Takeaways from Michigan football’s best performance in Sherrone Moore era
Takeaways from Michigan’s best all-around performance in the Sherrone Moore era, a 24-7 win over Washington at Michigan Stadium, Oct. 18, 2025.
As Michigan football players and coaches talk about the importance of introducing newcomers to the Wolverines’ upcoming matchup with Michigan State, there will be at least one new player who needs no crash course.
Blake Frazier, U-M’s redshirt freshman left tackle, grew up with the rivalry ingrained in him from his father, Steve, who was a starting lineman under Lloyd Carr in the 1990s, including on the national championship 1997 team.
“With me growing up a Michigan fan, I know what the game means,” Frazier told reporters earlier in the week. “I’m excited, especially being a night game in East Lansing. It’s going to be a good opportunity to see what we’ve got as a team.”
Only adding to the moment, Frazier is making the first start of his career.
Evan Link, who started the first seven games at left tackle, injured his knee in U-M’s 24-7 victory over Washington. He was carted off the field in the second quarter, but Michigan coach Sherrone Moore said it seems he’s avoided the worst and will be week-to-week going forward.
Frazier said that’s not how anybody wants to take over a job, but he and everybody inside the locker room knows it’s the nature of the beast.
Baring something unforeseen, Frazier is in line to start under the lights in East Lansing (7:45 p.m., NBC) for the first time in his college career as one of three redshirt freshmen starters along with right tackle Andrew Sprague and right guard Jake Guarnera on the line.
“Really proud of him,” Moore said at his weekly press conference. “Really proud of the player he’s become. Having those extra O-line reps are huge. We’ve really done that in past years of getting young guys time to play, or getting another guy that we feel that could be a starter or a guy that’s going to play extra reps.”
Frazier passed his first test against the Huskies, grading out as U-M’s top pass blocker, according to Pro Football Focus (72.0). In fact, in 106 snaps this season on the line − he played in a number of heavy packages to get reps throughout the season − he’s the top graded player in Grant Newsome’s room.
He didn’t allow a pressure on more than two dozen pass blocking snaps against Washington and while there were a few times he was knocked back on some straight bull rushes, he more than held his own.
He said his next step is to make sure he brings it every single snap.
“My biggest thing, my biggest takeaway was, how can I be more consistent with what I do in practice and taking that to the game?” Frazier told U-M color commentator Jon Jansen on the “In the Trenches” podcast. “There were a couple of times where I saw myself doing things that I don’t typically do. … I think my biggest thing is just going to be staying consistent.”
Frazier grew up in Texas and said he got constant flack for rooting for U-M his entire life while everybody around him was a Texas fan.
Despite being more than 1,000 miles away, Frazier said he watched Michigan essentially every week and there was never a question about where he wanted to play.
“I’ve known what it’s like to play in this game since I was 5 years old,” he said. “It’s the state championship. The whole state’s bragging rights depend on it. You give it everything you’ve got and accept that records don’t matter. You’re going to get their best shot no matter what.”
Tony Garcia is the Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at apgarcia@freepress.com and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
