wolverines dominance come to an end against high-quality Big Ten teams?

Even with No. 24 USC coming into town, Michigan won yet another game by 30 points, winning 96-66. The Wolverines relied heavily on their defense and pace to ultimately bury the Trojans, proving once again that they can win in many different fashions.

With its smallest margin of victory in its three Big Ten games sitting at 18, Michigan is undoubtedly the team to beat in not only the conference, but the entire country.

Here are five key takeaways from the Wolverines’ win over USC…

For the second game in a row, sophomore forward Morez Johnson Jr. was the star of the show. He finished the game with 29 points, six rebounds, and two steals, dominating the contest from start to finish.

Johnson is extremely efficient. He leads the Big Ten in field goal percentage, and it’s not particularly close, with his 68.2% leading the second place 61.8%. He’s even expanded his game beyond the 3-point line, hitting his third triple of the season Friday night.

Johnson does everything a coach wants from a big man. He hustles, he defends, and he rebounds — the scoring chops he has displayed recently is the cherry on top. He’s still just 19 years old and has plenty of time to develop even more, which is a scary idea for Big Ten foes.

So far this season, Michigan has been prone to occasional poor deep-range shooting nights, and this was one of them. The Wolverines shot 6-for-30 from beyond the arc, good for just 20%.

It wasn’t that they weren’t generating good looks — they were — the shot just wasn’t falling. For a lot of teams in the country, that spells disaster. With the 3-point shot as prevalent as it is in the game nowadays, having almost no production from deep can be crippling.

Not for the Wolverines. They can score in so many ways that they don’t really need the threes to fall. It’s certainly a luxury when they do, but they’ve proved it isn’t necessary.

Michigan’s long shot wasn’t falling, so it went to the paint. Dominating down low on both ends of the floor has been the Wolverines’ identity for much of the season, and Friday night was no different.

Michigan won the points-in-the-paint battle 46-to-24. It was one thing to dominate in this fashion against small, mid- to low-major programs, but doing so against a Big Ten foe puts it in a whole new perspective. Teams are scared to attack the Wolverines’ rim protectors, and have no answer for their size on the other end. 

Junior point guard Elliot Cadeau quietly had a very productive evening. He finished with seven points, seven assists, six rebounds, and two steals in his 29 minutes of play.

While he didn’t have his best game shooting the ball — he shot just 2-for-8 from the field and 2-for-4 from the free throw line — he did all the little things. There was a stretch at the end of the first half where Cadeau assisted on three-straight Johnson buckets that were key in the Wolverines pulling away.

Cadeau is playing extremely well in this young season and doing everything Michigan asks him to do. Having an elite point guard like him is a major part of Michigan’s success.

It’s no secret that the Wolverines want to get out and run. They play at one of the fastest paces in the country, and they use it to their advantage. The half-court offense was looking out of sorts, so they bypassed it entirely and ran the break.

Every rebound, Michigan is looking to throw a deep outlet pass. Even off of made baskets, it wastes no time getting the ball inbounded and looking up the court. It’s not just relegated to the guards, either, as junior center Aday Mara has connected on two baseball-like full-court passes in the past two games.

The pace that the Wolverines played at against USC was a big reason why they were able to navigate their rough shooting night and still score 96 points.

New year, same Wolverines. The No. 2 Michigan men’s basketball team (13-0 overall, 3-0 Big Ten) continued its reign of terror, clobbering No. 24 USC (12-2, 1-2) by a final score of 96-66.

Sophomore forward Morez Johnson Jr. led the way with a monster game, collecting 29 points, six rebounds, and two steals. Junior guard Elliot Cadeau also had a nice game, scoring seven points along with seven assists, six rebounds, and two steals of his own.

The Trojans got off to a horrendous start to the game. They turned the ball over three times on their first three possessions, and tallied six of them by the time four minutes elapsed. They weren’t hitting the shots they managed to create, either, not making a shot until the 13:20 mark of the first half.

Michigan itself got off to a slower start than usual, making just three of its first 10 shots. Regardless, the Wolverines were in control from the jump.

USC weathered the storm, though, and thanks to back-to-back 3-pointers from guard Chad Baker-Mazara, the Trojans trailed by just five, 15-10, with 12-minutes left in the half.

The low score indicated the uncharacteristically sluggish flow of the game. The Wolverines weren’t getting out in transition as often as usual, and when they did, they weren’t converting at their normal rate. Further, they shot just 2-for-13 from deep in the first half. Still, Michigan kept the lead around 10 points for much of the half, leaning on its defense and paint presence.

Johnson wasn’t having any problems, though, continuing his ultra-efficient efforts and scoring 17 points on 7-for-7 shooting in the first half alone.

Johnson led the Wolverines on a 22-12 run in the final five minutes of the half, and they still managed to enter the break up 49-31 by consistently pounding the paint. Even worse for USC, its most important player, Baker-Mazara, picked up his fourth foul just before halftime.

Johnson continued his scoring barrage, knocking in four free throws to start the half and push Michigan’s lead over 20 points for the first time on the night.

The shooting struggles continued for both teams, but with the Wolverines up by more than 20 points, they had less to lose in getting into a slugfest. USC needed to score, and score fast, so a slower pace would make that quite difficult.

Down 55-35 with 16 minutes remaining, the Trojans switched into a zone defense look to try and force Michigan to shoot more 3-pointers. The zone was shoddy, so Johnson and sophomore guard L.J. Cason made them pay. The duo knocked through just the Wolverines third and fourth triples of the game, opening up a 63-39 lead with 13 minutes to play.

