The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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THE WOLVERINE 2025 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 83 chance to go undefeated and potentially win another national championship. But I for sure want to beat those boys down south one more time." Informed that Michigan hasn't nailed down five consecutive victories over Ohio State since reeling off six straight from 1922-27, he absorbed the import to a greater degree. "Wow … that's crazy," he said. "I didn't know that." Moore and his veteran classmates put themselves in position to pull off consec- utive win No. 5 by going into Columbus last fall when nobody thought they stood a chance. A Michigan team that was only one game above .500 at the time, caught short on offense in a transition year, win- ning in The Horseshoe against a College Football Playoff-bound OSU crew? Most figured the Buckeyes could name their score. They couldn't, because they couldn't score — at least not more than 10 points. Michigan's 13-10 shocker left everyone looking on in disbelief — except for those who believed all along. "Going into the Ohio State game, we knew what we were going into — enemy territory," Moore recalled. "We pretty much had everybody against us, from the media to everybody outside of the team. But we said we're going to go in there, stay together and dominate these boys. We had a feeling we were going to be down at some point in the game. But we said no matter where we're at in this game, as long as we stay together, they can't break us. "In the middle of the game, it showed that we wanted it more than them. They just didn't want to be there. They thought we were going to lay down and let them run over us, but we didn't. We stayed together as a team, and pretty much showed them boys what it was." What it was included a defense that locked down the Buckeyes, even after a deflating OSU interception at the goal line when it looked like the Wolverines were going to score. Michigan defensive coordinator Wink Martindale noted that the stop troops simply beat the Buckeyes up physically, shutting down an offense that averaged nearly 36 points per game. "When it comes to that game, it's won at the line of scrimmage," said Moore. "Who's going to be able to move the ball more? "They weren't able to move the ball at all on us. We definitely beat them at the line of scrimmage." The same thing happened several weeks later, when the Wolverines took down Alabama in the ReliaQuest Bowl, 19-13. Michigan's defense swarmed 'Bama quarterback Jalen Milroe and the Crimson Tide, putting together a 16-0 first quarter in a downpour. It didn't make up for the disappointments expe- rienced earlier in the season, but the twin takedowns of strong teams at the end counted plenty, especially with its NFL- bound stars sitting out the bowl game. "Going into the Alabama game, es- pecially not having a lot of guys there, I felt like it gave the opportunity for guys to step up and get their names heard for the first time," Moore said. "And in the Alabama game, we just wanted it more. We had a lot of new faces that wanted it more as well. Both of those games, we just wanted it more. "We just said as long as we stay to- gether, nobody can break us. That was our mindset in both of those games." Moore insists that mindset can con- tinue on into the 2025 season. "It can be the same, going into this year," he said. "I feel like people are still doubting us in the big games. That sec- ond game, at Oklahoma, is going to be a big game under the lights. People are really doubting us. We're just going to keep the same mindset. We're going to put our heads down right now, work our tails off, build this chemistry, and just prove people wrong this season." Moore, Not Less Moore contributed plenty to Michi- gan's national championship season in 2023. He played in all 15 games, posting one of his 5 sacks in the Rose Bowl classic win over Alabama, and sharing Defensive Player of the Game honors five times. Last year, he broke through to become a starter, his 23 tackles including 4 sacks, 6 tackles for loss, and a massive fumble recovery early in the win over Alabama. An honorable mention All-Big Ten performer in each of the past two years, he's looking for even bigger and better accomplishments this fall. Martindale insisted he looked bigger in spring prac- tice — in a good way — and Moore didn't dispute that notion. "In the spring, I really dialed into my pass rush," he said. "I've been able to play off my power and bring more finesse. The "When it's time to play on Saturdays, all of the competition that went on in spring ball is going to show. This team is just hungry." MOORE