The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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10 THE WOLVERINE ❱ MAY 2025 ❱ INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS Michigan junior defensive back Brandyn Hillman has opened eyes with his hitting ability, but now he's rounding into a complete player. Hillman should play much more this year in a loaded backfield, and he has great potential. He talks about his spring and more in this Q&A. The Wolverine: You're known as a big hitter — what's the next step in your development? Brandyn Hillman: "As you all can see, I can hit people. Now I'm just taking my time out there, really breaking it down, trying to minimize the kill shots. Still keep them, that's my aggression, but just knowing when to do it. I've only got one body, so I've got to take care of it as long as I can so I can stay on the field." The Wolverine: Defensive backs coach LaMar Morgan says he wants you to play with more "controlled aggression" and focus. How confi- dent are you that you can do that? Hillman: "I'm ready. I can feel it. My coach understands it. He sees it every day. When I'm hitting somebody, when it's an open-field tackle, I don't have to kill him … just get him down to the ground. If I do get the kill shot, I can go take it." The Wolverine: You have an aggressive attitude on the field. Why? Hillman: "I just feel like you've got to play like that in football. You can't be soft. It's an aggressive game, so either you hit somebody, or you get hit. I don't want to get hit." The Wolverine: You've been playing multiple positions in the second- ary. Which is your primary spot? Hillman: "I've been moving around. I'm cool with it. As long as my de- fense needs it … I've got no problem with it. Coach needs me at safety, I'll go to safety. Coach needs me at nickel, I'll go to nickel." The Wolverine: You have a 2-year-old daughter. How tough is it to balance school, football and parenting? Hillman: "I would be lying if I said it was easy. I like it. It's not like I just became a dad. It's been two years. "It's fun. It gives me more motivation to keep going, not to back down. On my hardest days, I can look back at my daughter, and I'll be good." — Chris Balas ❱ Sitting Down With Michigan Junior Defensive Back Brandyn Hillman Last season, Hillman played in 12 games and recorded 21 tackles with 1 sack and 2 passes broken up. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL Michigan went 8-24 in 2023-24, posting the most losses in program history, which prompted the firing of head coach Juwan Howard. New head man Dusty May promised big and delivered even bigger. In his first season, May's squad racked up 27 victories, cut down the nets as Big Ten Tournament champions, advanced to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 and finished No. 10 in the final Associated Press poll. Going from 8 to 27 wins — a 19-victory difference — marks the greatest one-year turnaround in Michigan program and Big Ten history. In fact, there have only been three other occurrences of Michigan notching 10-plus more wins than the previous season — 1918-19 (+12), 1991-92 (+11) and 2008-09 (+11). None of those instances were in the first year of a head coach's ten- ure, however, making May's turn- around not only the greatest but also unique. At the same time, it's worth noting that the player move- ment in this current era is much more prominent, with players being able to transfer as many times as they want. May brought in six transfers and three freshmen, completely revamping Michigan's roster. There have been five times, meanwhile, that the Maize and Blue have recorded nine more victories than the prior campaign — 1962-63, 1970-71, 1973-74, 1983- 84 and 2005-06. Michigan did it this season by playing the 10th-toughest schedule in the nation, too, per KenPom. The Wolverines had a challenging slate in Howard's final year, as well, checking in fourth in strength of schedule. The Wolverines also went from worst to first in the Big Ten, in a sense, finishing last at 3-17 in 2023- 24 and winning the Big Ten Tourna- ment this past March. In the regular- season standings, U-M placed tied for second with Maryland (14-6), behind only Michigan State (17-3). — Clayton Sayfie LARGEST YEAR-OVER-YEAR WIN DIFFERENTIALS First Season Wins Second Season Wins Difference 2023-24 8 2024-25 27 +19 1917-18 6 1918-19 18 +12 1990-91 14 1991-92 25 +11 2007-08 10 2008-09 21 +11 1961-62 7 1962-63 16 +9 1969-70 10 1970-71 19 +9 1972-73 13 1973-74 22 +9 1982-83 15 1983-84 24 +9 2004-05 13 2005-06 22 +9 MICHIGAN MEN'S BASKETBALL WITH BEST ONE-YEAR TURNAROUND IN PROGRAM HISTORY