Ohio State silenced a lot of naysayers in Week 14 with a dominating 27-9 win at Ann Arbor. Michigan fans, like Dave Portnoy, have been calling out Ryan Day for losing four straight in the rivalry, despite the Buckeyes winning a national championship. However, it was the home team that got embarrassed on Saturday, and naturally, the knives have turned towards Sherrone Moore.

“Michigan, we don’t play for nine and three,” said Dave Portnoy on the Dec. 2 episode of The Triple Option. “That’s not what we do in Ann Arbor. We played three teams that were underdogs this year. And we really got squashed by all of them. Oklahoma, USC, and Ohio State. Killed by all of them. Never in any of those games, really beat all the teams. We should be better than we were the year before. I think you give them one more year, and you’ve got to get better, but it was eye-opening.”

Michigan’s 2025 campaign will be remembered for its inconsistent performances. However, some of that was along expected lines. The run game carried the offense, but that changed with Justice Haynes’ injury. All those offensive issues came to the fore against an Ohio State defense that allows just 7 points per game. The Wolverines were even given an advantage after Julian Sayin threw an interception on the Buckeyes’ first drive. That led to a field goal, making the score 6-0. After that, it was all Ohio State.

“We were not even close to the level we have to be at,” the Barstool founder admitted. “And we saw that three times. It wasn’t just Ohio State. So there weren’t any nerves. There wasn’t anything that went wrong. It’s just, we’re not on a level to compete. On the highest level right now. And that really has to get better, and it’s got to get better fast.”

“We have no business beating Ohio State right now or any of these good teams. I mean, we got whooped by everybody we played, and it was all similar. Like they rammed it down our throat. We couldn’t stop them. So we just got to get a lot better.”

Sherrone Moore may not be in the hot seat for Michigan’s 9-3 season, but Portnoy’s message made it clear that the fans aren’t happy with their performance.

Michigan’s 2025 season isn’t that disappointing

The Michigan Wolverines might have failed to defeat Ohio State and qualify for the playoffs, but their season isn’t that bad. The Wolverines ended their season as a nine-win team, carrying the playoff hopes until the last week. Despite losing to Oklahoma, USC, and Ohio State, the youngest team in the Big Ten tried to win every game possible.

Regarding the youngest team, the Wolverines’ roster featured multiple freshmen on both offense and defense. In fact, their team was led by the freshman QB Bryce Underwood, who ended his freshman regular season with some incredible numbers. He threw 2,229 yards, 9 TDs, and 6 Ints throughout the season and had support from six starting freshmen on the offense and 4 freshmen on the defense.

Apart from this, there have been multiple injuries for the Wolverines, especially in the running back room. For the program, which is known for making plays on the ground, the injury of Justice Haynes, Jordan Marshall, has hindered their rushing yards. It doesn’t mean that Michigan hasn’t had a single flaw. The program struggled with multiple issues throughout the season, causing adversity; however, they bounced back stronger. Although imperfect, Sherrone Moore’s locker room has potential for a big future, which needs some timely fixes in this offseason.