The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1539777
66 THE WOLVERINE ❱ OCTOBER 2025 M ichigan enters the bye week on a high note, picking up a huge road win over a Nebraska team that — let's be honest — was probably get- ting a bit too much credit for beat- ing a trio of bad nonconference teams. The Wolverines exposed them, and as interim head coach Biff Poggi said, "physically beat the snot out of them" despite the 30-27 score, and finished the first third of the season with a 3-1 mark. Hea d coa c h S h e r ro n e Mo o re was somewhere watching intently and charting every play during the second and last game of his sus- pension. While he wouldn't give us details, two things were clear. … He was proud of his guys, and he couldn't wait to get back to them. "We're in a great place," he said. "We're 1-0 in conference, at the end of the first quarter of the sea- son, and the statement was that we're not going anywhere. … That we're go- ing to keep getting better and better with the young team we have. "I'm really excited to see where they go and how they attack. Just watching the guys come in here this morning [excited], it's huge to see." As unbiased journalists (cough), we are, too. We've seen enough to be- lieve this team has the personnel to make the College Football Playoff if it continues on the trajectory Moore promises. As always, there will be some tougher-than-expected games and adversity, but they seem to have learned from the Oklahoma loss (and the Sooners appear to have a really nice team) and have a chance to make some noise. G i v e n w h a t w e ' v e s e e n f r o m them and after watching the rest of the teams on the schedule, here's a thought on how the rest of the regular season plays out: Wisconsin (Oct. 4): Win. Some- where, fired Badgers coach Paul Chryst is chuckling while spending his buyout money and watching the tire fire that is Luke Fickell's team. Wisconsin lost starting quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. to a sprained left knee — he reinjured it during a 27-10 home loss to Maryland that had the boo birds out — but this is not your father's Wisconsin. It's your grandpa's, soft and weak. A speedbump. At USC (Oct. 11): Loss. Yes, the Trojans are beatable, but it's tough to travel to the coast and win on an op- ponent's turf. Better Michigan teams haven't been able to over the years, and yes, the venue plays a part. This one could be a track meet, es- pecially if the U-M linebackers don't start picking it up. The Trojans have great team speed. Washington (Oct. 18). Win. This is a tricky one, though. Call it a trap game if you want between USC and MSU. Coach Jedd Fisch is an offensive guru and has a quarterback that can do damage in Demond Williams Jr. This could be another higher-scoring affair — be glad it's at home. At M i c h i ga n S ta te ( O c t . 2 5 ) . Win. The Spartans are awful defen- sively, but as we predicted, quarter- back Aidan Chiles has improved dramatically. Great QB play has allowed overmatched MSU teams to hang around in this game in the past. The Spartans' defense is bad, though, and Michigan is simply much more talented. This should be, and had better be, a solid win. Purdue (Nov. 1). Win. The Boilermakers aren't as terrible a s we t h o u g h t t h ey 'd b e , b u t that only means they're not the worst team in the Big Ten. (They can thank UCLA for that. Maybe No r t h we s te r n o r W i s c o n s i n . ) Barry Odom's team has a "fun of- fense" and some playmakers, but the defense struggles. An easy vic- tory. At Northwestern (Nov. 15). Win. The Wildcats have issues at quarterback and everywhere else, and they can't seem to protect the ball. Wrigley Field is the venue, and it should sound like a home game for the Wolverines. U-M rolls. At Maryland, Nov. 22. Win. This game has been tricky in the past (al- ways seems it's game before "The Game"), and the Terrapins have been much better than expected. They have an exciting young quarterback in Ma- lik Washington and started with a big road win at Wisconsin. This one could be interesting again, but Michigan wins on the road. Ohio State (Nov. 29). Win. We've gone back and forth on this one and predicted a loss before the season, and the law of averages says the Buckeyes will win one of these again, eventually. Just not this year. We'll learn much more about the Buckeyes in a road game at Washing- ton Sept. 27, but win or lose, Ryan Day will still be at the helm Nov. 29. He gets tighter with each loss to Michi- gan, and we're now at four straight. ❏ On the Monday after the team's 30-27 win at Nebraska, head coach Sherrone Moore said, "We are in a great place. We're 1-0 in conference, at the end of the first quarter of the season, and the statement was that we're not going any- where." PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL Chris Balas has been with The Wolverine since 1997. Contact him at cbalas@ thewolverine.com and follow him on X (Twitter) @Balas _ Wolverine. INSIDE MICHIGAN ❱ CHRIS BALAS Right On Schedule