The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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8 THE WOLVERINE ❱ DECEMBER 2025 T he dust at Wrigley Field settled. Senior placekicker Dominic Zvada's 31-yard, game-winning field goal in Mich- igan's 24-22 survival over North- western sailed safely through the uprights. Zvada turned a tough day — for himself, and for the team — into the biggest sigh of relief in 2025, getting a ride off the field on the shoulders of team- mates for his trouble. Absolute disaster avoided. Yes, Sherrone Moore's football team carried a relatively comfortable 21-9 lead into the final quarter. Yes, his crew dominated statis- tically, 496 yards to 245, 25 first downs to 11, 77 offensive plays to 53. But a decidedly unfunny thing happened on the way to a comfy win, or even a fourth-quarter blowout. Michigan found itself on the seriously unwanted end of a 5-0 turnover margin. The Wolverines gave the football away three straight times in the fourth quarter against the Wildcats, turning their two-score lead into a chill- ing 22-21 deficit until Zvada's kick sailed through with 00:00 on the clock. If Ernie Banks were around and har- bored any Michigan leanings, he would not have said, "Let's play two!" Not after that. Michigan fans rejoiced, but in the semi- staggering stupor of what just happened? Moore himself found a way to cast the near collapse in the best possible light — the one involving the refusal to give in, disappointments be damned. "Emotions," Moore began, in front of the gathered press afterward. "When you coach this game, when you're part of this game with these young men, coaches, staff, and you're with them for hours and hours. It ends on the day, and you go through that emotional roller coaster like that … you appreciate the hard work, you appreciate their fight, their grit to finish. "I haven't been a part of a five-turn- over game, and you win the game. The last time Michigan had five was South Carolina in 2018 and we lost. So, there are things that we know from a decision- making standpoint … but at the end of the day, we found a way to win, and that's the most important piece." It's the piece that, 12 weeks into this football season, rendered Michigan 8-2, 6-1 in the Big Ten. Two weeks remained, with the conference championship, a 10- win regular season, and a College Foot- ball Playoff spot still possible — by the numbers. The Wolverines' only two losses on the season? A road defeat against an 8-2 Oklahoma squad that just knocked off Al- abama to surge to No. 8 in the Associated Press rankings. And a road loss against another very good team, 8-2 and No. 16 USC. Both of those setbacks arrived in the opening half-dozen games of a freshman quarterback's college football career. Michigan racked up the eight wins despite Bryce Underwood's youth, and the fact that its leading receiver, Andrew Marsh, is also a freshman. Despite the fact that the majority of the Wolverines' starting offensive line remains fresh- man-eligible. Despite considerable injury shakeup among that unit, as well as at linebacker, defensive back and running back. Transfer sensation Justice Haynes, the junior running back seemingly on his way to a 1,000- yard season and perhaps becom- ing the Big Ten's top rusher, broke his foot and remains sidelined indefinitely. Sophomore running back Jordan Marshall — Michi- gan's new leading rusher (871 yards) after 142 yards against Northwestern gave him a fourth straight 100-yard game — banged up a shoulder in that fourth- quarter horror show. All of that considered, 8-2, 6-1 sounds mighty solid. But it's the eye test that has those hoping for a 2024-like finish fearful. The survival struggles against teams that still haven't won a Big Ten game. The season-long labors to turn great talent into great pro- duction in the passing attack. The sud- den explosion of turnovers, including two crucial Underwood interceptions, when that hadn't been an issue all season. On the one hand, Moore talks about learning: "We've got to just clean that up right now, and that's decision making … and continue to do that as we go through practice, giving those hard, hard looks, doing those things to help our guys make those decisions." On the other hand, the head coach in- sists there aren't any rookies anymore, including the QB: "He's a freshman, but not really anymore. Not a freshman any- more." It's one thing to say it. It's another to act on it, for all of the young Wolverines, and the vets fighting along. This either becomes a foundational season with huge hopes for 2026 and 2027, or something more — right now. The look test whis- pers at the former. Last year's finish stub- bornly insists anything is possible. ❏ WOLVERINE WATCH ❱ JOHN BORTON Right Now, Anything Is Possible Sherrone Moore's squad took an 8-2 overall record (6-1 Big Ten) into the final two weekends of the season with a College Football Playoff opportunity on the line, but the eye test and inconsistent play were cause for concern. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL Senior writer John Borton has been with The Wolverine since 1991. Contact him at jborton@thewolverine.com and follow him on X (Twitter) @JB_Wolverine.