Michigan stayed true to what’d been working in the second half: pounding the paint, getting to the line, and running the break. Freshman guard Trey McKenney and senior guard Roddy Gayle Jr. both cashed in fast-break buckets —and then Gayle canned a right-wing 3-pointer for good measure — giving the Wolverines a 78-49 lead with 7:26 to play.

The Wolverines’ defense is what ultimately allowed them to get out and run on the break. They forced 21 Trojan turnovers and scored 24 points off of them. Even though Michigan had some struggles in the half court, it made up for those deficiencies with its prowess running the floor.

Head coach Dusty May once again had the opportunity to empty his bench with a little over two minutes to play. It didn’t matter that Big Ten play had started, the Wolverines were able to coast to the 96-66 win over USC.

Michigan’s 2025 season has officially come to a close.

It didn’t end quite how the Wolverines wanted it to, both on the field and off, but all eyes now turn toward a chance at redemption in 2026. 

It’s not that a nine-win season is bad by any stretch of the imagination, but with an extremely young team and new head coach coming in, this year was somewhat of a bridge year. The Wolverines showed plenty of promise, but they also have a lot of things to work on, and with Kyle Whittingham now at the helm, people are certainly looking toward the future more than reminiscing on the past.

Here are five key takeaways from Michigan’s 2025 season…

With former head coach Sherrone Moore’s firing in early December, Michigan ushered out a successful, yet controversial era of Wolverines football. 

In 2021 — after a little meaningful success to that point, at least in the eyes of die-hard Michigan fans — then-head coach Jim Harbaugh formed an identity of ground-and-pound, smash-mouth football. And it worked.

The Wolverines won three straight Big Ten titles and appeared in three straight College Football Playoffs, eventually culminating in winning the 2023 national championship. Still, it was an era mired in scandal. From the sign-stealing allegations and recruiting violations, to an FBI raid of former-offensive coordinator Matt Weiss’ house, Michigan was in the news for more than just football.

Harbaugh left after the 2023 season, and Michigan, looking to keep the identity intact after a national championship, hired Moore from within and kept the Harbaugh lineage alive in the program.

Moore’s tenure, too, ended in scandal. This time, the Wolverines hired from outside their organization. Whittingham will bring a largely new staff and likely a new culture, starting a new era of Michigan football.

Consistently hailed as the youngest team in the Big Ten, Michigan lacks experience at a lot of key positions.

Starting quarterback Bryce Underwood and his top receiver Andrew Marsh are both true freshmen. Underwood’s offensive line, too, was made up of majority underclassmen after injuries took out many of the experienced guys. Michigan also had a plethora of underclassmen in its secondary.

The point being, the Wolverines were an inexperienced squad in a league where experienced teams are king. If these players stick around, they’ll be in good shape to be major contributors for the next few years, but this year, the youth was evident.

Perhaps it’s some consolation that all four of Michigan’s losses were to very good teams. No. 2 Ohio State and No. 8 Oklahoma both made the College Football Playoff, and No. 13 Texas and No. 16 USC were on the fringe of appearances.

The flip side of this is that Michigan didn’t beat any top teams. Its best win of the year was at home against Washington, but the Huskies ended up falling out of top 25 consideration. 

At the end of the day, the Wolverines beat the teams that it should beat, and lost to the teams that it should lose to. That’s a solid foundation, but to make it back to the top, they’ll have to win big games.

The Wolverines had injury troubles all year. Whether it was injuries to veteran offensive linemen and defensive backs that forced young guys into big roles, or it was injuries to star running backs Justice Haynes and Jordan Marshall, it seemed like Michigan was never at full strength.

There’s not much the Wolverines could do about it, and the only thing they can do now is spend the offseason getting healthy. Every team has injuries, but they hurt Michigan a lot this season.

Whittingham will be Michigan’s third head coach in the last four years, and the program and its players have been through a rollercoaster as of late. The biggest thing that the Wolverines need now is stability.

It’s clear that they have a lot of talent on the roster, but they need consistency and solidity to rebuild the program to the heights it reached in 2023, and Michigan certainly hopes it has a long-term guy in Whittingham.

On New Years’ Eve, No. 18 Michigan (9-4) couldn’t take down Texas (10-3) in the Citrus Bowl, falling by a score of 41-27.

Freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood had a volatile day, showing promise at times, but ultimately making too many mistakes. On the game, he threw 23-for-42 for 199 yards as well two touchdowns and three interceptions. Junior running back Bryson Kuzdzal took over lead back duties, rushing for 82 yards on 20 attempts.

Texas started off the game with a solid drive down the field, getting on the board first. The Wolverines forced a third-and-10 on the Longhorns’ 25-yard line, but they were still able to march down into field goal range and pick up the early 3-0 lead.

The teams traded punts on the ensuing two possessions, but Michigan struck next with a field goal of its own, as senior kicker Dominic Zvada knocked in a 53-yard try to knot the score at three apiece.

Following Zvada’s field goal, Michigan got its first break. Sophomore linebacker Cole Sullivan forced a fumble on the kickoff return, which gave the Wolverines the ball just 23 yards from the end zone. On a third-and-6 from the 19-yard line, Underwood lofted a pass to the left sideline in the endzone. Junior wide receiver Kendrick Bell brought the ball in while falling out of bounds, but the pass was initially ruled incomplete. After review, the referees determined Bell just got his toe in bounds, and the Wolverines took a 10-3 lead.

