Last week, Michigan Football landed the commitment of 2027 four-star edge rusher prospect Jayce Brewer. The Indianapolis native is listed at 6-foot-5 and 240 pounds.
Michigan
As Jeremy Fears recovers, Michigan State basketball explores medical redshirt for freshman
EAST LANSING — Tom Izzo stopped short of saying Jeremy Fears Jr. is done for the rest of the season.
However, the Michigan State basketball coach Monday gave a glimpse of what is ahead in the coming months as his freshman recovers from a December gunshot wound to his left leg.
“There’s some guys that are quick healers and some guys that aren’t quick healers,” Izzo said during his weekly news conference. “He is a tremendously quick healer. … Does that mean he’s gonna play this year? No. But does that mean that he’s really getting better and will have a spring and summer to get well on and improve his skills? Yes.”
Fears was shot Dec. 23 in his hometown of Joliet, Illinois, while on Christmas break, a little more than 24 hours after MSU’s win over Stony Brook in which he had a career-high 10 assists in the 99-55 win.
SHAWN WINDSOR: The Green of MSU basketball took over Crisler Center in an unfamiliar way
There remains no timeline for Fears to return to full basketball activities. Izzo said the 6-foot-2, 190-pound point guard has resumed doing some on-court shooting continues to exercise on an underwater treadmill. He has been walking without crutches since January.
Izzo said MSU plans to seek a redshirt season for Fears, which might require an NCAA petition after he played in the Spartans’ first 12 games this season. Fears averaged 3.5 points, 3.3 assists and 1.9 rebounds over with 10 steals 15.3 minutes per game before being shot.
Paperwork for a potential medical redshirt cannot be submitted until after a season is complete. According to the NCAA, a basketball player must meet three conditions to be granted hardship waiver for “an incapacity resulting from an injury or illness.” They cannot have participated in more than 30% of their team’s games, the injury/illness must be season-ending and verified, and the injury/illness must have occurred “prior to the completion of the first half of the playing season.”
“We’re gonna try to do that,” Izzo said about a potential redshirt for Fears, who turns 19 on April 19. “I don’t know if he’ll ever use it or need it. I don’t know what’s gonna happen in the future. … His circumstances are more than deserving of that, and yet I’m definitely not politicking right now. I’m just saying I think we’re in a time when there are no rules, but the only time the rules seem to come up is when the rules probably aren’t fair. I mean, here’s a case where a kid deserves to be looked at. And we’ll do that.”
Izzo called Fears “a unique kid” who has remained active on the bench and during MSU’s timeouts and halftime meetings, as well as during the week at practice.
“He’s always got something to say that’s right on,” Izzo said. “And I appreciate that about him.”
CLUTCH CAMEO: MSU’s Davis Smith delivers career moment in win at Michigan
Senior point guard A.J. Hoggard said Fears’ recovery has made a positive impact on his teammates as well.
“Just the way he came back, he wasn’t really walking the same a little bit. So to see him light jogging and being able to jump up and down a little bit, it’s definitely big,” Hoggard said. “And it shows that he’s on his way back. He’s gonna be really healthy and ready to go, probably within another month or so. So it’s definitely big to see him get back to doing what he loves to do and just kind of being more a part of the team and not just sitting on the sidelines as much as he was.”
MSU (17-9, 9-6 Big Ten) is 10-4 since Fears went out. The Spartans, on a three-game win streak that pulled them into a three-way tie for third place in the league with Wisconsin and Northwestern, host Iowa at 7 p.m. Tuesday. Their lone regular-season game with the Hawkeyes (15-11, 7-8) will not be televised but will be streamed on Peacock.
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.
Subscribe to the “Spartan Speak” podcast for new episodes weekly on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or anywhere you listen to podcasts. And catch all of our podcasts and daily voice briefing at freep.com/podcasts.
Michigan
Curt Cignetti Discusses Idea That OSU, Michigan Could Rest Players in Rivalry Game If CFP Expands
College football is about more than just who wins the national championship in a given season, and perhaps nothing underscores that more than the deep-seated rivalry and hatred between Ohio State and Michigan.
That is why the idea of the Buckeyes and Wolverines potentially resting their starters in their annual season-ending showdown if the College Football Playoff expands was met with derision from Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti and others.
“Do you think Ohio State-Michigan, either of those teams are gonna rest their starters? Come on,” Cignetti said, per Scott Dochterman of The Athletic.
Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel added, “I can’t envision a world where that would happen.”
Neither can anyone with an actual connection to the rivalry.
The winner of what is known as The Game gets yearlong bragging rights in the fiercest rivalry in the sport. It means as much, if not more, to some fans than winning the national title, and the legacy of coaches is often defined by whether they enjoy success in that game.
It is why there was genuine discussion about Ryan Day’s job status despite his overall success when Ohio State lost a fourth straight game in the rivalry in 2024 before he course corrected and led the Buckeyes to the CFP national title that season and a win over the Wolverines in 2025.
