The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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4 THE WOLVERINE ❱ FEBRUARY 2026 ALL IN ON KYLE WHITTINGHAM Things I like about KW: • His teams play tough, led by a powerful running attack • This is a great antidote to OSU's pass- happy offense (loved how Utah handled Caleb Williams-led USC teams and beat them twice in a season) • Discipline and stable leadership: exactly what we need at this time at Michigan • Not worried too much about recruiting. NIL will take care of it. Recruits and their parents probably knew about Sherrone (or at least heard rumors) and they still came • Not worried about age: John Beilein was 66 when he left for the Cavs, and we would have loved to keep him • If you like shiny new toys, you will get a chance with young and/or exciting coor- dinators Amaze78 Agree. I'm "in" on Whittingham and my NIL $ will keep flowing. U-M will have a tough, disciplined football team. He achieved a high level at Utah with less talent and resources. His age is way overblown. 66 isn't old, sorry not sorry. Especially with his energy and physi- cal shape. His QB last year had 25 TDs, which would be a record at U-M. Stability and excel- lence incoming. BlueCo For those that think Whittingham is old and stubborn, here's a heck of a quote from him about analytics: "First of all, if you think you're smarter than analytics, you're not. Anybody out there, if you think you've got a better grasp of the game and strategy than the analytics do, you don't," Whittingham said. He seems all in on modern football. Goblue1 Kyle Whittingham is Jim Harbaugh without all the games. That's the best external hire. And his style fits what Michigan did this year. He's won in Utah of all places. 90MVarsity If Harbaugh was still here, no one would be bitching about his age, and there is only a four-year difference. Whittingham appears to be in really good shape. You are bringing in another hall of fame coach who is universally respected by everyone who knows anything about football. He has incredible resources behind him and will bring discipline and hard- nose play to a program that has had none since Harbaugh left. The players should love having a coach of his caliber. I am excited to see the rest of the staff and what happens in the portal. Posterwatch ALL HAIL MAX BREDESON Given the changes in college football that we've all been discussing/debating, I wonder if we'll ever see another Max Bredeson at U-M? As a reminder: • Only played 6 football games in HS due to injury and Covid • Was a QB in HS • Walks on and they tell him "Nope, you're a TE" • Not really the prototypical size for TE, and he figures he's not going to get a ton of PT there so he becomes a FB • Becomes a team captain ... not many for- mer walk-ons do that (I think Eric Mayes and Kovacs are two ... not sure how many before them) • Wins the Lowman Award for the nation's best FB • Stuck around 5 years and was a great rep- resentative of the team and University I look at the current roster (and clearly it could change over the next week) and wonder "Who's the guy that's going to step up and be that leader?" A few guys come to mind … Jor- dan Marshall, Blake Frazier (young, but a legacy who gets it), Bryce Underwood? golfer18us Max Bred was arguably the best blocking football player I have ever seen at any level. The Lord will bless that man beyond belief. TRUST. Junderscore All-time Michigan great. Hope he gets drafted and can find a niche in the NFL. Ebegun And in the fifth round of the 2026 NFL draft the Los Angeles Chargers pick … ShermansSC ❱ Be Heard! Send your letters to: Wolverine Letters P.O. Box 2331 , Durham, NC 27702 Or email: mark.panus@on3.com Letters may be edited for clarity or length. Letters/From Our Website: TheWolverine.com February 2026 • Vol. 37, No. 8 ISSN 1048-9940 TheWolverine.com Senior Editor Chris Balas Senior Writer John Borton Staff Writers Clayton Sayfie Anthony Broome EJ Holland Ethan McDowell Drew Hallett Contributing Editors Stu Coman Matt Herb Cathy Jones Chris Riffer Steve Downey Layout And Design Jeanette Blankenship, Chris Miller, Shelby Cragg Contributing Photographers Lon Horwedel Per Kjeldsen, Ty Kornblue Cover Photo Lon Horwedel Editor & Publisher Mark Panus Business Analyst Sarah Boone Circulation Coordinator Beverly Taylor Advertising Sales Maria Taustine (502) 552-4390 Customer Service Shelby Cragg, Macduff Henry, Cathy Jones (800) 421-7751 The Wolverine is published monthly. A one-year (12 issues) subscription is $74.99. The Wolverine is printed at The Papers in Milford, Ind. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Wolverine, P.O. Box 2331, Durham, NC 27702. Periodical postage paid at Durham, NC 27702 and additional offices. 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