2025 Michigan Football Photos – Game 9 Michigan 21 Purdue 16
Michigan 21 Purdue 16 – Game 9 Recap
GAME 9 PROJECTION vs. RESULTS
Final Score: 21-16, Michigan by 5 over Purdue
SP+ Projection: Michigan by 21.7 (-16.7)
CD Projection: Michigan by 19 (-14)
FIVE FACTORS
GAME 9 RECAP vs. Purdue
It’s important to understand whether you are a glass-half-full person, or a glass-half-empty person. The offense, as a unit, is not playing well for a multitude of reasons. But, Jordan Marshall is carrying the program on his back in heroic fashion. And, most importantly, the Wolverines keep winning football games. Marshall carried the ball 25 times for 185 yards and scored all 3 Michigan touchdowns.
The sophomore running back stepped in to save the day after Chip Lindsey could no longer keep the game in Bryce Underwood’s hands. The freshman quarterback finished 13-of-22 for 145 yards passing, but had two very costly turnovers in the red zone that cost the team anywhere from 6 to 14 points. With 75% of the regular season completed, Underwood is at the level I would have expected back in August, but the progress feels pretty flat over the past few weeks. Outside of the plethora of injured Wolverines, nobody needs the bye week more than Bryce.
Defensively, I was prepared for frustration as Saturday progressed. First, I learned Purdue’s OC previously worked under Lincoln Riley at USC. I remember the coaching mismatch I saw a month ago, so I was ready for Purdue to hit a few plays. Second, we learned Michigan would be missing Jimmy Rolder, Cole Sullivan, Jayshawn Barham, and Rod Moore from the starting lineup. That put a lot of inexperienced guys onto the field. Add in Purdue’s preference for high tempo, and it was clear Michigan was going to give up some points tonight. When it was all said and done, I think the battered Wolverines did an admirable job. However, this film combined with the USC film will no doubt be under a microscope in Columbus.
The special teams units are still wildly inconsistent. Semaj Morgan caught one punt in the air, but turned in a -2 yard return. The previous return opportunity was another example of playing too deep and letting the ball bounce and roll for a 57 yard net for Purdue. Michigan’s punter Hudson Hollenbeck continues his up-down, feast-or-famine pattern. I am confident he is capable, but he needs to reset the floor on his bad kicks.
Jim Harbaugh said famously, “When they put ‘pretty’ on the scoreboard, we’ll worry about it.” It was after a game just like this. Winning a B1G Ten game in November is no small feat. The Wolverines have to maximize their rest and self-study during the upcoming bye week. This month will determine how we remember the 2025 team.
Nothing But โNet โ Week #03 โ 10/27/2025 โ The End Of The Exhibition Season
The (#7) University of Michigan menโs basketball team played one (exhibition) game this past week, and they won it. On Saturday (10/25/2025), they beat (#5) St. Johnโs 96-94 in overtime in Madison Square Garden, in New York City. Since it was just an exhibition game, Michiganโs record is still 0-0.
What Happened?
This season, Michigan played two exhibition games, instead of the usual one. Also, instead of playing an easy exhibition game against a โcupcakeโ opponent (think Northern Michigan), they played two games against quality opponents.
Full disclosure: I donโt subscribe to B1G+, the Big Ten Networkโs premium service, so I wasnโt able to watch the game on TV. Instead, I followed it using the โLive Statsโ app on the web. That gave me a feel for the flow of the game, but not how it looked. Iโve seen highlights, but not the full game. So, Iโm patching this together from limited information.
It may have been a โmeaninglessโ exhibition game in late October, but it had all the drama of a Sweet 16 game in mid-March. A matchup between the #5 and #7 teams in the nation in Madison Square Garden? Yes, please.
It was a close game the whole time, with neither team able to pull away. As with Michiganโs first exhibition game last week, a 100-98 home loss to Cincinnati, there were way too many fouls called. In this case, there were 28 fouls called on Michigan, with 2 players fouling out, and 26 fouls called on SJU, with 3 players fouling out.