The Longhorns wasted no time in responding, however, ripping off an 11-play, 75-yard drive in just over four-and-a-half minutes. They capped it off with a three-yard touchdown rush to tie the game once again, this time at 10-10 just over a minute into the second quarter.

Underwood’s legs made a big appearance on Michigan’s ensuing seven-play, 69-yard drive, as he rushed for 53-yards by himself before connecting with freshman wide receiver Andrew Marsh for a four-yard touchdown. The Wolverines’ response made the score 17-10.

The haymakers continued to fly, though, and Texas once again responded. On a penalty-riddled drive, Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning threw his first touchdown of the day, a 17-yard toss to his tight end to knot the score at 17-17.

Both teams had a chance to score a field goal before halftime, but Texas fumbled and was forced to punt, and Zvada pushed his 45-yard try wide to the right. So, the teams headed to their locker rooms knotted at 17-17.

Michigan got the ball first out of halftime, and was able drive down into the red zone. But Texas held strong, forcing the Wolverines to settle for a field goal. Zvada knocked this one through, however, and gave his squad a 20-17 lead.

The Longhorns, on the other hand, were able to cap off their first drive of the half with a 23-yard touchdown scamper from Manning, putting Texas on top at 24-20.

On the Wolverines’ next drive, they once again got into the red zone, but a costly block in the back penalty on graduate wide receiver Donaven McCulley put them well behind the sticks. Forced to throw, Underwood made his first mistake of the game, throwing an interception and coming away with no points.

Michigan forced a quick punt, though, and got the ball back with no harm done. A nice punt return from Marsh gave the Wolverines great field position, and they took advantage. It took 11 plays to move 45 yards, including two fourth-down conversions, but Underwood just barely snuck into the end zone to give his squad the 27-24 lead with 11 minutes to play.

Just as they had all game, though, the Longhorns responded. Aided significantly by a fourth-down conversion of their own, Manning’s 30-yard touchdown pass put them right back on top at 31-27 with just under seven minutes to play.

The Wolverines couldn’t respond themselves, in fact, they made their second big mistake. On a third-and-8, Underwood forced a pass over the middle of the field and Texas linebacker Ty’Anthony Smith snagged it for an interception. And on the first play of the Longhorn’s drive, Manning burst off a 60-yard touchdown, flying untouched down the middle of the field and making the score 38-27.

Michigan needed a quick score, but instead, it got Underwood’s third interception. Rolling to his right, he tried to connect with McCulley, but Smith lurked the route and picked up his second interception of the game. Texas knocked in a field goal to extend the lead to 41-27, all but sealing the victory.

The Wolverines weren’t able to score again, and as the clock expired, their season did as well. It was a tumultuous year, but with a young team and a new coach, Michigan sets its eyes on 2026.

The dust has just begun to settle around the Michigan football program, but even with the hiring of head coach Kyle Whittingham, the scramble to prepare for the 2026 season has only just begun.

It was an eventful December for the Wolverines, no doubt, with the surprise firing of former head coach Sherrone Moore due to an inappropriate relationship with a subordinate and then the ensuing expedited coaching search. But there is little time to relax in Ann Arbor, because the transfer portal opens on Jan. 2, and Michigan will undoubtedly be heavily involved.

Whittingham has already placed an emphasis on player retention, but regardless of his efforts, a handful of players will certainly want out. It’s standard with coaching changes — players commit to a school under the assumption that they will be playing for a specific coach, and when that changes, sometimes a swift exit is the best bet.

Thus, Whittingham will likely need to be chest-deep in the transfer portal in order to build the type of roster that can compete in the Big Ten and for national championships. Luckily for him, he’s got plenty of resources at his disposal.

“We’ve got excellent resources here,” Whittingham said in his introductory press conference Dec. 28. “The NIL, the rev share, all of what college football is today, is right among the top tier of universities in the country.”

Like it or not, recruiting in college football is just as much about money as it is about anything on the field. Certainly, the culture and brand exposure that Michigan and the block ‘M’ brings is a strong enough recruiting pitch to start with, but money talks in this new era, and the Wolverines have it.

With Whittingham’s pedigree as a coach saddled with the resources he’ll have available, it wouldn’t be surprising if he was able to land some top names in the portal. Still, he emphasizes that the resources are not infinite and are a constant work in progress, so he’ll always have his hands full trying to replenish the pot.

When it comes to high school recruiting, Whittingham highlighted the importance of in-state recruiting. There have been times in recent memory when the Wolverines have had trouble retaining top-end talent from Michigan, and freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood was nearly another case. Luckily, the Wolverines were able to nab him from LSU in the end. For Whittingham, however, he wants to start in Michigan then move outward from there.

“You always want to take care of your own backyard, no doubt about that. ” Whittingham said. “We’ll put a priority and an emphasis on in-state recruiting in Michigan. … The key is to make sure that we don’t miss anybody in the state of Michigan. We take care of that, job one, and then branch out from there.”

Whittingham isn’t necessarily an ‘elite’ recruiter, meaning he didn’t pull in droves of five-star players at Utah, but he consistently got his players to play at a high level regardless of their recruiting rank.

Perhaps that was due to his former program’s limitations, or maybe it’s just how he operates, but the Michigan faithful will get a good look at his recruiting chops in the coming months as the transfer portal gets hot.

McNeese isn’t a pushover mid-major program by any means, and Michigan knows that all too well. In 2023, the Cowboys walked into Crisler Center and took down the Wolverines. Even with their former head coach Will Wade leaving for NC State prior to this season, McNeese has remained a top-tier mid-major team. 

