Tag: Michigan Football

LOOK: Donovan Edwards behind-the-scenes at EA Sports College Football 25 cover shoot

This is so cool! #GoBlue

The long-awaited return of the EA Sports college football franchise is fast approaching and in the past week, we’ve got the revelations that Michigan football running back Donovan Edwards isn’t just the focal point on the crowded ‘deluxe edition’ cover, but he’s one of three players (along with Colorado cornerback Travis Hunter and Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers) on the traditional cover.

Set to release on July 19, fans are excited about the game returning after an 11-year hiatus, but Michigan fans are particularly excited that one of the standouts is the face of the new game.

On Thursday, the Wolverines shared some video footage behind the scenes of Edwards at the Cotton Bowl shooting the new cover along with other current college football stars.

Check it out below:

While Michigan football fans are excited, there’s been something of an uproar, particularly from Ohio State, Michigan State, and Notre Dame fans, that the Wolverines running back — who was a backup the past three years — is one of the main players gracing the front of the game. However, though there are other running backs who may have more stats, there’s arguably no back in college football who has made bigger plays in the biggest games.

Edwards not only ran for two 75-plus yard touchdowns against Ohio State in 2022, he also had two 40-plus yard touchdowns to open up the scoring against Washington in the national championship game. He’s had impressive showings in each of the past two years that Michigan has played Penn State and also had some other big runs in the Big Ten Championship Game and the College Football Playoff semifinal.

Michigan has had the most cover athletes of any school in the EA Sports college video game franchise. Edwards is the fourth to make the cover, along with Desmond Howard (2006), Charles Woodson (1999), and Denard Robinson (2014).

Michigan football gets All-American cornerback transfer

This is a really good get for #Michigan! #GoBlue

Michigan football hasn’t had quite the same success in recruiting the transfer portal this offseason compared to last in terms of overall quantity. But the Wolverines have been all about quality.

Former Maryland linebacker Jaishawn Barham and Northwestern guard Josh Priebe were steals. Arkansas State kicker Dominic Zvada and Youngstown State wide receiver C.J. Charleston may be somewhat under the radar but good additions to the Wolverines.

And the latter could be said of one prospect who’s expected to join the fray shortly.

After losing out on a few targets at cornerback, Michigan is targeting another in Aamir Hall, who played for the Albany Great Danes, a Division I Football Championship Subdivision program.

According to 247Sports’ Matt Zenitz, Hall is set to join the maize and blue as as a transfer. He was noted to be a visitor on Wednesday.

From our original write-up on the FCS All-American:

Hall has an impressive five interceptions to go along with 15 pass breakups. Though the competition playing for Michigan would be much more fierce with teams such as Texas, USC, Oregon and Ohio State on the schedule, that he can get the job done at the FCS level shows his ability to be in the right place at the right time while reading offenses.

Hall originally played at Richmond before transferring last season to Albany. His stats weren’t as impressive in 2022, but his 2021 season looked much more like his 2023 with 13 pass breakups, an interception, a sack and 3.5 tackles for loss.

With Hall likely in the fray, Michigan has Will Johnson, Jyaire Hill, Kody Jones, Ja’Den McBurrows, and Myles Pollard all contending for positions in the cornerback rotation in 2024.

Update: Aamir Hall has announced he has committed to Michigan football.

Michigan football player takes jab at Ohio State

Michigan football player takes jab at Ohio State #GoBucks

Jesse Simonton of On3 has released his 2024 defensive line/edge rankings, where he ranks his top ten units in the country in that category. Unsurprisingly, the Ohio State unit was ranked first in the country. Most expected this unit to be ranked this high considering the return of three very likely high draft picks in Jack Sawyer, J.T. Tuimoloau, and Tyleik Williams, but as expected someone associated with The Team Up North was not happy.

Mason Graham is an absolute beast, it needs to be said that he is also a likely early round draft pick next year, but I don’t think anyone outside the Michigan fandom would disagree with its ranking. Graham was clearly in disbelief as he responded on X (previously Twitter) with two humorous emojis.

Buy hey, the Wolverines are the national champions and have taken Ohio State behind the shed three years in a row. So, you can kind understand why he feels disrespected. Hopefully in November, the Buckeyes can prove these rankings right.

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Michigan football portal target Jay’Viar Suggs makes transfer decision

Local product makes his decision.

Despite having a lot of depth as of current at defensive tackle, Michigan football is looking for some backup talent. And one such prospect comes not so far from Ann Arbor — both at the college level as well as at the high school level.

The Wolverines have been targeting former Clarkston (Mich.) defensive tackle Jay’Viar Suggs, who has made a name for himself at Grand Valley State on the West side of the state of Michigan. Deciding between Michigan, Wisconsin, and Kentucky, he looked to be the maize and blue’s to lose until LSU entered the fray, making a strong impact on the 6-foot-3, 282-pound lineman.

