Michigan football: 2025 schedule and key games
Michigan football’s schedule and key games for the 2025 season.
- Long-time CBS college sports analyst Gary Danielson will retire at the end of the 2025 college football season.
- NFL analyst Charles Davis will replace Danielson for the 2026 season.
- Danielson was born in Detroit and starred at Dearborn Divine Child and Purdue before playing eight seasons with the Detroit Lions.
After 20 seasons on the call, longtime CBS Sports college football analyst Gary Danielson will be retiring at the end of the 2025 season, according to the network.
The 73-year-old former Purdue and Detroit Lions quarterback will finish his career as the longest-tenured college football analyst, according to CBS’ release. Danielson became the network’s lead analyst for the sport in 2006, after previous runs with ESPN and ABC Sports.
“I have had the greatest seat in the house for 36 years and have loved every minute of it,” Danielson said in a release. “I have discussed the timing of this moment with CBS Sports leadership over the past few years and we felt it was important I remained with the team during our transition to the Big Ten. As we enter our second full season of Big Ten football and my 20th at CBS Sports, the timing just feels right.”
Danielson, along with former sportscaster Verne Lundquist, called games for “SEC on CBS” for over a decade, before Brad Nessler replaced Lundquist in 2017. In 2024, CBS began broadcasting Big Ten games and Danielson moved over to the conference’s games.
Danielson, a Detroit native and Dearborn Divine Child alumnus, moved into broadcasting after 11 seasons in the NFL over 13 years (1976-88). That included eight seasons (1976-85) with his hometown Lions, for whom he completed 56.5% of his passes for 11,885 yards, 69 touchdowns and 71 interceptions over 85 games (52 starts). He finished his NFL career with two seasons as a backup with the Cleveland Browns.
Replacing Danielson will be NFL analyst Charles Davis, according to the network; Davis will join Nessler and Jenny Dell on the Big Ten broadcasts.
“For the past two decades Charles has been among the best analysts across the NFL and college football,” CBS Sports president and CEO David Berson said in the release. “He’s well known to fans, from calling college football national championships, to NFL playoff games, to the voice of Madden NFL. We’re thrilled Charles will be returning to his roots — college football — and calling our top Big Ten game each week.”
Davis said that Danielson will be missed when puts the microphone down.
“Gary has been the preeminent voice in college football for decades, and someone I have long admired and respected,” Davis said in a release. “It is hard to imagine college football Saturdays without him, but I am thrilled we get one last season with him. There is no replacing Gary, but I am truly honored and humbled to succeed him and call games with Brad Nessler and the incredible Big Ten on CBS team.”
Contact Eric Guzmán: eguzman@freepress.com; 313-222-1850. Follow him on X: @EricGuzman90.