Game Flow
Thanks to the very detailed PDF stats on UMโs website, I can give some meta information about the game flow:
- Michiganโs biggest lead was 8 points, at the 2:38 mark in overtime.
- SJUโs biggest lead was 5 points, at the 14:21 mark in the 2nd half.
- Michiganโs best scoring run was 8 points, up to the 2:38 mark of overtime.
- SJUโs best scoring run was also 8 points, from the 2:38 mark to the 1:39 mark in overtime.
- There were 19 lead changes, and 10 ties.ย That is a very close game.
- Michigan had the lead for 24:20.
- SJU had the lead for 16:19.
Michigan took the early lead, up 13-6 at the 14:55 mark. They kept the lead in the 1-3 point range for the next few minutes, but SJU went ahead 19-18 with 7:52 left in the half. The lead went back and forth for a while, and the game was all tied up (26-26) at the 3:57 mark. SJU led for the rest of the half, but never by more than 4 points. Michigan hit a 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer to pull within 1 point, 35-34.
The beginning of the 2nd half was more back-and-forth, with a couple lead changes, and the game all tied up again (40-40) at the 17:46 mark. At this point SJU pulled away, and led by 5 points (51-46) with 12:44 to go. Michigan fought back and tied it up (51-51) at the 11:52 mark, but SJU went back ahead, keeping the lead in the 1-3 point range. Finally, Michigan regained the lead (64-63) at the 7:49 mark. They stretched the lead to 5 points (72-67) with 6:10 to go, but SJU tied it up again a couple times (72-72 and 74-74). SJU got their final lead of the game (77-76) at the 3:13 mark, then UM pulled ahead again. Michigan led by 4 points (84-80) with 1:52 to go, but SJU tied it up (84-84) with 1:04 left. Amazingly, no one scored again for the last 64 seconds. In fact, SJU never even attempted a shot. Michigan attempted 3 shots, 2 of them driving layups, and missed them all. They got a couple offensive rebounds, so they kept shooting, but they couldnโt buy a basket. Sigh.
Overtime. Michigan scored the first 8 points, and they were in control, 92-84, with 2:38 to go. SJU scored the next 8 points to tie the game up, 92-92, with 1:39 to go. Michigan made the last basket of the game at the 0:56 mark to go up 94-92, then the teams traded free throws the rest of the way. Michigan went 2-for-4, and SJU went 2-for-5, and that was the ball game.
Stats
The game stats were decent. Michigan shot pretty well overall (35-for-67 = 52.2%), they shot 3-pointers well (8-for-19 = 42.1%), but they didnโt shoot free throws very well (18-for-29 = 62.1%). They won the rebounding battle easily (48-36), but they lost the turnover battle badly (22-10). They won this game with shooting from the floor, but almost lost it with turnovers and free throw shooting.
Who Started?
The starters were Nimari Burnett, Elliot Cadeau, Roddy Gayle Jr., Yaxel Lendeborg, and Aday Mara.
Who Looked Good?
Lendeborg was the star of the game for Michigan again, with 25 points and 10 rebounds, for another double-double. He shot well: 10-for-15 overall, 2-for-4 from deep.
Mara returned from a minor injury, and he looked good out there, with 13 points on good shooting: 5-for-10. I expected more rebounding from him: 5 boards.
Gayle was the only other starter in double figures, with 11 points. He shot just OK: 4-for-10 overall, 0-for-2 from deep.
Morez Johnson Jr. also returned from a minor injury, and he was the 2nd leading scorer for Michigan with 15 points off the bench. He was also the 2nd leading rebounder, with 8 boards.
Will Tschetter was the 5th UM player in double figures, with 10 points off the bench. On the negative side, he fouled out.
Cadeau almost hit double figures, with 9 points on efficient shooting: 4-for-6 overall, 1-for-2 from deep. On the positive side, he led the team with 9 assists. On the negative side, he led the team with 5 turnovers.
