Michigan’s Sherrone Moore sent worrying message on Ohio State after ugly 21-16 win over Purdue originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Michigan Wolverines didn’t look head and shoulders above the Purdue Boilermakers during a 21-16 win at the “Big House” that kept the maize and blue’s 2025/2026 College Football Playoff hopes alive.
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Instead, the team’s meal ticket, true freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood, gave The Athletic’s Austin Meek worry that the Wolverines won’t be ready for the Ohio State Buckeyes’ Week 14 visit.
“Michigan’s coaches have downplayed Underwood’s struggles and pointed to the success of the running game to explain why the Wolverines attempted only two passes in the second half against Michigan State. The wide receivers and offensive line share some blame in the lack of production through the air, but Underwood isn’t blameless, either. He’s nine games into his college career and isn’t on the upward trajectory Michigan hoped for at this point in the season. If the Wolverines are going to have a prayer of beating Ohio State, they’ll need more from Underwood,” Meek wrote.
Truthfully, few teams, if no team at all, are truly ready for OSU this season. The Buckeyes have an average margin of victory of +24 through Week 10, including a dominant 38-14 win over the Penn State Nittany Lions.
Still, Michigan was supposed to be their biggest threat. Talent-wise, though, the Texas Longhorns and even Penn State may be ahead of them. The Wolverines are a young team, and they’re playing an Ohio State team that’s also young, but far more battle-tested.
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Things tend to happen in “The Game” that logic can’t explain away.
Michigan’s Sherrone Moore better hope that means his guys coming of age during rivalry week and welcoming the defending champions into hostile territory with as much pushback as possible.
Underwood is young, but in the NIL era, the onus is on him to win immediately, considering the financial investment into his talents from year one onward.
