Tag: Michigan

Wisconsin lands commitment from Michigan transfer specialist

Wisconsin lands commitment from Michigan transfer punter

Wisconsin landed a commitment from Michigan transfer specialist Stone Anderson on Saturday.

Anderson entered the portal after two years with the Wolverines. He is the Badgers’ second addition on special teams, joining Arkansas long snapper Eli Stein.

Related: Tracking Wisconsin football’s transfer portal offers, interests and commitments

On3 lists Anderson as a three-star transfer, ranked specifically as the No. 1,939 overall player in the portal and No. 30 punter.

Anderson should enter 2025 as Wisconsin’s primary backup punter behind multi-year starter Atticus Bertrams. The transfer specialist is also listed as a placekicker, so he may fill a depth role at both positions. A backup role at kicker recently opened with the departure of veteran Nate Van Zelst.

Anderson transfers to the Badgers with three years of eligibility remaining. He did not see any game action during his two seasons at Michigan.

Anderson is Wisconsin’s 15th transfer addition of the offseason. For more on the program’s transfer movement, bookmark our transfer offer, visit and commitment tracker.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion.

Former Michigan State DB Jaden Mangham wears U of M cap to MSU graduation

Jaden Mangham tried to troll Michigan State at their graduation ceremony on Saturday…

Jaden Mangham shocked Michigan State football fans back in May when he announced he was transferring to bitter rival Michigan. It was a controversial move, for obvious reasons, and led to a lot outrage from fans and alumni. Since the transfer, Mangham has also been recorded speaking negatively about Michigan State and talking about how much ‘different’ it is at Michigan.

Mangham, who graduated early from Michigan State before he transferred to Michigan, attended MSU’s graduation on Saturday, and decided to troll Michigan State fans by wearing a Michigan cap to his graduation.

You can see it below:

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Andrew Brewster on Twitter @IAmBrewster.

Top defensive player in CFB declares for 2025 NFL draft

Mason Graham is the most complete defensive player in the draft.

On Tuesday, ESPN NFL reporter Adam Schefter posted on X that Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham has decided to forgo his senior season and declare for the 2025 NFL draft. This per his agent, Drew Rosenhaus.

Graham is the best defensive player in all of college football and the most complete defender in the entire draft. This is with all due respect to guys like Colorado’s Travis Hunter, Penn State’s Abdul Carter and Georgia’s Malaki Starks but none of them are better at what they do than Graham is at what he can do.

 

Graham’s skill set gives him the potential to be a Chris Jones-type of impact player from the jump in his career. He’s a powerhouse at the point of attack, incredibly athletic and plays 1,000 miles an hour on every snap. Rosenhaus says he expects Graham to be selected in the top five picks and we have no reason to believe otherwise. If you aren’t a team that needs a quarterback, Graham is the best pick.

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Where Wisconsin basketball stands in KenPom and ESPN BPI after 0-2 week

Where Wisconsin basketball stands in KenPom and ESPN BPI after 0-2 week

The Wisconsin Badgers (8-2, 0-1 Big Ten) saw their red-hot momentum come to a screeching halt last week.

The team entered at 8-0 and ranked No. 11 in the nation. It then dropped two critical games — 67-64 at home vs. Michigan and 88-74 on the road at No. 5 Marquette.

Related: Updated Big Ten basketball power rankings (Dec. 9): Wisconsin slides, Michigan surges

The two losses dampen the team’s sky-high expectations. They begin to expose possible weaknesses, including inconsistent defense and struggles in the interior.

Notably, the two results also dropped the team in both KenPom and BPI. The Badgers are down to No. 37 in KenPom (No. 19 offense, No. 88 defense) and No. 36 in BPI. Those slots are good for No. 10 and No. 9 in the Big Ten, respectively.

Greg Gard’s team now faces a critical upcoming week with games at No. 19 Illinois and against Butler (neutral site). Those two contests can do one of two things — either wins will reverse the team’s course and reestablish it as one of the Big Ten’s best, or losses will continue the slide from the top of the rankings.

That Illinois game is set for Tuesday night at 9 p.m. ET, 8 p.m. CT available exclusively on Peacock.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion.

FIW Exclusive: Interview with 2026 Notre Dame commit Sullivan Garvin

We got the inside scoop on the Irish’s latest commit.

