Three takeaways: Michigan manhandled in the trenches, Wolverines fall by double digits in Oklahoma
Aside from the 11 seconds it took Justice Haynes to run 75 yards to open the second half of Saturday night’s contest between Michigan and Oklahoma, just about nothing else went right for the Wolverines in the 24-13 loss.
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The first half went as bad as Michigan fans could have imagined, yet the Wolverines went into the locker room down only two touchdowns, which, at the time, felt like a gift.
Haynes’ 75-yard scamper at the beginning of the second half gave Michigan a much-needed spark, but the Wolverines were unable to capitalize on it.
Here are three takeaways from the crushing non-conference defeat.
The offensive line needs a lot of work
Ever since Sherrone Moore took over as Michigan’s offensive line coach in 2021, he coined the term ‘SMASH,’ as a tribute to what his big men up front would do to the opponents in the trenches. For a while, this term actually matched the physicality that the group showed.
Led by veterans like Zak Zinter, Trevor Keegan, Olu Oluwatimi and others, Moore’s group — which won back-to-back Joe Moore awards in 2021 and 2022 — was known for its dominance in the trenches.
But ever since the three aforementioned players departed and Moore took over as U-M’s head coach, the offensive line has been underwhelming at best. Last season, the line had its fair share of struggles throughout the year.
Perhaps it could have been chalked up to the fact that Michigan lost its top six offensive linemen from the 2023 national championship team, but regardless, the offensive line — Sherrone Moore’s specialty — disappointed greatly.
Now in 2025, it appears to be a trend, rather than just a down year in 2024. The offensive line was fantastic on Haynes’ touchdown run, but other than that, it was a bad night for the group. It certainly didn’t help that captain Giovanni El-Hadi went down with an injury in the first half, but things weren’t going well before that, either.
It’s up to Sherrone Moore and Grant Newsome to get the line fixed — and quickly. However, that will be hard to do when Moore will miss the next two games with a suspension.
It may be year two, but Sherrone Moore still has a lot to learn as a head coach
Speaking of Moore, it doesn’t appear as though a year of head coaching under his belt is helping him adapt to the duties that come along with being the head football coach. Many of the same mistakes Moore made in his first season last year, he’s continuing to make in 2025.
In the third quarter, Michigan had the ball down by eight with just over 12:30 to go. Oklahoma had just missed a 42-yard field goal, and Michigan had momentum, the ball and a chance to drive and tie the game.
On first down, Bryce Underwood scrambled — a rare sight for the freshman quarterback two games into the season — for nine yards. Then, before 2nd down and 1, Moore called a timeout. Perhaps Moore didn’t like the look Michigan had, but some may argue that saving the timeout is more important than getting the perfect look on 2nd and 1.
Coming out of the timeout, Haynes picked up the first down. On the ensuing play, Underwood was sacked for a loss of 5 yards. Then, before 2nd down and 15, Moore called another timeout, burning two in less than 1:30 of game time.
In a one-possession game in the fourth quarter, timeouts are of utmost importance, and Moore burned two on the same drive. It ended up all being moot because the Sooners won by two scores, but those two timeouts could have proved to be incredibly valuable late in the game.
There were also times when it seemed Moore seized play-calling duties from Chip Lindsey, although that is entirely speculation. At times, it seemed Moore was more interested in ‘SMASH’ing than letting his star quarterback make plays to win the football game.
Injuries are piling up
Michigan’s training staff definitely got its money’s worth on Saturday night. It seemed as if every other play, a Michigan player was down with an injury. Giovanni El-Hadi, Zeke Berry, Brandyn Hillman, Semaj Morgan, Brady Norton and Jaishawn Barham were all checked on by the medical team at one point or another throughout the game.
To make matters worse, Michigan’s pregame availability report was already chock-full of names. Captains Derrick Moore, Rod Moore and Marlin Klein were all listed as questionable for the contest, and while Derrick Moore did play, Rod Moore and Klein did not.
El-Hadi, a fellow captain, suffered what appeared to be a brutal injury on Saturday night. While no other Wolverines got dinged up as bad as El-Hadi, it was a glaring concern how often Michigan players were going down with injuries on Saturday night.
It shouldn’t have an effect on next week’s game against Central Michigan — that should be an easy win for the Wolverines — but if the trend continues, it could prove costly in two weeks when the Wolverines travel to Nebraska.
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