Suggs made his decision on Wednesday announcing that he is committing to LSU.

Suggs was rated No. 707 in the transfer portal rankings according to 247Sports and is a three-star as a transfer.

Michigan has gained some names it had targeted in Northwestern guard Josh Priebe, Maryland linebacker Jaishawn Barham, Arkansas State kicker Dominic Zvada, prodigal son returning from Ole Miss Amorion Walker, and Youngstown State wideout C.J. Charleston. But it has also missed out on some high-priority targets such as Texas cornerback Terrance Brooks and Kent State defensive tackle C.J. West.

 

Michigan football targeting FCS cornerback with impressive stat sheet

Could #Michigan have another Josh Wallace on its hands here? #GoBlue

In 2023, Michigan football reeled in a transfer portal cornerback, Josh Wallace, who ended up being a plus-starter opposite Will Johnson. With depth concerns at the position given DJ Waller’s unexpected departure to Kentucky, could the Wolverines get another unheralded defensive back via the portal once again?

The maize and blue had been targeting Texas transfer Terrance Brooks, but he never made it to campus, committing to Illinois a week before he planned to be in Ann Arbor. So now Michigan is targeting another cornerback, Aamir Hall, who played for the Albany (New York) Great Danes, a Division I Football Championship Subdivision program.

As 247Sports’ Matt Zenitz comments above, Hall has an impressive five interceptions to go along with 15 pass breakups. Though the competition playing for Michigan would be much more fierce with teams such as Texas, USC, Oregon and Ohio State on the schedule, that he can get the job done at the FCS level shows his ability to be in the right place at the right time while reading offenses.

Hall originally played at Richmond before transferring last season to Albany. His stats weren’t as impressive in 2022, but his 2021 season looked much more like his 2023 with 13 pass breakups, an interception, a sack and 3.5 tackles for loss.

Donovan Edwards makes standard cover of EA Sports College Football 25

Rival fans: stay mad. #GoBlue

Last week, the deluxe version of the upcoming and long-awaited EA Sports College Football 25 was revealed, and a Michigan football star was front and center.

The focal point of the deluxe version is none other than Wolverines running back Donovan Edwards, the reserve tailback for the past three years who has produced some of the maize and blue’s biggest moments on the grandest stages.

EA Sports was due to reveal the standard cover at some point this week but it leaked early and was circulating on X (formerly Twitter). And while Edwards is front and center for a cover with numerous athletes in the deluxe version, he’s to the right as one of three on the traditional cover.

Edwards is featured to the right while Colorado cornerback Travis Hunter is in the center and Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers is to the left. Edwards and Ewers will see each other in Week 2 of the 2024 season when Michigan hosts the Longhorns.

Certainly, the regular cover will not ingratiate the game to rival fans: Buckeyes and Spartans have been up in arms over the fact that there’s yet another Wolverine on the cover. The last EA Sports college football game, released in 2013, had former Michigan QB Denard Robinson on the front.

Michigan football adds Eastern Michigan twice to future schedules

The battle for Washtenaw County is set to resume! #GoBlue

As the 2024 Michigan football schedule continues to get hashed out in terms of kickoff times and channels carrying the games, the future schedule for the Wolverines has gotten a new addition.

The battle for Washtenaw County will resume after nearly two decades with the announcement that Michigan is adding Eastern Michigan to the schedule in 2027 and 2030. The two closest Division-I Football Bowl Subdivision schools have played 10 times in history, and, of course, the Wolverines are 10-0 against their rival from neighboring Ypsilanti.

The last time the Wolverines and Eagles played was in 2011 with a 31-3 win, but from 2005-11, U-M and EMU played every other year.

But previous to 2005, 1998 was the only time in modern college football history that Michigan played its neighbor in the MAC as the two previous matchups came in 1930 and 1931. The other three times that the Wolverines and Eagles faced off was in the 1800s.

All 10 meetings between Michigan and Eastern Michigan have taken place in Ann Arbor and, of course, once this two-game series concludes, all 12 on the books will also have been played at The Big House.

USC kickoff time vs Michigan Wolverines is surprising but very beneficial

USC caught a break by avoiding the dreaded “body clock” time slot against Michigan.

USC Athletics made the announcement on Tuesday about the start time and television assignment for the huge Big Ten football opener against Michigan on Sept. 21.

“The Trojans’ inaugural Big Ten Conference football matchup versus Michigan in the Big House on Sept. 21 will kick off at 12:30 p.m. PT (3:30 p.m. ET) airing on CBS and streaming on Paramount+.”

In a landmark game for USC football, the Men of Troy will go to Ann Arbor to tackle the Wolverines and new head coach Sherrone Moore, who takes over from Jim Harbaugh. The Trojans are 6-4 all-time against the Wolverines, with their last meeting being a 32-18 win in the 2007 Rose Bowl. 

