The Wolverines recently concluded a season in which they placed last in the conference standings after going 8-23 overall and 3-17 in the Big Ten.
In 2021, Howard agreed to a five-year contract extension with the Wolverines, which would have kept him in Ann Arbor until the 2025–2026 campaign.
The Wolverines had advanced to the Elite Eight in 2020–2021 and the Sweet 16 in 2021–2022 of the NCAA Tournament twice under Howard’s leadership.
But the Wolverines ended up with a combined 26-40 record in the last two seasons.
Now, Michigan will be searching for a new head coach, perhaps competing with the Buckeyes for their preferred choices.
MORE CFP EXPANSION ON MARCH 14 In 2023, the Ohio State Buckeyes were probably one painful loss away from making it to the College Football Playoffs once more, against Michigan.
Texas and Alabama secured the final two berths, so they almost missed out.
The five highest-ranked conference winners will receive automatic berths to the playoffs, which will feature 12 teams next season. The remaining seven teams in the rankings will make up the remaining bracket. A first-round bye will be granted to the top four seeds.
However, reports from Heather Dinich and Pete Thamel of ESPN indicate that in 2026, the College Football Playoff would have 14 teams.
“The details of what’s expected to be a 14-team field won’t be determined until after the TV deal is done,” said ESPN.
Teams from Notre Dame and the big conferences plan to get together on Friday to talk contracts.
FITCH OUT MARCH 2 One of the best assistants on the Ohio State Buckeyes is leaving town as offensive analyst Todd Fitch joins the LSU Tigers in Baton Rouge.
Having joined the Buckeyes in 2001, Fitch played a significant role in the growth of standout quarterback C.J. Stroud.
Fitch and Stroud were particularly close; in fact, in his acceptance speech, the NFL’s current Offensive Rookie of the Year thanked Stroud.
“I express my gratitude to Ohio State, Coach Day, Todd Fitch, and numerous fellow Buckeyes who have provided me with unwavering support and affection while I was 2,000 miles away from home,” Stroud remarked.
Fitch began his coaching career in 1986 and has coached quarterbacks and offensive coordinators for the most of that time.
OVER THE KING, FEB 24 The basketball team of Ohio State, the Buckeyes, hasn’t exactly had it easy lately. Still, there are a few promising aspects that could propel the effort forward.
At the Staples Center on Friday night, former Ohio State wing Malaki Branham produced what was maybe the play of the night in the NBA when he dunked over LeBron James, the great player for the Lakers.
Branham, who is averaging 8.2 points and 2.2 assists per game, concluded the game with 17 points in 23 minutes.
JANUARY 23 IN THE GAME The news that a new collegiate video game would be launched for the first time in ten years set the college football world on fire in recent days.
Naturally, NIL was the one who made it happen; each person who chooses to participate will receive a copy of the game and a payment of $600 when it launches.
Currently, more than 5,000 players have chosen to participate in the game, including Quinshon Judkins and Denzel Burke, two Ohio State standouts who are predicted to be highly regarded.
Feb. 16: STRONG TALKS Since 2014, the Ohio State Buckeyes have struggled to advance past the first round of the College Football Playoffs. Since winning the national championship that season, the team’s postseason record is actually just 1-4.
The Buckeyes most recently lost to Georgia in the Atlanta Peach Bowl 2022 semifinals.
And when former Florida running back Fred Taylor, in an interview on The Pivot Podcast, challenged Ohio State standout and Houston Texans rookie quarterback sensation C.J. Stroud regarding the program’s difficulties, the Buckeyes defended their position.
Stroud enquired, “Where did you go?,” before learning that Taylor was a Florida graduate. “Man, what are we talking about, come on? — I assumed you had visited Alabama or something.
ESPN Maintains the CFP on February 13 The College Football Playoff and ESPN have agreed to a seven-year, $7.8 billion deal to keep the competition and the network together, according to reports from Andrew Marchand of The Athletic.
But according to the article, the deal is still pending the settlement of particular CFP issues.
“The completion of the entire contract is still pending CFP leaders settling on specifics of the enlarged format following the collapse of the Pac-12,” Marchand stated. The CFP’s board of managers and management committee will convene the following week as they continue to go through the challenging process of resolving their unresolved concerns.
