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Following an 8-5 season, Michigan football will get started in 2025 with a primetime game at home against New Mexico. But the Wolverines only have one week to get things together before a massive Week 2 showdown against Oklahoma in Norman. Michigan will travel into hostile territory and, like in Week 1, it will be under the lights.
The Wolverines struggled offensively in 2024, having the 131st-ranked passing attack in the country. But gaining five-star QB Bryce Underwood is likely going to change things for the Michigan offense.
Michigan traveling to Oklahoma is one of Joel Klatt's 10 games that will shape the college football season in 2025.
“Week two, massive game, Michigan on the road at Oklahoma," Klatt said. "You bet. Cannot wait for this one. Sherrone Moore goes to play his former team, by the way. This is where he played at Oklahoma. He played for Bob Stoops. And now he's going to take this Michigan team that needs a bounce-back.
“They need a bounce-back year desperately. Defense was fine last year. Offense was not. They need to figure out the quarterback position. They spent a lot of money. They did a lot of work in the recruiting process and got Bryce Underwood, one of the most attractive and sought-after recruits that we've seen in a long time. They landed him. They landed him. And so this might be kind of the first major start that we see from Bryce Underwood.
“Under Sherrone Moore, Sherrone will still be there. Remember, the self-imposed suspension is not going to go into effect until after this game. So he's going to coach in this game in week two."
Michigan might need a bounce-back year, but there is a lot more pressure on the shoulders of Oklahoma coach Brent Venables. The homecoming hasn't been what Sooner fans imagined. In three seasons, he has won six games twice, while having a 10-win season in between.
"But also on the opposite side, let's face it, Oklahoma needs this for a bounce back," said Klatt. "Granted, they played a horrifically difficult schedule last year, but Brent Venables also needs a bounce-back. He needs to gain a foothold as the head coach for OU.
“Everybody was excited when he came in. Okay, they all felt the sting when Lincoln Riley rode off into the sunset, literally, to the West Coast and USC, and they brought back Brent Venables, who won a National Championship as a coordinator at OU, was an Oklahoma guy, and everyone felt good about it. But now they need something to feel good about on the field.
"So both of these programs are in desperate need of a bounce game, and this could provide that for either program. I would just say, like, John Mateer coming in with Ben Arbuckle, the offensive coordinator, I'm expecting Oklahoma to take a real good step and a nice step offensively. What might be difficult is that they're going to have to face a defense that is going to be outstanding, outstanding.”
Oklahoma brought in Washington State transfer John Mateer, who was one of the top transfers in college football. But as Klatt said, he will be facing one of the best defenses in the country. Michigan might've lost Mason Graham, Kenneth Grant, and Will Johnson, but the Wolverines return several key players. Rod Moore, Rayshaun Benny, Ernest Hasumann, Derrick Moore, and Jaishawn Barham, among others, will be back.
The winner of this game will have plenty of confidence heading into conference play, and for Michigan, the Wolverines' schedule is much lighter in 2025 -- a win at Oklahoma would be gigantic.
“Wink Martindale figured it out late last year in terms of being a coordinator at the college level. They're going to get Rod Moore back at safety, and all those players that were on the field in the bowl game stopping Alabama, even with Jalen Milroe, are going to be back. They also got the transfer tackle from Clemson [Tre Williams], like they're going to be -- Michigan's going to be incredible on defense."
"And so John Mateer and that offense for OU, they're going to have quite a test early. So is Bryce Underwood. Again, winner of that game gets a major bounce forward, and now all of a sudden establishes really the depth of that conference in each of those conferences."
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The first year under the new Kalen DeBoer era didn’t conclude with the championship hopes that the Alabama Crimson Tide were expecting. The Tide finished the season with a 9-4 record and a tough loss to the Michigan Wolverines in the ReliaQuest Bowl. Among the biggest faults for the Tide last season was the inconsistency of the offense. DeBoer expects the offense to click under new offensive coordinator and longtime Fresno State and Washington assistant Ryan Grubb. On July 31, Grubb discussed the offense that the Tide will be using this upcoming season. Grubb said in the Tide’s second fall practice that Alabama will be running a pro-style offense with a dynamic passing attack. This type of offense would be great for past experienced quarterbacks like Bryce Young or Tua Tagovailoa. There are, however, some concerns with this offensive style, especially Grubb's lackluster performance last season in the same role with the Seattle Seahawks. Last season, the Seahawks ranked eighth in passing yards per game (236.5) behind the great play of quarterback Geno Smith and wide receivers Jaxon Smith-Njigba and DK Metcalf. They were also 18th in the league in points per game (22.1) as they were often inefficient in the red zone and third-down conversions. One of the reasons was the offense’s lack of usage of the run game. Seattle had 383 running plays, which was the fifth fewest in the league. As a result, the Seahawks ranked 28th in rushing yards per game (95.7) and 29th in first downs by runs (88). While a bad offensive line was competent, Grubb relied on the passing offense, which made them predictable. One of the reasons the Tide’s offense struggled late in the season despite a Heisman-like performance from quarterback Jalen Milroe was that they were too predictable in the passing game. While Grubb will look to make the Tide more dynamic in the passing game, they’ve already shown they won’t rely on a run game early and often. The Tide will have a new starting quarterback this fall, likely redshirt junior Ty Simpson. While Simpson has shown progress this offseason, there is going to be a lot of pressure on him to carry the offense if they choose to run a pass-heavy pro-style offense. This form of offense under a second-year head coach, with DeBoer still trying to prove himself, could be a recipe for disaster and make the offense stagnant and underachieving. Time will tell if Milroe’s last season collapse was due to the offense being a product of the laziness in play-calling. This could be a similar situation that might have DeBoer and Grubb in trouble, this time in their stint together at Alabama.
