Gear up, because Captain Clutch is making a comeback! No, he’s not stepping into the diamond, but he sure is returning to the field—just differently. The New York Yankees icon Derek Jeter will be the honorary captain for No. 9 Michigan’s Week 2 college football showdown against the No. 4 Texas Longhorns at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor. This news is confirmed by the Michigan Wolverines coach Sherrone Morre. Ever since hanging up his cleats in 2014, Jeter hasn’t slowed down one bit. From diving into business to taking on the role of an owner for Miami Marlins, to now running his dream project with Arena Club—he is doing it all.

And now that he is called to step into the football world, it shows his reach is far beyond the diamond. Moreover, the game itself is going to be nail-biting. The Longhorns are heading into the game after a dominating 52-0 win over Colorado State and while even the Wolverines too had a strong start; it wasn’t by this much of a margin. Michigan coach Moore will hugely rely on their quarterback, Davis Warren, whom he called, “a fighter.” 

Wolverines turn to Derek Jeter for honorary captain duties in week 2

According to the plans, Michigan Wolverines initially had former Wolverines coach Jim Harbaugh set to be the honorary captain for the week 1 game over Fresno State. But Harbaugh, who led the Wolverines to a national title last season before taking on the role of head coach for the LA Chargers, could not attend. Instead, his parents, Jack and Jackie, stepped up, and they were given the honorary captain duties for the season opener. But for week 2, they have to bring in a familiar face and who better than Derek Jeter, who has ties to Michigan? 

Derek Jeter and his ties to Michigan run deep. He grew up in Kalamazoo, and briefly even attended the Kalamazoo Central High School. Not that he even clinched a scholarship to attend the prestigious University of Michigan in 1992. However, his time there was quite limited since he was leaping up the ladder to make it to the Yankee system. But despite his short stint at Michigan, Jeter has continued to show his support and was seen at January Michigan football games. Back in January, he was spotted with NBA legend Michael Jordon attending the National Championship in Houston. Derek Jeter will be joined by actor Matthew McConaughey for the event!

What lies ahead for the Michigan Wolverines this season

The Michigan Wolverines are like a whole new team compared to a year ago. This is because the team has lost some of the key players, who kept the competitive spirit rolling to the NFL draft and transfer portal. Currently, things don’t look bright given their schedule is challenging, with games remaining against USC Trojans, Ohio State Buckeyes, Texas Longhorns, and Oregon Ducks. At the season opener, the team chose David Warren over Alex Orji as their starting quarterback and the offense is still a bit of a mystery of sorts. Even though they beat Fresno State 30-10, the game was much closer than the score suggests—it was only 13-3 going into the fourth quarter.

As far as the game with Texas Longhorns, Moore is fully aware of the challenges ahead, saying, “Texas presents challenges on offense with Ewers at quarterback and the way Sark calls the game. The receivers are fast, and their running back is really good.” He further added, “You want these types of games, you want those building blocks to help mold your team.” However, if Michigan manages to buckle up and pull off a few more wins—a handful even, they could have a shot at making it as an at-large team. But with four losses, counting the Wolverines making it into the college football playoffs—seems farfetched.

Still, there’s hope for the Wolverines and their new head coach, Sherrone Moore, to start building something solid this season. For now, given that one of the most esteemed names in MLB, Derek Jeter will be stepping in as the honorary captain- could the serial winning habit of this 5x World Series champion rub off on the team? What do you think? Let us know.