Notre Dame now has five commits in its 2026 recruiting class. The newest is three-star interior offensive lineman [autotag]Sullivan Garvin[/autotag] from Allegan, Michigan, which is little more than an hour and a half’s drive from South Bend. Garvin made his announcement one day after National Signing Day for the 2025 class.

Although Garvin received offers from other programs after the Irish presented him with theirs Sept. 28, there was no doubt in his mind about where he wanted to go. So [autotag]Joe Rudolph[/autotag] has his first commit in this particular recruiting class.

Being the Irish’s latest commit, Garvin made the interview rounds in the hours after announcing his decision. Fighting Irish Wire was lucky to be one of the outlets to be granted an interview with him. This was made possible after communication with Tracy Garvin, his mother who took notice of us on social media when we reported on his offer from the Irish.

Here’s what Garvin had to tell us:

Our thanks to the Garvins for their time and effort with this, and we hope the younger Garvin has a fruitful career with the Irish.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on X: @gfclark89

RECAP: Wisconsin basketball falls short against Michigan, drops first game of 2024-25 season

RECAP: Wisconsin basketball falls short against Michigan, drops first game of 2024-25 season

Wisconsin basketball fell to the Michigan Wolverines 67-64 on Tuesday night, dropping its first game of the 2024-25 season.

The story of the game can be told by a pair of stat lines:

Michigan center Vladislav Goldin finished the contest with 24 points, four rebounds and three blocks on 9-of-16 shooting, while forward Danny Wolf closed with 20 points, seven rebounds, five assists, three steals and five blocks on 7-of-11 shooting.

Michigan’s two big men dominated the contest from start to finish. In a game where neither team found its shooting stroke from deep (Michigan 24% from three, Wisconsin 22%), the interior play of those two players ignited the Wolverines’ victory.

The game was tightly contested in every category. Michigan shot 39% to Wisconsin’s 34.4%, grabbed 43 rebounds to Wisconsin’s 41 and scored 34 points in the paint to Wisconsin’s 28.

The back-and-forth battle was decided by a key exchange late in the second half: Wisconsin led 64-61 with 2:23 remaining. A Goldin dunk cut the deficit to one point, before another layup gave Michigan a one-point lead with 1:34 remaining. Max Klesmit got several clean looks from three-point range to put the Badgers back in front. He missed the first, which allowed the Wolverines to extend the lead to 67-64. He then missed the second as time expired.

Wisconsin falls to 8-1 and 0-1 in Big Ten play with the loss. Michigan, meanwhile, is 7-1 to start Dusty May’s first season in charge. The triumph also pushed the Wolverines to 1-0 in Big Ten play.

The Badgers are back in action on Saturday on the road at rival No. 5 Marquette.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion.

Saints would be thankful to get this Michigan standout in the 2025 NFL draft

The New Orleans Saints would be thankful to get Michigan standout Mason Graham in the 2025 NFL draft. He could care what ails their run defense:

It’s no secret that the New Orleans Saints defensive line isn’t what it used to be. They’re giving up 5.0 yards per rushing attempt this season, second-worst in the NFL. Second-year pro Bryan Bresee has made some strides as a pass rusher but he hasn’t quite developed into the three-down asset the Saints hoped for, at least not yet. He could use some more help in the middle of the line.

That’s why Draft Wire’s Curt Popejoy linked the Saints to Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham in his latest projection. He’s a finalist for the exclusive Outland Trophy, the national award for college football’s best interior lineman. Graham is both one of the youngest players in the 2025 NFL draft class (he turned 21 in September) and one of its best athletes, pound-for-pound or otherwise.

The 6-foot-3, 318-pound junior brings high-end movement skills for someone his size; he fires off the snap and can cross a guard’s face in a hurry. But he also has the lower-body strength needed to anchor the line and not give ground against advancing opponents. He’s someone who could set up his teammates by occupying multiple blockers, clogging lanes, or forcing the offense to send extra attention his way.

So he could be a good fit with the Saints. They’ve tried to rebuild their interior line after letting David Onyemata walk away in free agency a couple summers ago, but even with free agent signings like Nathan Shepherd and Khalen Saunders and late-round draft picks like Khristian Boyd, the group still lacks an edge. Maybe Graham can be the guy to turn the tide. We’ll just have to wait and see whether the Saints will be in position to draft him next April. If they’re still picking at No. 9 overall, like in this mock draft? They should have a shot.