Entering Monday night’s bout with the Wolverines, the Cowboys ranked No. 46 in the NET, which would make them an above-average Big Ten team in terms of that metric specifically. But Michigan wasn’t fazed, and it dismantled McNeese with relative ease by a final score of 112-71.

The Wolverines were up by 31 at half, 60-29, but if that wasn’t enough to seal the game, they came out in the second half and went on a 16-0 run in under four minutes. Michigan cruised from that point onward, eventually crossing the 100-point barrier for the sixth time in seven games.

With Big Ten play on the horizon, here are five key takeaways from the Wolverines’ win…

Michigan shot 45 free throws in the game, and it made 31 of them. Especially in the first half, the Wolverines lived at the charity stripe, attempting 27 free throws to McNeese’s two.

Michigan didn’t make them at the clip that it’d hoped, but getting the stripe 45 times in a game is a good recipe for a victory. While it’s not an exact science, the team that shoots more free throws tends to have a better chance to win the game. It makes sense: ‘Free’ points are a nice treat.

The second half was a bit of a different story, as the Cowboys shot 24 free throws to the Wolverines’ 18, but most of McNeese’s free throw attempts came in the final eight minutes of the game when Michigan started to empty its bench.

The Wolverines’ trend of passing around the leading scorer role continued, and this time, sophomore forward Morez Johnson Jr. took the reins. He finished his night with 24 points, 11 rebounds, two blocks, and a steal, all in just 21 minutes on the court.

Johnson doesn’t necessarily need to score to be effective — his size and athleticism provides enough value in itself — but he has proven that he is quite adept at putting the ball in the basket. Whether it be a face-up in the high post, a stick-back offensive board, or a traditional back-to-the-basket look, Johnson can do just about everything in the paint.

It seems Johnson is getting more comfortable in head coach Dusty May’s system, and it’s really showing on the court.

Michigan holds opponents to the lowest two-point field goal percentage of any team in the country, with opponents shooting just 38.2% inside the arc — the average team is shooting 51.2%.

A large contributing factor to this stat is the Wolverines’ sheer size. With a starting lineup consisting of a 7-foot-3 center and two 6-foot-9 forwards, trying to get a layup off uncontested is a futile goal. Junior center Aday Mara averages 2.6 blocks a game, good for 10th in the country, while Johnson and graduate forward Yaxel Lendeborg add 1.4 and 1.3, respectively. And if the trio isn’t blocking the shot, they’re probably altering it, making clean looks nonexistent.

This size combined with the Wolverines’ willingness to let teams shoot midrange jumpers is a big reason as to why they have been so successful on the defensive end. They run teams off the 3-point line, but they have such good shot blockers down low that opponents are forced to settle for tough twos.

A small, nitpicky issue that Michigan has had at points this season is allowing too many offensive rebounds. Monday night, McNeese grabbed 17 offensive boards, which is too many, especially considering the Wolverines’ size advantage.

In Michigan’s defense, the Cowboys shot, and missed, a lot of 3-pointers — eight makes on 34 attempts, to be exact — and missed threes tend to result in long rebounds. Long rebounds, in return, are more likely to result in offensive boards. Still, there were several moments where Michigan simply fell asleep or didn’t crash the glass hard enough.

McNeese only scored 12 second chance points, but against Big Ten opponents, 17 offensive rebounds might not be so benign.

Michigan’s bout with McNeese was its last non-conference tune-up before Big Ten play gets into full swing. The Wolverines have already had two in-conference matchups, but a series of much stingier opponents await.

It starts with No. 24 USC at home on Friday, which should provide a real test. While Michigan has looked nearly unbeatable for the better part of two months now, the chance that the Wolverines stay undefeated in conference play is quite slim, and there’s a good shot that they go into a slump at some point in the season. It’s not really a matter of ‘if’ the slump happens, rather, it’s how will they bounce back from it?

The Big Ten slate offers an array of unique challenges, but it seems that this squad is as prepared as ever.

In a buy game during winter break, the No. 2 Michigan men’s basketball team (11-0) handled business against La Salle (4-9), taking down the Explorers by a score of 102-50.

The Wolverines didn’t jump out to an immediate lead as they have so often this season, instead, La Salle kept them in check for the opening six minutes. The Explorers collected four offensive rebounds in that span, eliminating Michigan’s ability to get out and run on the break.

The bench unit came in around the 14-minute mark, however, and they were able to open up a Wolverine lead with a 13-2 run. Sophomore guard L.J. Cason knocked in a triple to kick it off, and he also added a sweet spin move in the paint for an easy left-handed layup. Freshman guard Trey McKenney hit two 3-pointers, and senior guard Roddy Gayle Jr. mixed in two free throws to help Michigan open up a double-digit lead at 22-12 with 11 minutes to play in the half, a margin they’d never relinquish.

The run didn’t stop there, either. As the starters trickled back into the game, they built on the energy that the bench unit built up. Suffocating La Salle with constant full-court pressure, the Wolverines extended their run to 22-2, pushing the score up to 31-12 with 8:33 to play in the half.

Then, it was junior guard Elliot Cadeau‘s turn to get hot. He’s found his rhythm in December, especially from deep, and he continued that trend against La Salle. He scored eight-straight points for Michigan in the back-end of the first period, knocking in two threes and converting an acrobatic right-handed reverse finish.

The Explorers figured some things out on offense toward the end of the half, but they had no answer for Michigan’s dynamic offensive attack. With balanced scoring all around, the Wolverines entered the break with a 54-33 lead.

