“Not good game management.” How would hearing those words from the play-by-play announcer during a live game feel? Not a good night for the Michigan Wolverines who failed to stain Indiana’s undefeated record on Saturday. HC Sherrone Moore probably heard worse but maybe he was under so much pressure he fumbled in his choices.

The cbssports and cbssportscfb shared an Instagram reel on November 10 featuring the last minute of the Michigan vs Indiana game. As per what unfolded on the field, “After Indiana’s first-down play, Michigan waited 28 seconds to take a timeout.” As the video played out, it almost looked like Sherrone Moore woke up from a trance to call the timeout. This led play-by-play announcer Brad Nessler to comment, “That’s just precious gold ticking away.”

Michigan trailed by 17-3 in the first half but made a huge comeback in the second half holding Indiana to less than 20 yards of offense despite being out-gained 245-206. The play-calling blunder happened in the second half when Michigan turned the pigskin over on downs while attempting a touchdown. The Wolverines had three timeouts with 90 seconds on the clock to get the football back. 

In times like this, when destiny hangs by seconds, 28 seconds to make a decision offers too much to lose, erasing all hopes of a comeback. Indiana came back after the timeout by picking up a first down on the next play to lock the scoreboard with a final 20-15 record. Still, even if Moore called the timeout immediately, the chance for a comeback is slim. But this act exposed the inexperience of Jim Harbaugh’s replacement and what’s wrong with Michigan football. 

More heat for Sherrone Moore

In the last Big Ten clash, Michigan had some situations where they acted as their stumbling blocks. When Zeke Berry made an interception inside the Hoosiers’ 10-yard line, the Wolverines called three runs only to gain 4 yards. Sherrone Moore made another mistake in calling for a chip-shot field goal instead of going for it from Indiana’s 3-yard line. 

In last week’s game against Oregon, Moore raised an argument on a clear incompletion on the sideline claiming it was a catch. This week, a similar incident happened when he challenged a clear fumble from Alex Orji that ultimately led to a field goal by Indiana. After this loss, Michigan is 5-5 into the season with two more games locked against Northwestern and Ohio State. Despite the persistent problem on the field, Moore has somehow put together one of the best recruiting classes of 2025 but the challenge now would be to retain their commitments.