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Former Wisconsin transfer lineman to miss remainder of 2024 season with Achilles injury

Former Wisconsin transfer lineman to miss remainder of 2024 season with Achilles injury

Former Wisconsin Badgers and current Indiana Hoosiers offensive lineman Drew Evans will miss the remainder of the 2024 season after suffering an Achilles injury, according to a release from the program.

Evans suffered the injury in practice this week leading up to Indiana’s matchup against Michigan. He had played an integral role in Indiana’s 9-0 start to the season, starting all nine games at left guard.

Related: Bye Week Report Card: Grading Wisconsin’s offense and Grading Wisconsin’s defense

The redshirt sophomore lineman transferred to Indiana after initially walking on with the Badgers ahead of the 2022 season. The Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin native followed position coach Bob Bostad, who left Wisconsin for Indiana after the Badgers fired former coach Paul Chryst during the 2022 season.

Evans did not appear in a game in either of his first two collegiate seasons. His play in 2024 as part of Indiana’s strong offensive line has been a big surprise, especially after he won a starting job due to an injury to the projected starter.

Evans’ absence will test Bostad and the depth of his group. Indiana is in the midst of a dream season in year one under new coach Curt Cignetti. It is approaching a College Football Playoff appearance — a result that would mark an unprecedented turnaround after the program’s 3-9 2023 campaign.

Indiana and Michigan will kick off at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday. Indiana’s offensive line without Evans will be a big story against a top Michigan defensive front.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion.

Dan Lanning called a timeout so Oregon could watch Michigan fans empty out the stadium

Oregon’s Dan Lanning was inspired by Coach K for this idea.

Oregon Ducks football coach Dan Lanning had a plan heading into Saturday’s game against the Michigan Wolverines.

As the undefeated Ducks prepared to face off against the defending national champions earlier in the week, Lanning told his players about something he wanted to do when they played in Ann Arbor at Michigan Stadium.

In a “Ducks vs. Them” recap video of the victory, fans saw Lanning call a timeout in the fourth quarter so that he could remind them about this idea.

In that video, Lanning is seen telling his players that he told them about “this moment” on Monday. Then, it cut directly to some behind-the-scene footage of a team meeting a few days prior.

During this session, Lanning showed a video of legendary former Duke men’s basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski discussing road victories and what it feels like to watch home fans silenced and leaving early.

Krzyzewski discussed how he would call timeouts to have his players just look into the stands and watch them go home because those are the moments that the student athletes will always remember. Here is more from Lanning:

“I already told you in the beginning of the week. I’m going to remind you at some point in this game. I’m going to tell you to look up at the stands at some point in this game. And you’re going to start to see them empty out. We’ve made the decision before we even stepped on the field.”

When the recap flashed back to the actual game, you could see players wondering where the Michigan fans went. It clearly inspired the roster and everyone seemed excited

This was such a cool idea perfectly executed by the Oregon coach, who currently leads a team ranked No. 1 in the nation.

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Dolphins bring back 2023 7th-round pick for a third stint

Offensive tackle Ryan Hayes is back with the Dolphins once again.

Offensive tackle Ryan Hayes is back with the Miami Dolphins for a third time.

On Thursday morning, the Dolphins announced that Hayes is back on their practice squad, more than two months after he was cut by the team at the end of August.

Hayes, 24, originally joined the Dolphins as a seventh-round pick in the 2023 NFL draft after a collegiate career at Michigan, where he earned All-Big Ten honors twice. After he was waived by Miami at the end of his first rookie training camp, Hayes was claimed by the Indianapolis Colts and spent about three weeks with the team. When he was waived by the Colts in September 2023, Hayes re-joined the Dolphins and spent the remainder of the season on their practice squad.

The Dolphins again waived Hayes at the end of training camp, although he reverted to the team’s injured reserve after he went unclaimed. A few days later, he was cut from the IR with an injury settlement.

By rule, Hayes wasn’t allowed to re-join the Dolphins for six weeks plus the undisclosed length of his injury settlement. Nine weeks later, Hayes has remained a free agent is now back with the Dolphins for a third time.

The 6’6, 303-pound offensive tackle has yet to appear in an NFL regular season game.

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