Even with the comfortable lead, Michigan came out of halftime with the same energy as the first half: It continued to apply full-court pressure and get out in transition. Sophomore forward Morez Johnson Jr. was at the point of the press, with graduate forward Yaxel Lendeborg operating one of the wings. The 6-foot-9 duo caused all sorts of problems for the Explorers in the backcourt, and even when they did break the press, it only had 15 or so seconds to run their offense.

While Lendeborg didn’t have his biggest scoring night, he affected the game in a big way in the second half. In the first 10 minutes of the half alone, he collected four assists and six rebounds. No single player took the brunt of the scoring in the second half, instead, the Wolverines put up points by committee, sharing the ball to near perfection.

By the time the under-eight minute timeout rolled around, Michigan had opened up yet another 40-point lead at 83-43, and head coach Dusty May started to empty his bench.

Freshmen forwards Malick Kordel and Oscar Goodman checked into the game alongside freshman guard Winters Grady to get some more on-court experience. And all the freshmen did was extend the Wolverines already-massive lead. Grady knocked in a 3-pointer and Goodman picked up a stick-back to help Michigan to its fifth 100-point outing in its last six games.

The Wolverines held La Salle to just 17 points in the entire second half, and as the clock ran down to zeroes, they celebrated their 52-point rout, 102-50, of the Explorers.

The streak of utter dominance is over for No. 2 Michigan, but its streak of winning is well and alive.

Riding an impressive second half, the Wolverines (10-0 overall, 2-0 Big Ten) took down Maryland (6-5, 0-2) by a score of 101-83. While the score may indicate that Michigan coasted through yet another game, the Terrapins put up plenty of resistance.

Graduate forward Yaxel Lendeborg took over, scoring 29 points while amassing nine assists, eight rebounds, three blocks, and two steals. Junior center Aday Mara also had a great night, notching 18 points and two blocks of his own.

Maryland offered the Wolverines the first bit of fight that they’d seen in several weeks. Winning six straight games without much pushback from its opposition, Michigan found itself in an unfamiliarly close matchup in the first half.

First, it was Maryland guard David Coit. He knocked in three straight 3-pointers to open the game, giving Michigan a bit of a gut check. On the other end, the Wolverines were uncharacteristically shaky around the rim, starting the game just 2-for-6 in the paint. They were getting the looks they wanted, but they just weren’t converting at the rate that they’ve become accustomed to.

Still, Michigan never let Maryland get out of sight. Even though the Wolverines struggled to find their rhythm, timely 3-point shooting kept them relatively even with the Terrapins. After Maryland snagged a 22-21 lead with just under 12 minutes to play in the half, Michigan junior forward Aday Mara scored six in a row, enforcing his 7-foot-3 presence with two dunks and showing off his touch on nice a post hook.

The Terrapins responded to 31-25 deficit by opening up a 10-0 run to flip the score to 35-31 with under six minutes left in the period. Coit continued to bury shots, cashing in threes in the step-back and catch-and-shoot varieties. Even after Maryland star forward Pharrel Payne went to the locker room with an injury, Coit’s 22-point first half performance sent Michigan to the break down 50-45.

The Wolverines were struggling in the paint — an area in which they are usually rock-solid — and the Terrapins were on fire from deep, shooting 10-for-18 from beyond the arc. Still, Michigan found itself down only five points, a surmountable deficit.

Maryland came out of halftime just as hot as it was in the first half, knocking in two threes in the opening minute, but it wasn’t able to shake the Wolverines.

Graduate forward Yaxel Lendeborg kept Michigan in the game, scoring its first 10 points of the half, including a personal 8-0 run that cooled the Terrapins off. The Wolverines took advantage of Maryland’s lull in scoring, clawing its way back into the game.

With just under 15 minutes to play in the game, Mara was being pressured in the right corner. Niftily, he shoveled the ball behind his back to junior guard Elliot Cadeau. Cadeau squared up and knocked through the right-wing three to give the Wolverines their first lead of the second half at 62-60 with 14:42 to play.

From there, Michigan was able to open up a sizeable lead. Mara slammed home a few dunks — including a reverse jam without looking at the rim — and L.J. Cason splashed in a his second and third 3-pointers off the bench. By the time the under-eight minute timeout came around, the Wolverines had opened up a healthy 84-73 lead.

Maryland was still making tough shots, but Michigan was just making more of them. The Terrapins put up quite a fight, but ultimately they couldn’t cope with the size and constant energy of the Wolverines, namely Lendeborg.

It wasn’t just Lendeborg’s scoring outburst that made him so effective — his peripheral stats were just as important. Racking up nine assists, three blocks, and two steals, he tortured the Terrapins on both sides of the court.

The Wolverines maintained their double-digit cushion for the final eight minutes, slowing the pace and taking care of the ball. The Terrapins, despite their admirable fight, succumbed to Michigan’s firepower as the lead continued to open.

As the final buzzer sounded, the Wolverines walked out of college station with their tenth win of the season by a final score of 101-83.

For the first time since 2019, No. 15 Michigan (9-3 overall, 7-2 Big Ten) lost The Game to No. 1 Ohio State (12-0, 9-0). The Buckeyes strangled the Wolverines on defense and got whatever they wanted on offense on their path to a 27-9 victory.

Freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood didn’t have a spectacular game, even if he wasn’t asked to throw much. He threw 8-for-18 for 63 yards and no touchdowns and an interception. Sophomore running back Jordan Marshall led the Wolverines in rushing despite battling a shoulder injury all game, gaining 61 yards on just seven carries.