At the same time, Urban Meyer and Jim Tressel are consistently celebrated by Buckeyes fans for dominating Michigan for a combined two decades prior to Day’s arrival.
Yes, an expansion to a 24-team CFP field would likely diminish some of the results of the regular season with more teams clinching spots before the end of the regular season. But it also wouldn’t take away from the overall importance of the sport’s most notable rivalry games to fans who care so deeply.
After all, the intensity of the college basketball games between Duke and North Carolina is never dialed back even in seasons where both teams are locks to make the NCAA tournament.
For his part, Day expressed support for Big Ten commissioner Tony Pettiti’s desire to expand the CFP and suggested there will be more teams playing important games down the stretch even if traditional powerhouses like his Buckeyes could have clinched their spot.
“It’s clear that when you look at all 18 teams, that they’re going to feel like Week 9, Week 10, Week 11, Week 12, that they’re fighting for a chance to get this Playoff, and that engages their fanbase,” Day said. “It’s hard to walk out of that room and not support what Tony’s thoughts are on this.”
Whether expansion ultimately takes away from the regular season or adds to it, it won’t lead to Ohio State and Michigan overlooking the importance of The Game.
Even rival Big Ten coaches like Cignetti know that.
Brewer plays tight end for Franklin Central, is young for his age and is a center for his school’s varsity basketball team, via MaxPreps. During his junior campaign on the gridiron last year, he recorded 31 total tackles, nine tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and 13 quarterback hurries.
His primary recruiter defensive tackles coach Larry Black, as well as defensive coordinator Jay Hill and defensive ends coach Lewis Powell, should be excited about his potential as a pass rusher and room for growth as an overall defensive lineman. Now, let’s get into his film:
Brewer mostly lines up as a three-technique and five for Franklin Central; the latter is where he truly shines. His get-off is explosive and he uses these long, combative arms to fight tackles, shed blocks and wrap up ball carriers.
Those arms are also crucial for creating separation, where he can duck under tackles. When offensive linemen do get their hands on Brewer, he has encouragingly nuanced hand fighting to win one-on-one matchups.
Brewer’s speed and bend are more potent on the outside, though he can still line up inside and use that flexibility to split double teams. Once Brewer gets past his man/men, he uses excellent closing speed to harass quarterbacks and running backs.
When Brewer is stood up, he is athletic enough to use his vertical leap to knock down passes. You will also notice that vertical on field goal/PAT blocks and during jump balls on offense.
There is still plenty of time for more physical development, but Brewer should at least start as a pass rush specialist for Hill and Co.
Because Brewer is so lethal when creating separation, he can struggle with a lack of true power when offensive linemen latch onto him. The aforementioned vertical and double-team splits can help; however, he will need to bulk up to become a reliable, every-down lineman.
Improved footwork will help his game, too. Brewer tends to rely on his upper-body strength — which, works fine in high school — and does not always drive with his legs and hips.
I also would have liked to see more nastiness on film. He is by no means timid or lazy, but does not necessarily show the mean streak that some of head coach Kyle Whittingham’s recruits have lately.
Still, he moves well off the edge, does well to pursue the football, is clearly an excellent athlete and should be a fun project for the defensive staff.
Brewer is still a ways away from being the complete package on the defensive line. But, that Michigan Football weight training program, a more careful understanding of how to capitalize on his physical traits and what should become a fiery, Wolverine attitude, should give him a shot at rotational snaps early on.
If Brewer can set more physical edges in the run game and continue to blossom attacking quarterbacks, he will be another gem in Ann Arbor.
(FOX 2) – Another series of anti-Semitic acts in Metro Detroit is raising alarm after Sterling Heights became the latest victim of hateful language being scrawled in the community.
Vulgar graffiti was sprayed on a playground on May 16, a week after it was found in a mobile home and only a few days after several other Southeast Michigan cities were targeted.
Big picture view:
The latest case of anti-Semitism was reported in Sterling Heights, which has seen two cases of vandalism using black spray paint to depict vulgar language.
One case was at the Sterling Estates Mobile Home Park, which took place on May 9. The second case was at a playground on May 16.
The cases were reported by a security guard who was at a nearby church.
Security footage caught three persons of interest involved in the case.
What they’re saying:
“We want to stress that the police department does not tolerate this behavior. We encourage our residents to communicate peacefully, and we are just proactive in addressing these concerns – we’ve deployed multiple resources within this area in an attempt to identify the possible perpetrators,” said Sgt. Lamar Kashat with Sterling Heights Police Department.
The backstory:
Police from three different communities are also working to track down the culprits behind a slew of hateful flyers thrown onto the porches of homes spewing anti-Semitic language and references.
Berkley, Huntington Woods, and Oak Park were all targeted by the flyers, which were delivered in plastic bags and weighed down with corn.
Police believe the flyers were thrown out of a moving car during the overnight hours over the weekend.
The Source: An interview with Sterling Heights police was cited for this story.
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