The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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MAY 2026 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 11 ❱ INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS He's Off To A Great Start, But Longevity Is The Key By Chris Balas Covering John Beilein's Michigan teams for 12 years was as good as it gets. No scandals, great basketball, incredible teams, and a Hall of Fame coach. What more could you ask? Well … maybe a national title, the one thing that eluded the coach. If we're being honest, with a better whistle and a little better luck, he and the Wolverines would have captured the championship in 2013, the one Louisville vacated. Regardless, several Big Ten/tournament champion- ships, a pair of Final Fours and title game appearances, incredible NCAA Tournament success — we had it all with the coach. On top of that, he was voted the clean- est coach in the country in a vote of his peers, meaning he was doing all this with a hand tied behind his back. Beilein will be in the Naismith Hall of Fame someday, too. And if we had our way, they'd name the court after him. That's how much he meant to Michigan basketball. Dusty May is on the same path, except he's already got his "Natty," obviously. He's an absolute stud in this profession, and there's nobody in coaching we'd trade him for. We said that last year, even, after he took an 8-24 team to a Big Ten Tournament championship and the Sweet 16. In short, these two guys were perfect for Michigan in their respec- tive eras. Coach Beilein is the standard, but we expect May to keep climbing and to be right there with him at the end of his career. We hope that's a few decades down the road. Dusty May Is At The Top By Clayton Sayfie There's a lot of projection in this take, that Dusty May is already the best coach in Michigan history. Steve Fisher won a national champion- ship in 1989 and led the Wolverines to back-to-back title game appearances in 1992 and 1993. John Beilein should've won a championship in 2013, made multiple title games and is the winningest coach in program history with 278 victories. Beilein has been known as the Wolverines' best coach, and it's more than fair. After all, U-M hadn't made the NCAA Tour- nament in 10 seasons before he took the job, the facilities needed major upgrades and he wasn't willing to compromise his own integrity or that of the university to win. Beilein was voted by his peers as the cleanest coach in the country and won at a high level in an era where there were many coaches breaking the rules and even laws (per the FBI). May, though, took FAU to the Final Four in 2023, building a mid-major power at one of the programs with the least amount of tradition or resources in the country, then won 64 games in two seasons at Michigan, with a Big Ten Tour- nament title, regular-season conference championship and national crown. Sure, it's "easier" to rebuild a program during this era, with transfers immediately eligible, but nobody expected May to win so big, so quickly. And he's got all the tangibles and intangibles of an elite leader, teacher and representative of U-M. The 49-year-old has the Maize and Blue primed for success into the future, too, and that's where we believe we'll have more fans jumping on the bandwagon of this take. ❱ POINT ❙ COUNTERPOINT ❰ IS DUSTY MAY ALREADY THE GREATEST COACH IN MICHIGAN MEN'S BASKETBALL HISTORY? May has compiled a stel- lar 64-13 (.831) record in two seasons at U-M, win- ning a Big Ten Tournament title, a Big Ten regular-sea- son crown and the 2026 national championship. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN ATHLETICS Follow Michigan Sports Year-Round With The Wolverine Magazine! The Wolverine Magazine! THEWOLVERINE.COM | APRIL 2026 | $5.95 THEWOLVERINE.COM | APRIL 2026 | $5.95 ON A ON A MISSION MISSION Yaxel Lendeborg, Big Ten Champs Yaxel Lendeborg, Big Ten Champs Enter Postseason Ready To Roll Enter Postseason Ready To Roll THEWOLVERINE.COM | MARCH 2026 | $8.95 THEWOLVERINE.COM | MARCH 2026 | $8.95 CARTER MEADOWS SAVION HITER FOOTBALL RECRUITING ISSUE FIVE-STAR TALENTS FIVE-STAR TALENTS Michigan's 2026 Recruiting Class Stays Largely Intact, Michigan's 2026 Recruiting Class Stays Largely Intact, Led By EDGE Carter Meadows And RB Savion Hiter Led By EDGE Carter Meadows And RB Savion Hiter Makes a terrific gift for your Michigan Fan! TWO EASY WAYS TO ORDER: www.TheWolverineOnDemand.com Order 24 hours a day from our online store! Call: 800-421-7751 10:00-4:00 ET, Mon.-Fri. Or call 919-688-0218 if outside the U.S. The Wolverine magazine is the foremost source for analysis, information and opinions on Michigan football, recruiting and other sports! A one-year subscription includes: n 11 Monthly Editions Of The Wolverine n The Wolverine's 160-Page Football Preview n Online Access at TheWolverineOnDemand.com Subscription plans start at $49.99 for digital-only delivery and $74.99 for print/digital delivery. First-class postage upgrades are available. Sales tax may be added where applicable.