Sherrone Moore's Final Year

The 2025 Michigan Wolverines football team finished with a 9-4 overall record and a 7-2 mark in Big Ten play, tying for fourth in the conference. The Wolverines were ranked No. 21 in the final AP Poll and No. 22 in the final Coaches Poll. They scored 358 points (27.5 per game) while allowing 265 (20.4 per game). Sherrone Moore served as head coach for most of the season before being dismissed in December; Biff Poggi handled interim duties for two regular-season games and the bowl.

Michigan opened the year ranked No. 14 and posted a solid but uneven campaign defined by a strong ground game, defensive consistency in stretches, and an inability to defeat ranked opponents.

Regular Season: Early Tests and a Midseason Surge

Michigan began with a 34-17 home win over New Mexico. A road loss at No. 18 Oklahoma (13-24) dropped the Wolverines in the rankings. They rebounded with a 63-3 home victory over Central Michigan and a hard-fought 30-27 road win at Nebraska.

A 24-10 home win over Wisconsin was followed by a 13-31 road defeat at USC. Michigan then embarked on a five-game conference winning streak: 24-7 over Washington, 31-20 at Michigan State (the fourth straight victory in the rivalry), 21-16 against Purdue, a dramatic 24-22 road win at Northwestern (capped by a Dominic Zvada field goal as time expired), and a 45-20 victory at Maryland.

The regular-season finale brought a 9-27 home loss to No. 1 Ohio State, ending a three-game winning streak in the rivalry and eliminating Michigan from College Football Playoff contention.

Postseason: Citrus Bowl

In the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl on December 31 in Orlando, Michigan faced No. 14 Texas and lost 27-41. The defeat closed the season at 9-4.

Statistical and Contextual Notes

Freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood threw for 2,428 yards and 11 touchdowns. The backfield of Jordan Marshall (932 rushing yards, 10 touchdowns) and Justice Haynes (857 yards, 10 touchdowns) combined for nearly 1,800 rushing yards and powered an offense that averaged 210.2 rushing yards per game (14th nationally). Wide receiver Andrew Marsh led the team with 651 receiving yards. Defensively, edge rusher Derrick Moore recorded a team-high 10 sacks and earned first-team All-Big Ten honors.

Michigan’s offensive line rotated through six different starting combinations yet remained productive enough to earn Joe Moore Award semifinalist recognition. The team recorded 12 individual 100-yard rushing performances. The Wolverines went 0-4 against ranked opponents, with all four losses by double digits.

In the broader historical context, the 2025 season represented a transitional year following the 2023 national championship and the subsequent coaching changes. It featured continued success in the Michigan State rivalry and a competitive Big Ten standing, while also marking the end of Sherrone Moore’s tenure as head coach. The year underscored both the program’s residual strength in the run game and the challenges of maintaining elite consistency amid roster and staff turnover.