In college football, the Michigan Wolverines and Michigan State Spartans are both still looking for their first win of the season against Big Ten opponents.
And in baseball, the 2026 World Series is guaranteed to end a title drought, no matter who wins.
For more on those stories and other sports news, Michigan Public sports commentator John U. Bacon spoke with Morning Edition host Doug Tribou.
Football this weekend:
Northwestern at Michigan State - Sat., Noon
Penn State at Michigan - Sat., 3:30 p.m.
Detroit Lions - Bye week
DT: Michigan State is coming off a tough one-point overtime loss to Illinois last weekend in football. The Spartans are on a four-game losing streak. Up next, they'll host the Northwestern Wildcats, who are currently ranked 25th in the country. What can MSU head coach Pat Fitzgerald do to get his team going against his former employer?
JUB: Well, actually, not a lot more than what he's doing, which is trying to coach them up — what he has — into a winnable team. And that's not going to be easy. Look, right now Michigan State is 0-3 in the Big Ten, Penn State is 0-3 in the Big Ten, and Michigan is 0-2 in the Big Ten — all with brand-new coaches highly heralded. And you ain't got a win among them.
They're all doing the best with what they have. Fitzgerald came very close, as you said, last week to his first Big Ten win for Michigan State. They're going in the right direction.
DT: The Wolverines will host Penn State on Saturday. Both teams are unranked. Michigan has lost its first two Big Ten conference games, as you mentioned, and that's the first time that's happened since 2014.
John, there have been some calls to bench sophomore quarterback Bryce Underwood, who has been uneven this season, had some issues with turnovers, as well. What's your view of that debate?
JUB: One, he's still a true sophomore. Last year, he did not even have a quarterback coach under Sherrone Moore, which is crazy. So now people are calling for him to be benched [and] for Kyle Whittingham, the head coach, to be fired. All this is ridiculous. You have to be more patient.
However, I would circle the problem as Jason Beck, the offensive coordinator, who's done, frankly, a pretty miserable job calling plays, setting things up for Bryce Underwood and his teammates to be successful. So, that is a real debate.
DT: Michigan had last weekend off, so they had extra time to prepare for this one. Where would you expect to see coach Kyle Whittingham make changes in the game plan?
JUB: Bryce Underwood has got to pass the ball downfield to more than just two receivers to give the running game a chance. And I bet you see the playbook being shortened even more to make sure you've got plays that Bryce Underwood can execute under pressure.
DT: Let's turn to the Red Wings. Signing high-scoring forward Alex DeBrincat was a priority. The Red Wings did that, signing him to a seven-year, $91-million contract on Wednesday. He would have been an unrestricted free agent after the season. And the Wings' front office has indicated it's not interested in trading young star Simon Edvinsson, who's currently sitting out in a contract dispute, so that could be a sign that the situation is on a road to resolution.
But Dylan Larkin, the former captain, is still a Red Wing months after his trade request. And last weekend, he heard more cheers on the road than he's been getting in Detroit. What happened in Montreal? And do you remember anything else like that?
JUB: Pretty incredible on the grand scale. Look, Montreal would love to have Dylan Larkin. That's why they're cheering for him. So you want to get traded? Yeah. Montreal's a good place to come. The problem with Dylan Larkin's request is that he is a first-line center on the Red Wings, but the teams he's asking for are all winning teams. He would not be a first-line center, and Detroit would not get very much value for trading him.
So he's getting booed at home and cheered on the road. Sounds like my life, Doug, but that's not important now.
DT: [Laughs] Well, John, let's shed a tear for Los Angeles Dodgers fans. They will have to live without a World Series championship three-peat. The Milwaukee Brewers eliminated L.A. Thursday night. That guarantees that one championship-starved fan base will finally get some relief.
That's because the Brewers are in the series for the first time since 1982, and they will face either the Tampa Bay Rays or the Cleveland Guardians. The Rays and Brewers have never won, but I'm guessing Cleveland fans might not be feeling much sympathy...
JUB: All right. You want to go back to the Wayback Machine? Their last World Series title, the Cleveland Guardians, formerly Indians, was 1948. Who was a star pitcher on that team? Satchel Paige was.
DT: [Laughs] It's been a minute, as they say.
JUB: It's been several!
DT: I love to see a series when you know both teams are going to have fan bases that are just like beyond happy because of a big drought like this.
JUB: True. And then, if they lose it, beyond crushed. So, heads up.
Editor's note: Some quotes in this article have been lightly edited for length and clarity. You can play the full audio of the interview near the top of this page.
The University of Michigan holds Michigan Public's broadcast license.