Marshall broke off a 36-yard run on the first play of the game, then caught a 10-yard pass to get the Wolverines into field goal range. The Buckeyes defense dug in after that, forcing Michigan to settle for three on the opening drive, and senior kicker Dominic Zvada calmly knocked through the 45-yard try to give his squad the 3-0 lead.

But on the second play of Ohio State’s first drive, the Wolverines really got going, and it looked like they might be on track for five in a row. Buckeyes quarterback Julian Sayin made a bad read, throwing the ball straight to junior defensive back Jyaire Hill for an interception.

Michigan couldn’t turn it into six, however, and were once again forced to settle for a field goal, but Zvada knocked in the 25-yard try to extend the lead to 6-0 after just over five minutes of play.

On the following drive, Ohio State found a bit of a rhythm, pushing down to the Wolverines’ goal line. But on six goal-line plays, the Buckeyes couldn’t find pay dirt and instead settled for a field goal, making the score 6-3.

Ohio State struck next as well. Going for a fourth-and-5 at the 35-yard line, Sayin connected with star wide receiver Jeremiah Smith for the first touchdown of the game to make the score 10-6.

The Wolverines were able to muster another field goal, but while they were scoring three, the Buckeyes were collecting six. With 16 seconds left in the half, Ohio State added another touchdown, extending its lead to 17-9 heading into the break. While it wasn’t an insurmountable deficit, the Buckeyes certainly owned the momentum heading into the locker room.

After trading punts to start the second half, the Buckeyes picked up where it left off in the first half. Sayin took the top off the defense once again, launching a 50-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Carnell Tate. Just like that, the Buckeyes had opened up the game, bringing their lead to 24-9 halfway through the third quarter.

Michigan’s offense continued to struggle. Even with Marshall back on the field after leaving earlier in the game due to injury, the Wolverines couldn’t get anything going on the ground. And despite a few nice passes from Underwood, the air attack was just as inconsistent. For the second straight drive, Michigan failed to score and punted the ball back to Ohio State.

The Buckeyes’ next drive began with 5:06 remaining in the third quarter and ended with 8:10 left in the fourth quarter. Whole they were forced to kick a field goal, they took more than 11 minutes off of the clock and gained a three-possession lead, 27-9.

Michigan needed some magic to keep its hopes alive, and that magic never came. Just as it had all game, Ohio State muffled the Wolverines offense, forcing a three-and-out with very little resistance. With just 6:36 left to play, the game was out of Michigan’s reach, even if everything went perfectly.

As time ran out and the Buckeyes celebrated in Ann Arbor, both the winning streajk and Michigan’s playoff hopes evaporated. The 2025 Wolverines finished the regular season 9-3 overall, and get one more chance to take the field in a bowl game.

Every regular season for both Michigan and Ohio State converges on a climax in late November: The Game.

It’s the most important game of the regular season for the Wolverines each year, regardless of circumstance, but this year, there’s a little extra meaning. If Michigan comes away with a win over the top-ranked Buckeyes, it will have a legitimate chance to sneak into the College Football Playoff.

While the Wolverines have beaten their bitter rivals four years in a row, they certainly have an uphill battle this season. 

Here are five things to watch for when Michigan and Ohio State meet in Ann Arbor…

Michigan will have one of its star running backs return to the gridiron on Saturday. After going down with an upper-body injury late in the game against Northwestern, sophomore Jordan Marshall didn’t take the field against Maryland. But he’ll be back against the Buckeyes.

Even with junior running back Justice Haynes out with an injury himself, Marshall has been just as good out of the backfield. Over his last four games, he’s averaging 142.5 yards per game on the ground, so his return will undoubtedly be massive for Michigan.

For a little extra motivation, Marshall is from the Cincinnati, Ohio area, so he gets to take on the premier college football team in his home state for what very well may be a chance to get into the College Football Playoff.

Led by a Heisman Trophy candidate — quarterback Julian Sayin — the Ohio State offense has been elite all season. Sayin leads the country in completion percentage at 79.4%, and has thrown 27 touchdown passes.

The Buckeyes are going to be effective through the air, but their rush attack hasn’t been quite as good. It’s not much of a consolation given that their ground game is still ranked seventh in the Big Ten in yards per game, but the Wolverines have been able to shut down the run all season. If they can take away Ohio State’s ability to move the ball on the ground, they can make the Buckeyes one-dimensional.

A one-dimensional team is much less effective.

Ohio State wide receivers Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate are two of the best receivers in the Big Ten, if not in the country, and the Wolverines have a major task in keeping their production under control.

Both Smith and Tate sat out last week’s game against Rutgers due to injuries, but it looks like Smith will definitely be back, and maybe Tate. The Buckeyes have plenty of elite receivers even beyond Smith and Tate, but that duo paired with Sayin is quite dangerous.

If Michigan wants to have a chance at winning, it will need to limit Smith and Tate’s impact.

Michigan freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood will be playing in his first Michigan-Ohio State rivalry game on Saturday. Underwood has shown poise beyond his age all season, but The Game is a whole other beast.

There will be a lot of pressure on the young signal caller, and the Wolverines need him to stay calm. Even if he does make a mistake, they need him to remain poised and continue to lead the offense. If Underwood can stay stoic, he has all the skills and weapons he needs to compete with the Buckeyes.