Padres already demoting one of their trade-deadline acquisitions
The Padres announced they’ve optioned JP Sears to Triple-A El Paso. They recalled reliever Sean Reynolds and will go with a nine-man bullpen in the short term. Sears will spend at least 15 days in the minors unless he’s brought up to replace a player going on the injured list. San Diego acquired Sears alongside Mason Miller in last week’s massive deadline deal. The 29-year-old southpaw made his team debut Monday night. He allowed five runs in as many innings on 10 hits and a walk against the Diamondbacks. Sears took the loss in a 6-2 defeat. He’d carried a 4.95 earned run average over 22 starts with the A’s. Monday's performance pushed his ERA to 5.12 across 116 innings. It’s a bottom-10 mark among pitchers to log at least 100 frames. Sears had the highest home run rate among that group, offsetting his nearly league-average 20.3% strikeout rate and solid 6% walk percentage. This is the first time in two-and-a-half years that Sears heads to the minors. He broke camp with the A’s in 2023 and has been in the majors since then. Sears has also avoided the injured list for that entire time. As a result, he’s tied for fifth in MLB with 87 starts since the beginning of the ’23 season. The durability is the big selling point, as his production (4.62 ERA/4.56 SIERA) over that stretch is that of a fifth or sixth starter. The demotion shouldn’t have any impact on Sears’ service trajectory. He has already surpassed the three-year mark and will qualify for arbitration next winter. He’s under team control for three seasons beyond this one. While he’ll probably be back up at some point this year, it may require an injury elsewhere in the rotation. San Diego optioned Randy Vásquez over the weekend. They have a four-man rotation of Dylan Cease, Nick Pivetta, Yu Darvish and deadline acquisition Nestor Cortes. Darvish and Cortes will get the ball for the next two outings. San Diego is off Thursday and could turn back to Pivetta and Cease on extra rest for their first two games of the weekend series against the Red Sox. That’d point to the series finale on Aug. 10 as Michael King’s return date. King threw 61 pitches in what is expected to be his final rehab start on Sunday, via the MLB.com injury tracker. He’d be on six days' rest for his first MLB appearance since he went on the injured list in late May with a nerve problem in his throwing shoulder.
Patriots stars react to HC Mike Vrabel getting bloodied while breaking up camp fight
New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel likely won the respect of his team Wednesday. However, he may have needed a few stitches afterward. The Patriots hosted a joint practice with the Washington Commanders at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. New England rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson took a Commanders pass-rusher to the ground in pass protection, resulting in a scuffle. Vrabel then jumped in to help stop the fight. His face was bloodied after both teams calmed down. Patriots second-year quarterback Drake Maye loved that his coach was willing to step in. In a news conference after practice, the 22-year-old passer said that's the mentality the team needs. "That's what we're trying to build," he said. "The intensity, bringing it every day, taking no cr-p when we're out on the field. But also, it comes a time where, with our guys offensively, and getting over there and getting some tussles and kind of having some penalties, and extra after the whistle, can get us in trouble. But for mentality, I like it. I mean, I almost got in there, but I think maybe another day, maybe." His new coach doesn't want the QB to get in any brawls. The Patriots are banking on the third overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft being the franchise's future. Plus, he doesn't need to worry about the Patriots' intensity with Vrabel in the building. New England wide receiver DeMario Douglas noted the former linebacker didn't seem rattled after breaking up the scrap. "I said, 'Coach, what's wrong with you?' And he said, 'You should have seen the other guy,'" Douglas told the media while smiling. "I just saw the scar on his face but didn't know what was happening." Vrabel likely sent two messages at Wednesday's practice. He won't tolerate an undisciplined team but also has his players' backs. That could go a long way for a Patriots squad aiming to improve after a 4-13 season.
Commanders offense suffers in joint practice with Patriots
The Washington Commanders gave their coaching staff a glimpse of what could be if the front office's negotiations with star wide receiver Terry McLaurin result in a trade. It wasn't good. Per Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic, McLaurin's absence crushed the Commanders' passing offense during their joint practice Wednesday with the New England Patriots. Not even newcomer Deebo Samuel could save the unit. "With Terry McLaurin and Noah Brown both out, the Commanders’ lack of receiving depth has been a glaring issue in recent practices, especially so on Wednesday," Jhabvala wrote. "Deebo Samuel, a versatile playmaker who can be a chess piece for offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury, doesn’t (and shouldn’t) take on the workload expected of a leading wideout or even a No. 2. "And so far, none of the Commanders’ 10 other receivers has emerged as consistent playmakers or a reliable pass catcher capable of taking on more." Washington has to find a way to pay McLaurin soon. He's too critical to the offense and, more importantly, to the long-term development of second-year quarterback Jayden Daniels. McLaurin had his best career season in 2024, catching 82 passes for 1,096 yards and 13 touchdowns in Daniels' rookie season. He earned Pro Bowl and All-Pro honors for his efforts. The Commanders made aggressive moves like trading for Samuel in the offseason, not to be a No. 1 wide receiver, but to help take a team that overachieved in 2024 and get them past the Philadelphia Eagles, who knocked them out in the NFC Championship game. Washington needs McLaurin on the field to help free up its other weapons like Samuel and Austin Ekeler or last season may end up just being a fluke.
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