ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — 2025 record: 9-4
The Wolverines will likely fall short of a double-digit win season for the third straight year with six opponents ranked in the AP Top 25, including four in the top 10. Coach Kyle Whittingham's debut season may hinge on how much Bryce Underwood improves in his second season but he should bring stability to a program that desperately needs it, coming off the firing and arrest of former coach Sherrone Moore and NCAA rules violations that put the maize and blue on probation.
Underwood stepped on campus as the No. 1 recruit in the country last year and didn't live up to the hype, throwing just 11 touchdowns with nine interceptions in 13 games. Whittingham hired a quarterbacks coach, former NFL QB Koy Detmer, to give Underwood a resource he didn't have as a freshman.
Michigan's running game potentially can take some pressure off Underwood. Whittingham says he expects the 6-foot-4, 230-pound Underwood to be part of the attack by design and improvisation.
Jordan Marshall gained 6.2 yards a carry last year and finished with 932 yards rushing and 10 touchdowns for the Wolverines. Marshall is expected to share carries with freshman Savion Hiter, one of the nation's top-rated high school running backs. Utah transfers John Henry Daley, a second-team preseason AP All-America edge, and Jonah Lea’ea lead a revamped and strong defensive line.
Michigan has sent a steady stream of tight ends, including Colston Loveland, to the NFL in recent years and that streak will likely stop. Zach Marshall has the most experience in the position group, but has just 16 career catches for 199 yards and a TD. The Wolverines lost their top four linebackers from last season, including Cole Sullivan, who transferred to Oklahoma. Troy Bowles has a shot to lead the group in his second season following two years as a seldom-used player at Georgia.
Daley, Lea’ea, CB Smith Snowden, WR JJ Buchanan (transfers from Utah), freshman WR Salesi Moa (flipped commitment to Utah), Hiter (highly touted recruit), S Chris Bracy (Memphis).
DE Derrick Moore, TE Marlin Klein, DE Jaishawn Barham, LB Jimmy Rolder, FB Max Bredeson (all were selected in NFL draft), RB Justice Haynes (transferred to Georgia Tech), WR Semaj Morgan (transferred to UCLA), DB Jayden Sanders (transferred to Notre Dame), DB TJ Metcalf (transferred to Tennessee), DB Brandyn Hillman (transferred to Virginia) and Sullivan (transferred to Oklahoma).
Vs. No. 10 Oklahoma (Sept. 12), vs. No. 6 Indiana (Oct. 24), at No. 2 Oregon (Nov. 14), at No. 1 Ohio State (Nov. 28).
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FILE - Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood throws during an NCAA college football spring game in Ann Arbor, Mich., April 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)
OWINGS MILLS, Md. (AP) — NFL veteran Calais Campbell knew he wanted to keep playing, even after a family tragedy this summer resulting in his mother’s death and his brother being charged with murder.
“I love the game of football a lot … it brings me joy,” the 39-year-old Baltimore Ravens defensive lineman said Tuesday in his first public remarks since his mother's death. “It was a little harder training, but as far as football goes, I love this game a lot. And this is a very fun place for me to be. So playing football has been great for me.”
The Ravens signed the six-time Pro Bowler in April to a one-year deal for his 19th NFL season.
In late June, police found his 71-year-old mother dead at her home in Atlanta during a welfare check. Her 41-year-old son Ciarre Campbell was charged with murder after he was found with a knife, according to arrest warrants. The family told police that Ciarre struggles with mental illness.
The Ravens permitted Calais Campbell to miss the first few full-team practices of training camp. He participated in his first team session on Aug. 3, five days after the Ravens opened full-team camp.
“These last couple months have been pretty tough for me and my family, but we’re working through it,” Campbell said. “And I really appreciate all the love and support and the prayers that have been coming from all over, really, from all the NFL community. … Continue praying for us because we need it.”
Campbell, who will turn 40 on Sept. 1, previously played in Baltimore from 2020-2022, making his sixth and final Pro Bowl during his first season with the Ravens.
He returns to an organization with a different look, including first-year head coach Jesse Minter and a mostly new coaching staff.
“(He) brings great versatility along the D-line, is an unbelievable leader and mentor in that room and in the defensive room and with the team,” Minter said of Campbell, who has 117 career sacks in 278 NFL games, including 259 starts. “The timing of it obviously was really tough for him and his family. We allowed the first week or two of camp for him to really kind of work himself to get ready, as it affected his summer preparation, obviously. … I’m really happy that we have him.”
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Baltimore Ravens defensive end Calais Campbell (93) watches during the team's NFL football training camp, Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026, at the Under Armour Performance Center in Owings Mills, Md. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Baltimore Ravens defensive end Calais Campbell, left, works out during the team's NFL football training camp, Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026, at the Under Armour Performance Center in Owings Mills, Md. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Baltimore Ravens defensive end Calais Campbell (93) watches during the team's NFL football training camp, Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026, at the Under Armour Performance Center in Owings Mills, Md. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