In 2024, USC will dive into life in the Big Ten, but this Michigan game is the first conference game USC will play as a Big Ten school. There is special resonance to this game.

USC players, coaches and fans all have to love the fact that this is a mid-afternoon game in Michigan. It won’t be an early start at noon Eastern and 9 a.m. Pacific. It won’t be a dreaded “body clock” game for a West Coast team playing in the Eastern time zone. USC not being on Fox Big Noon Saturday should be viewed as a surprise, but also as a source of relief. USC still has to play the game and show it can compete, but this development might increase USC’s chances by a slight degree. Every little bit helps.

Ticket information, via USC Athletics:

USCTrojans.com/tickets

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Yahoo Sports writer calls Ohio State ‘crying’ over Michigan embarrassing

It really is, Buckeye fans. #GoBlue

Last week, outgoing Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith appeared on local radio in Columbus and complained about Michigan football amid the Connor Stalions saga. Smith said there should be an asterisk next to the Wolverines’ last three wins over the Buckeyes as a result.

Yahoo Sports’ Dan Wetzel, who was one of the journalists who originally reported on Stalions, isn’t having it.

On the “College Football Enquirer” podcast, Wetzel delved deeper into the rivalry and noted that while he believes what Stalions did was wrong, complaining about the end result of what happened on the field itself is weak.

“This is bloodsport. They do everything to compete against each other until they push the lines,” Wetzel said. “Did Connor Stalions seemingly break the rules? Absolutely. OK, not even to question. But, to question all of it — if Ryan Day was going into the 12th game of the season — because you can steal the signs, we know! Totally allowed to steal the signs off of TV, steal the signs off of coaching video, steal the signs from your friends on the other teams that just played them and send you what they figured out in their advanced scouting. If the Ohio State coach goes into the final game — or Michigan coach — with the exact same signals they had all 11 previous weeks after having countdown clocks and refusing to call — ‘I call them ‘Ohio,’ ‘That Team Up North,’ hatch out all of the Ms in Columbus with a piece of tape so there’s no M — if you’re so obsessed with that stuff — you can’t wear blue. An NFL GM shows up to scout one of your players and he’s wearing a blue shirt he has to get thrown out of the thing — and you’re still showing the same signals — it’s like you’re not allowed to get mugged, right? But if you walk down a dark alley waving $100 bills around? I’m just saying. I’m just saying.”

He went further, noting that under no circumstance should Michigan football receive an asterisk. And again called out Smith and Ohio State for the complaints.

“There’s no asterisk in this,” Wetzel said. “Gene Smith knows that I have great admiration for him, he knows this. Calling for an asterisk on this is weak sauce. Just come back and beat them. It is weak sauce. It is the same thing as declaring your team is as tough as can be, (against) Notre Dame and 10 guys in September. Ohio State wants to settle this, they settle this by beating Michigan head-up. This is weak with the asterisk talk, it’s probably gonna go on forever, it’s gonna make my head hurt forever, these are the games.”

Of course, it’s not just the athletic director who has been complaining. Look on social media any given day and you’ll find a cadre of Buckeye fans who are calling Michigan’s national championship illegitimate. This, despite NCAA president Charlie Baker saying two days after the Wolverines won in Houston that the championship was earned “fair and square.”

Wetzel notes that Michigan played Ohio State in 2023 with an arm behind its back with Jim Harbaugh having been suspended by the Big Ten. And, given the nature of college athletics and the dirty dealings that have ravaged the sport for decades, Wetzel urges the Buckeyes to not throw stones from a glass house.

“I implore the Ohio State people to think — you don’t want to go down this road where you’re crying about asterisks,” Wetzel said. “That’s embarrassing. Waving asterisks? It’s embarrassing.”

The segment went on for some time with Wetzel, Pat Forde, and Ross Dellenger. You can watch the entire thing below.

Michigan football vs. USC Trojans Week 4 kick time and channel announced

Wish this one was a night game, but close enough. #GoBlue

Usually when Michigan football and USC face off against each other, more often than not, the Wolverines and Trojans are battling for conference supremacy in the Rose Bowl on January 1. However, this year, things will be a little different for the two storied programs.

USC is joining the Big Ten in 2024 and is making its way East, set to play in The Big House for the first time in program history. Opening up in-conference play for both teams, the Trojans will take on the maize and blue on Sept. 21 with a 3:30 p.m. EDT kick time. The game will be broadcast on CBS and streamed on Paramount+.

This is the fourth game that has been announced for the Wolverines within the past month. It was revealed during the April 20 spring game that the Week 2 game against Texas would be a noon kick on Fox. On Monday, two more game times and channels were revealed with the Aug. 31 season opener against Fresno State announced as a 7:30 p.m. EDT NBC game while the season finale against Ohio State was unsurprisingly announced to be a noon kick on Fox.