In a rivalry game such as this one, with so much hostility and dislike on the field, it’s imperative for the players to keep their emotions in check. There will likely be some form of unsportsmanlike penalty on a player, and it might be costly. The team that can avoid these kinds of penalties will put themselves in a much better position to win.

It’s not just about penalty yards, either. Getting caught up in trash-talking or taunting can take the focus off of the game at hand, resulting in silly mistakes. It’s no secret that every coach on both sides will be begging their guys to keep their heads on straight and focus on football.

Largely because of its close encounters with the likes of Purdue and Northwestern, the Michigan football team hasn’t earned many boosts in the College Football Playoff rankings in recent weeks. But the Wolverines’ 45-20 victory over Maryland on Saturday seems to have done the trick.

Michigan moved up 3 spots from No. 18, landing at No. 15 heading into rivalry week in college football.

The Wolverines played one of their most complete games of the season against the Terrapins. After allowing an opening-drive touchdown, Michigan’s defense buckled down, ceding just two field goals until Maryland landed a garbage-time touchdown late in the fourth quarter.

Even with its two star running backs — junior Justice Haynes and sophomore Jordan Marshall — sidelined due to injury, Michigan’s offense had a successful evening as well. It didn’t need to punt on a single possession, and scored six touchdowns on eight complete drives. 

Freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood threw 16-for-23 for 215 yards and two touchdowns, and he looked quite comfortable in the pocket. Junior running back Bryson Kuzdzal gained 100 yards on the ground on his way to three touchdowns, taking his increased role in stride.

As expected, Ohio State remained in the top spot, meaning the Wolverines’ final task in the regular season is toppling the highest-ranked team in the country.

Joining Michigan, four other Big Ten teams are included in the committee’s rankings. Ohio State and Indiana occupy the top two positions, Oregon sits and No. 6 and USC falls to No. 17

Here are the complete CFP rankings from the fourth reveal:

Well, Michigan really only has one option: beat Ohio State. It doesn’t matter how, and it doesn’t matter by how much, just coming out of the game with a win is all the Wolverines can do.

Even with a win, it doesn’t guarantee them a place within the playoff field. While they’d undoubtedly own the best win of all two-win teams in the country, they’d have to hope that the committee values that win over some of the less-convincing wins they’ve put together so far this season.

If the Wolverines do come away with the victory, they’ll have a slew of other 10-2 teams alongside them, all vying for the same couple of spots at the back end of the field. Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Alabama, and Miami, just to name a few, all have solid cases in their own right to earn a spot.

There is also still a chance that Michigan can make it into the Big Ten Championship Game if a couple of things fall the Wolverines’ way, which is another chance to boost their resume.

Still, in order for any of this speculation to matter, Michigan has to win on Saturday, and that’s no easy task, as no one has done it yet this season. Stranger things have happened in college football, however, and the Wolverines have won four straight meetings against the Buckeyes. 

It will likely take their best performance of the year on both offense and defense to pull it off, but their playoff lives depend on it.

In its previous two matchups, Michigan had played closer games than it had hoped. Both Purdue and Northwestern gave them a run for their money, and the Wolverines just weren’t playing to their standard.

Saturday against Maryland, however, Michigan finally played a truly complete game, coming away with a blowout 45-20 win because of it. The Wolverines were expected to handle business, and they did, which could be very important when it comes to the College Football Playoff rankings

Now, it’s all hands on deck in preparation for the biggest rivalry in college football — and probably college sports in general — when Michigan takes on Ohio State next Saturday at noon.

Here are four ‘Ups’ and two ‘Downs’ from the Wolverines’ big win over the Terrapins…

Last week against Northwestern, freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood looked quite solid for most of the afternoon. His performance against the Wildcats was tainted by two late-game interceptions, but otherwise, he looked as comfortable and confident as he had all season.

Against Maryland, Underwood took the good things about his performance against Northwestern and replicated them without the mistakes. Other than one pass that was very nearly an interception, Underwood played with the poise and skill of a much older, more experienced quarterback.

In total, he threw 16-for-23 for 215 yards and two touchdowns, all in just over three quarters of play, since he was taken out for most of the fourth quarter. With the biggest game of the season on the horizon, Underwood is looking as good as he has all year.

Another game, another 100-yard performance from a Michigan running back, and junior Bryson Kuzdzal becomes the third Wolverine to achieve the mark on the season.

With Justice Haynes and Jordan Marshall both sidelined due to injuries, head coach Sherrone Moore called on the former walk-on Kuzdzal to shoulder the lead back duties. And he took advantage of the opportunity, gaining 100 yards on 20 attempts and punching in three touchdowns.

A lot of credit certainly goes to the Wolverines offensive line as well, which has truly come into its own as the season has worn on. But Kuzdzal still looked the part of a starting running back in the Big Ten. Even down to its third string running back, Michigan can still produce stellar results.

This ‘Down’ is certainly a little bit nitpicky, but in a game where almost everything went right for the Wolverines, sometimes the small things stick out a little more.

There were several plays where Maryland had wide open receivers down the field — or even in the end zone — and Terrapins quarterback Malik Washington simply threw an inaccurate pass to bail the Wolverines out. 

While these plays didn’t result in any damage, against a team like Ohio State, they might not be as lucky. The secondary certainly had great moments against Maryland, but it’s going to need to be near perfect next week.

Freshman wide receiver Andrew Marsh has been a revelation for Michigan. He was a highly-touted recruit for a reason, and Marsh’s performance since early October has cemented himself as one of the best freshmen receivers in the country.

