The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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MAY 2026 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 9 BY ANTHONY BROOME W hen the team at Paramount Sports Entertainment and Reli- gion of Sports began filming the "Made For March" docuseries, the hope was that either Michigan or Kansas could pay it off with a national championship. Then, it became reality. The show, which dropped its first three episodes on Paramount+ and CBS on Final Four weekend, aired its Michi- gan-heavy finale on April 18, taking fans inside the now-iconic national title run and some of the quieter moments that they normally do not get to see. The series featured both the Wolver- ines and Jayhawks from the start of their seasons until the very end. "When we were setting out to make the series, we wanted to make this a definitive college basketball/March Madness series," executive producer and Religion of Sports exec Jonathan Schaerf said. "When we were looking at different teams to potentially profile, we wanted to make sure that one, they were very different. When we looked at Michigan versus Kansas, we wanted to make sure that the stories wouldn't be homogenized in any way — every- thing from the coaches, their legacies, the programs. "Bill [Self ] is obviously in a much later stage of his career; he is one of the GOATs. Dusty [May] was potentially one of the GOATs when we set out to make this, and I think we're starting to be proven right that he'll eventually get there. Even the ways that the teams were manufactured this season in terms of recruitment, you look at how Kan- sas recruited freshman superstars like Darryn Peterson, and they've histori- cally done that. Dusty and the Michigan team have really found a lot of success in building these teams in the transfer portal. That obviously worked for the season. "Also, how they exist in this new mo- ment, NIL, where money is a very big part of the game and how the teams find success in building rosters. It's not ev- erything. We've seen multiple teams that spent close to $20 million not do very well this season. "We just wanted to make sure that the two teams were very different in terms of storytelling." Being embedded within the Michigan program throughout the year helped the crew build relationships and create mo- ments that have now become snapshots of a special time for all involved. "The relationship became what you dream about when you enter this line of work," said producer Lee Feiner, who spent the most time with the program during the shoot. "We're trying to tell as complete and honest a story as we can. We're away from our families for ex- tended periods of time. The work is in- credibly exhilarating and fun and excit- ing, but it's taxing. The way it becomes what you end up seeing on the screen with this show is just an immense level of reciprocal energy. "That came from the program. It started with Dusty, but once Dusty said yes and opened the doors, they just opened the doors. "As much as any project I've ever worked on, this is really a time capsule of the season. It's something that I think the players and coaches, even in the midst of the confetti coming down at the national championship, were telling me that they're so happy that we were able to do this because they're going to be able to watch this in five to 10 years and actually look back on this and see the story of their season reflected." The finale commemorated U-M's path to its national title crown but fea- tures more of the quiet moments and the human element outside of the con- fetti falling at Lucas Oil Stadium. "I think there's access that was largely earned by Lee and the trust on the ground for the team. There were mo- ments in real time where the season's probably hanging in the balance or the potential of a player's future," executive producer and showrunner Collin Orcutt said. "You're experiencing it in real time in a way that probably means a little bit more after you've spent three hours of TV understanding their journey and where they're trying to go. You can read between the lines on that, but this is be- yond the highlights. I think that's what will ultimately, hopefully, make it suc- cessful and memorable." ❑ ❱ Inside Michigan ATHLETICS Inside The 'Made For March' Docuseries From Paramount+ Center Aday Mara is one of the players fea- tured in the docuseries chronicling Michigan's 2025-26 season. PHOTO COURTESY PARAMOUNT+