The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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36 ■ THE WOLVERINE 2026 FOOTBALL PREVIEW BY CLAYTON SAYFIE T hree of the most prominent national college football voices — Sporting News' Bill Bender, CBS Sports' Tom Fornelli, and Athlon Sports' Ste- ven Lassan — weigh in on Michigan ahead of the 2026 season. The panel of ex- perts discusses the Kyle Whittingham hire, predictions for the Wolverines and makes picks for the Big Ten and national titles. Considering the unique situation and timing following Sherrone Moore's firing, how would you as- sess the Kyle Whittingham hire? Bender: A ground-rule double. It's dif- ficult to label Whittingham a home run given [Alabama's] Kalen DeBoer and [Ari- zona State's] Kenny Dillingham were ru- mored candidates, but Whittingham feels like hires such as Mike Elko at Texas A&M or Jeff Brohm at Louisville. It's a no-non- sense hire that should produce results on the field and less embarrassment off it. Sherrone Moore was fired on Dec. 10 and the Wolverines were able to land Whit- tingham on Dec. 26. That was an after- Christmas present for the program at that point — and it brings an aura of reputability back to Michigan. Fornelli: It's a best-case scenario. Typi- cally, in a situation like this you'd expect a program to scramble and go with some sort of temporary fix. One of the best coaches in the country isn't typically sitting at home after being forced out of their old job af- ter dominating there for 20 years! Given everything we know now about what was going on behind the scenes under Moore, there's no way to look at this situation other than as an upgrade for the Wolverines. Lassan: Whittingham is a massive up- grade over Moore, and I think it's a home- run hire for Michigan. Hiring a proven head coach with a track record of winning after the early signing period and around the first transfer portal window is challenging for any program. However, the Wolverines pulled off the rare move of overcoming that timing by hiring arguably one of college football's current top 10 coaches. Whit- tingham comes to Michigan after recording 177 victories and eight double-digit win totals at Utah. He also thrived at developing talent and consistently got the most out of his roster in Salt Lake City. Also, the Utes played a style that will translate to the Big Ten with an ability to win in the trenches on both sides of the ball, elite defensive play, and standout special teams. This is an A-plus caliber hire for Michigan consider- ing the unique situation and unusually bad timing to hire a coach. How well do you believe Whitting- ham can compete at the highest level of the sport with increased re- sources at Michigan? Bender: Whittingham produced four 10-win seasons in the last seven years at Utah. Michigan has three 10-win seasons in the same time frame. He can get Michigan back to double-digit wins and Big Ten and College Football Playoff contention. Whit- tingham led Utah to success in the Moun- tain West Conference, Pac-12 and Big 12 — and he will naturally adjust to the com- petition in the Big Ten. Whittingham led Utah to an 11-6 record against BYU in the Holy War. He does not need much school- ing in the importance of rivalry matchups against Ohio State and Michigan State. Fornelli: I don't know that Whitting- ham will win a national title at Michigan, but that's more about how difficult it cur- rently is to win one, and how much more difficult it will be when the playoff likely expands again. That said, I see no reason why Whittingham can't have Michigan competing at the top of the Big Ten fight- ing for conference titles and playoff berths every season. He was able to do so at Utah through multiple conferences, and while the MWC, Pac-12 and Big 12 may not have the top-heavy programs the Big Ten has, he's at one of those top-heavy programs now. Lassan: It's no guarantee a coach who won at a lower level or easier conference can translate that to the Big Ten. However, I feel confident Whittingham won't have much trouble adapting to or competing at the highest level of college football at Michigan. I just think Whittingham is a winner who should be motivated with a window of op- portunity to chase a national champion- ship at one of the top programs in college football. Developing talent, mining the portal and hiring quality assistant coaches were all strengths of Whittingham in Salt Lake City. All of those qualities will easily translate to Ann Arbor. How big of a jump do you ex- pect sophomore QB Bryce Un- derwood to make this sea- son, and how much of the Wolverines' potential in 2026 is riding on his im- provement? Bender: It's about bridg- ing the gap between the immense talent that made Underwood a five-star re- cruit in high school and the inconsistency he showed as a freshman. Underwood had six games with less than 200 passing yards and an 86.4 passer rating against ranked teams. Development was an issue. Still, Underwood is a next- level arm talent, and offensive coordinator Jason Beck brought out the best in Devon Dampier at Utah last season. Underwood Burning Questions College Football Experts Preview Michigan's 2026 Season