Last week, we started our offseason series of ranking the best Michigan men’s basketball players since the first time the Wolverines won a national championship back in 1989 to celebrate a 37-year history of Michigan basketball between titles. Today, we look at the next tier up, and it’s a significant one from our scoring model from a batch of already quality list of players in the first rendition of this series.
Michigan
Michigan Panthers dominated in 19-9 loss to San Antonio Brahmas in United Football League
The Michigan Panthers lost their starting quarterback, but they couldn’t get anything going on offense, no matter who was under center.
As a result, the Panthers lost to the San Antonio Brahmas, 19-9, on Saturday night in the Alamodome to fall to 2-2 in the inaugural UFL season.
E.J. Perry left the game in the third quarter with an apparent hamstring injury after successfully cobbling together a field goal drive. Danny Etling replaced him, completing 11 of 15 passes for 105 yards, but the comeback ended after he fumbled late trying to escape pressure after a late touchdown to Marcus Simms.
San Antonio closed the game out after building a comfortable 16-3 lead in the first half. The Brahmas’ defensive line set the tone by living in the Panthers’ backfield while quarterback Quinten Dormady started hot, finishing 23 of 37 for 269 yards and a touchdown.
The Panthers’ offensive line couldn’t slow down the pass rush, giving up six sacks and committing three holding penalties. The pass protection issues coupled with the early deficit hamstrung a Michigan offense that came into the game firing on all cylinders.
The Panthers fell to 2-2 in the United Football League, while San Antonio moved to 3-1.
Pressure bounces Perry, handcuffs Panthers offense
Perry suffered the leg injury in a play that happened often in the loss.
He pulled up lame after stepping out of a sack on a tackle, grabbing at his hamstring. Perry was sacked five times and had to escape a handful of other attempts as the Brahmas’ defensive line dominated the Panthers.
San Antonio jumped out to an early 10-0 lead with an opening drive touchdown and a field goal after a quick stop on the Panthers’ first drive.
The best chance at a touchdown came in the second quarter, after head coach Mike Nolan successfully called a fake punt that resulted in a 24-yard gain into San Antonio territory, but a sack ended the drive. Michigan reached the red zone with two first-down runs, but Perry was crushed by Tim Ward on a sack and fumbled to the Brahmas. Kai Nacua intercepted a pass on the next possession, but Michigan’s offense couldn’t get that close again.
The next drive ended on a third-down sack, setting up a second San Antonio touchdown drive to go up 16-0 a minute before halftime. Jake Bates got Michigan on the board with a 49-yard kick after Perry put together a quick drive right before intermission.
But, the second half was the same for the offense.
Michigan went three-and-out on their first two possessions with Perry in the game which were hurt by a sack, a holding, and the final pressure that knocked the quarterback from the game. He completed seven of 13 passes for 77 yards and had a team-high 49 rushing yards, all on scrambles to avoid sacks.
Etling had the offense moving better, but couldn’t get points until the game was out of reach. His first drive ended with a incomplete pass after he was flushed from the pocket, then he fumbled with 7:49 left after he tried to pick up a first down escaping a sack.
Etling found Marcus Simms for a 41-yard touchdown on the left sideline on his third drive to make it 19-9 San Antonio with 3:25 left. Michigan went for a two-point conversion but Etling was sacked. Michigan picked up the onside conversion, which is a successful fourth-and-12 conversion in the UFL, to get the ball back, but Etling was sacked again on third down, setting up an insurmountable fourth-and-20 they could not convert.
The Brahmas finished with six sacks, two forced fumbles and an interception on a late heave from Etling in the waning moments. The Panthers ran for 111 yards on 17 attempts, but the deficit made them lean on the pass and the San Antonio pass rush blew up that effort.
San Antonio sets tone in first half
The Brahmas scored 16 of their 19 points in the first half after the Panthers’ defense shut down the offense in the second half.
San Antonio got the ball first and scored on a quick eight-play drive to go up 7-0 on a John Lovett touchdown run. Michigan opened with a punt, and the Brahmas added a field goal after a 43-yard pass from Dormady to Jontre Kirklin.
The Brahmas executed the two-minute drill to perfection at the end of the first half, with Dormady connecting on three passes for first downs then finding Marquez Stevenson in the flat for a 4-yard touchdown to go up 16-0.
The Brahmas only scored the field goal off a short field thanks to the Etling fumble, but the defensive effort made that enough. San Antonio picked up 220 of the team’s 305 yards in the first half, while Dormady went into break with 200 yards.
The Spartans have a plethora of players coming in for official visits this weekend.
Few are bigger than 4-star cornerback/wide receiver Gideon Gash.
Gash is a 6-foot-4, 205-pound speedster out of Detroit Catholic Central High School in Novi, Michigan. He holds a 91 rating from 247Sports, which ranks him as the third-best recruit in Michigan for the 2027 class and the fifth-best athlete in the entire class. His 91 rating is also good enough to rank him as the No. 70 overall recruit in the nation.
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His composite score is nearly as good as it gets at 0.9701. That keeps him ranked as the fifth-best athlete in the recruiting class while moving him up to the second-highest-rated recruit in the state of Michigan. His composite score is also the 70th-best mark nationally.
If you’re reading this and thinking you thought the Spartans already had a Gash on the roster, you’d be correct. In fact, they have two.