Saturday, he brought in five catches for 76 yards and an impressive touchdown in the corner of the end zone. He is Underwood’s favorite target, and he’s been quite reliable in that role, even as a young guy. 

Coming into Saturday’s game, Maryland had allowed just four sacks on the entire season. In this game alone, Michigan sacked Washington three times. 

This was largely thanks to senior edge rushers Derrick Moore and Jaishawn Barham, who both recorded a sack. But even when they weren’t tackling the quarterback, they were still putting a lot of pressure on the Terrapins’ freshman signal caller.

Graduate defensive lineman Tré Williams also earned a sack, and Barham and Moore were large contributors on that play, collapsing the pocket and giving Williams the opportunity to complete the rep.

It was another volatile day for senior kicker Dominic Zvada. After his stellar year last season, Zvada has had his fair share of struggles in 2025. 

Even though he hit the game-winning field goal last week against Northwestern, his struggles rolled into Saturday’s game against Maryland. On his first chance, he pushed a 38-yard attempt wide to the right. Even though he’s had struggles all season, they’ve yet to play a direct role in the outcome of a game, and that was the case against the Terrapins — Michigan didn’t end up needing those three points.

Zvada redeemed himself in the fourth quarter, however, knocking through a 46-yard attempt. Regardless, the Wolverines need him playing at his best, because in last year’s game, Zvada was one of the most important factors in Michigan’s improbable win.

Graduate wide receiver Donaven McCulley caught two passes for 46 yards and a touchdown…Running backs Jasper Parker and Tomas O’Meara both had solid production even on their limited snaps…Sophomore safety Mason Curtis picked up his first interception of the season, which led to a touchdown.

In its penultimate game of the regular season, the No. 18 Michigan football team (9-2 overall, 7-1 Big Ten) took down Maryland (4-7, 1-7) by a final score of 45-20.

The Wolverines offense ran as smoothly as it had all season. Freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood built on his promising performance from last week, throwing 16-for-23 for 215 yards and 2 touchdowns in just three quarters of play.

With junior Justice Haynes and sophomore Jordan Marshall not playing due to injury, junior running back Bryson Kuzdzal stepped up as the lead back. The former walk-on had an excellent day, rushing for 100 yards and three touchdowns.

Maryland got off the blocks hot, quickly working into the red zone on the back of several chunk plays. The Terrapins finished off the drive with a one-yard touchdown pass on fourth down, taking an early 7-0 lead. Trying to ride that momentum, they tried an onside kick, but failed to recover it and gave the Wolverines great field position.

Kuzdzal led the charge on Michigan’s opening drive, collecting its first 35 yards himself, but it was freshman wide receiver Andrew Marsh who placed the final piece. Underwood connected with Marsh in the corner of the end zone for a 12-yard touchdown pass, making the score even at 7-7 halfway through the first quarter.

On Michigan’s next drive after forcing Maryland to punt, the Wolverines became more pass-heavy. Underwood connected on five of his six passes for 70 yards on the 83-yard drive. He continued to connect with Marsh, but tight ends Marlin Klein and Zack Marshall also got involved.

Kuzdzal finished the drive off with a two-yard touchdown, giving Michigan a 14-7 lead just as the second quarter began.

Just three plays later, sophomore defensive back Mason Curtis came down with an interception for the Wolverines, once again giving them great field position.

Michigan quickly took advantage of the free possession, using only three plays to go 23 yards and find pay dirt to make the score 21-7.

This time, graduate wide receiver Donaven McCulley broke through, taking a screen pass 22-yards into the end zone. The Wolverines were off to their best start in a while, having scored three touchdowns on their first three drives.

Maryland found its offensive rhythm again on the ensuing drive, pushing all the way into the red zone. But former Terrapin and current Wolverines senior edge rusher Jaishawn Barham came up with a big sack to force Maryland to settle for a field goal. With seven minutes left in the first half, Michigan held a 21-10 lead.

The Wolverines were forced to try a field goal for the first time all game out of the two-minute time out. Senior kicker Dominic Zvada‘s season-long struggles continued, as he pushed a 38-yarder wide right.

Both teams had a chance to score before halftime, but neither converted, holding the score at 21-10 entering the break.

Michigan began the second half as hot as it was in the first. Moving methodically down the field, the Terrapins didn’t have an answer to the Wolverines’ rushing or passing attack. Finishing off the 65-yard drive, Kuzdzal took in a 19-yard run for his second touchdown on the game, and gave Michigan a 28-10 lead.

Things began to unravel for the Terrapins from this point. Despite driving all the way down to Michigan’s 6-yard line, they couldn’t find the end zone, and they were forced to settle for a field goal.

And the Wolverines weren’t slowing down on offense, either. They put together a seven-play, 47-yard touchdown drive which was heavily aided by Terrapins penalties. Kuzdzal put the finishing touches on the drive with his third touchdown of the game, this one another one-yard punch.

Just like that, Michigan took a comfortable three possession lead — 35-13 — into the fourth quarter.

And if the game wasn’t already out of reach, freshman running back Jasper Parker tacked on another rushing touchdown to make the score 42-13 with just over 13 minutes left to play.

Michigan pulled its many of its starters for the fourth quarter — most notably Underwood — but it wasn’t done scoring just yet. Zvada shook off his struggles and nailed a 46-yard field goal to push the score to 45-13, a great sign for the Wolverines.

The Terrapins scored their final touchdown with just six minutes left, but it was all far too little, far too late. Michigan rode out of College Park with the convincing win it has been searching for.