Who Looked Not-So-Good?
Burnett had another mediocre game, scoring 5 points on just OK shooting: 2-for-5 overall, 1-for-3 from deep.
L.J. Cason came in a few times, but didnโt do much. He scored 4 points in 20 minutes. Heโs having a slow start.
Trey McKenney continued to play like a freshman. He kept shooting, and he finally made a basket, but he still doesnโt look like a Mr. Basketball and a McDonaldโs All-American. He scored 4 points on poor shooting: 1-for-5 overall, 1-for-3 from deep.
Who Else Played?
Winters Grady played for 2.5 minutes off the bench, but didnโt attempt a shot.
Who Didnโt Play?
Oscar Goodman, Malick Kordel, and Ricky Liburd were the scholarship players who didnโt play in this game.
None of the Scout Team players played: Howard Eisley Jr., Harrison Hochberg, and Charlie May.
What Does It Mean?
Once again, it was only an exhibition game, but it was a good benchmark for Michigan. SJU played hard to win, and Michigan got to experience a tournament-style game without worrying about their win-loss record. This game showed that Michigan can hang in there with the big boys.
This Week
This week, Michigan doesnโt play a game. They play their first โrealโ game on Monday 11/03/2025, against Oakland.
Check back next week for a preview of the start of the regular season.
Go Blue!
2025 Michigan Football Photos – Game 08 Michigan 31 Michigan State 20
๐ณ๐ถ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฎ ๐ฉ๐จ๐ช๐ฒ: ๐ด๐ฐ๐ช๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐จ๐ต ๐ฝ๐บ. ๐ด๐ฐ๐ช๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐จ๐ต ๐บ๐ป๐จ๐ป๐ฌ, 1998
Looking Back is a Special Feature by Jeff Cummins Highlighting Key Rivalry Games
The fifth and final installment of this weekโs series looking back at the football rivalry between Michigan and Michigan State takes us to 1998. The previous year had been one of the greatest seasons of the last half century. Michigan fans, players, and alumni spent months basking in the glory. They followed that up with a stadium renovation that made Michigan Stadium the largest on-campus stadium in the nation. And the Wolverines signed Drew Henson, the nationโs top-rated quarterback prospect. It seemed as if there werenโt enough accolades in the world for the Michigan football program.
Then came the hangover. Michigan lost its first two games of the 1998 season. By the fourth week of the season, the opponent was Michigan State, and the Spartans were hungry for some revenge.
Plaxico Burress gave Michigan State an early 10-3 lead with a catch in the north end zone. He then introduced himself to Grady Brooks on the ensuing kickoff. The meeting didnโt go well for Brooks, and Michigan State wound up with the football. The Michigan defense stopped the Spartans, and then Anthony Thomas took matters into his own hands. Thomas ran 70 yards on a counter for the tying touchdown. With that play, Michigan was wide awake.
Then a young quarterback named Tom Brady began to show off his talent. Brady displayed surgical precision in connecting with his receivers. His fade pass to Tai Streets in the north end zone gave Michigan its first lead of the game. As the teams went into the locker room at halftime, Michigan held a tenuous 3-point lead. It looked as if the 1998 game would be another nail-biter between the two in-state foes.
Instead, the second half showcased Michigan’s quiet dominance. The Wolverines produced the type of performance that has warmed the hearts of โOld Bluesโ for generations. Jay Feely made his third field goal of the day. Brady connected with Marcus Knight for what seemed like a 49-yard touchdown pass. The officials spotted the ball just short of the goal line. Then, Brady sneaked over for a touchdown to give Michigan the winning margin of 29-17.
The Wolverines had a slow start that year. However, they enjoyed a fair amount of success in 1998. They finished the season with 10 wins. They also claimed a victory over Arkansas in the Citrus Bowl. The most critical win of the season was on a late September day against Michigan State. That day, the Wolverines got back to basics.
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