Older brother Caleb Gash is a redshirt sophomore on the Spartan roster and plays safety for Joe Rossi and the defense. Then, earlier this year, another older brother, Samson Gash, signed his commitment to the Michigan State Spartans. Samson was ranked as the seventh-best recruit in the state of Michigan in the 2026 class and the No. 43 wide receiver in the country. So, in fact, there are already two Gash brothers on the Spartans’ roster, with Gideon still deciding where he wants to play following his final years of high school football.
The Gash brothers are certainly not new to the game. Their father, Sam Gash, enjoyed a successful football career of his own. He played at Penn State from 1987-1991 before being selected in the eighth round of the 1992 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots. He also spent time with the Buffalo Bills, Baltimore Ravens, and New Orleans Saints during his NFL career. Gash was a Super Bowl XXXV champion and a two-time Pro Bowl selection. Following his playing days, he went on to coach in the NFL with the New York Jets, Detroit Lions, and Green Bay Packers.
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Gideon Gash has been one of Pat Fitzgerald’s most important recruiting targets since arriving at Michigan State. Alongside Joe Rossi and James Adams, Fitzgerald has played a key role in the Spartans’ pursuit of the talented athlete. Based on the recruiting efforts so far, it appears Michigan State would prefer to see Gash on the defensive side of the ball, where he could line up alongside his older brother Caleb.
Gash was named the 2026 MVP of the Polynesian Bowl National Showcase & Combine after clocking a blazing 4.35-second 40-yard dash.
As a junior in 2025, Gash was a two-way standout for Detroit Catholic Central, helping lead the Shamrocks to a 14-1 record and a Michigan Division 1 state championship. He played both wide receiver and cornerback throughout the season.
On offense, Gash caught 19 passes for 540 yards, averaging 28.4 yards per catch, while scoring eight touchdowns. Defensively, he totaled 74 tackles, three tackles for loss, nine pass breakups, one interception, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery. He also added a kickoff return touchdown.
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In the state championship game against Cass Tech, Gash delivered one of his best performances of the season. He recorded six tackles and one pass breakup on defense while hauling in three receptions for 126 yards and three touchdowns on offense.
According to 247Sports, Gash currently appears warm on four programs: Michigan State, Texas Tech, Alabama, and Oklahoma. He also holds offers from Auburn, Boston College, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, LSU, Louisville, Michigan, Missouri, Northwestern, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Wake Forest, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
There is certainly no shortage of interest in one of the nation’s top athletes, meaning the Spartans will have to work hard to fend off some of the premier programs in college football.
Having two brothers already on the roster is a great starting point for Michigan State. However, it will take a strong official visit this weekend to continue building momentum and potentially put the Spartans in an even better position moving forward.
No. 22 – F Morez Johnson Jr. – Score: 78.4
The first player from Michigan’s 2025-26 team has made it on the list, and it’s the bodyguard himself, Morez Johnson Jr. His stint in Ann Arbor was short, but impactful. After transferring in from Illinois, he found his way into a starting lineup with two other players 6-foot-9 or taller in Yaxel Lendeborg and Aday Mara. The trio wreaked havoc all season long thanks to their length and athleticism in a scheme tailor-made by head coach Dusty May.
Johnson was one of the most efficient players in the country, averaging 13.1 points per game on a 62.3 percent clip. He also led the team with 7.3 rebounds per game and was commonly considered one of the best defensive players on the floor with his ability to guard all five positions. He was a Second-Team All-Big Ten and was on the All-Big Ten Defensive Team as well.
No. 21 – F Deshawn Sims – Score: 78.9
In the transition from Tommy Amaker to John Beilein, Deshawn Sims was a part of a special group that propelled the program to relevancy again. Sims was the 19th player in program history to reach 1,500 career points, and the 15th to surpass 700 rebounds. Consistency was key, as he played in 129 consecutive games over four seasons, starting 92 of them.
Everything came together for the Wolverines in the 2008-09 season when Sims and co-star Manny Harris led the team to its first NCAA Tournament appearance in more than a decade. The team underperformed in 2009-10, but Sims’ play stayed consistent.
Along with the elite company Sims established with his longevity, he was also a three-time All-Big Ten honoree and averaged 16.1 points and 7.2 rebounds per game over his final two seasons.
No. 20 – F Ray Jackson – Score: 81.6
Not only did we have the introduction to the 2026 championship team, but this stretch also introduces us to the Fab Five with forward Ray Jackson, the final member of the historic 1991 class.
Jackson not only has the pedigree tied to the culture that surrounded the Fab Five and their two runner-up finishes in the NCAA Tournament, but he was also a great player. One could argue he was the most unheralded of the bunch and deserves more credit than he does. Somehow, he was only a two-time All-Big Ten performer, but he averaged 17.1 points and 7.3 rebounds per game in his final three seasons with the program.
He ascended from the last of the Fab Five to a premier Big Ten player during his four-year career, helping guide Maurice Taylor — an honorable mention in this series — to being a member of the All-Big Ten freshman team when Jackson was a senior.
Jackson’s impact was profound, not just for his role in the Fab Five but for the transition out of it with future players who had impossible shoes to fill. The Wolverines not only stayed afloat, but remained tournament teams in the years following, which would have meant more had that era not been tarnished with “scandal” for a fraction of what is being done today in the NIL world.
- The Top 25 Michigan men’s basketball players since 1989: No. 25-23
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