The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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T I G H T E N D S 66 ■ THE WOLVERINE 2026 FOOTBALL PREVIEW observed, near the end of spring football. "It's a very explosive offense, both pass and run. It's pushing us to grow our all-around game and excel in all phases of the offense." For the established Wolverines looking for insight into the plan, simply dialing up Utah football 2025 proved useful. "We watched a lot of Utah's offensive film from last year because that's where Coach [Jason] Beck and the staff are coming from," Hansen noted. "People like Dalton Kincaid have played at Utah. It's more just watching last year's offense and the tight ends." Kincaid, the stalwart Buffalo Bills tight end, recorded 1,414 receiving yards and 16 touchdowns at Utah, becoming a first- round draft pick in 2023. So, it's not as if the new crew in blue isn't aware of the effectiveness of a pass-catching tight end. Jo n Ja n se n , who came to Michigan as a tight end, but became a two-time captain and All-American a t o f fe n s ive tackle, helping the Wolverines to the 1997 national championship and now serving as the color analyst on U-M radio broadcasts, keeps a keen eye on the men up front. That includes the tight ends, whom he says will look to give the Wolverines a boost even when they're not featured. "There are some blurred lines there," Jansen said. "When you look at Utah over the last couple of years, and talking to the coaches, they've been very open about us- ing a sixth offensive lineman, whether it's in line or a wing. They want to utilize a sixth offensive lineman in the run game and in pass protection. " Yo u h ave g uys l i ke [ 6 -3, 245-pound senior tight end] Jalen Hoffman or [6-1, 244-pound sophomore tight end] Eli Owens that are more Max Bredeson-style play- ers. You could use them as offensive linemen in the blocking scheme if you need a blocker to go from a wing position and pull him to block on the other side. Maybe you get there a little faster than you would with an offensive lineman." Bredeson, of course, proved a lights-out blocker throughout his Michigan career, and any versions of him would mark a big plus for this crew. But that isn't necessar- ily their only role, Jansen assured. "You will see them in the backfield ev- ery once in a while as fullbacks," he said. "The tight end position is really where you'll see the traditional tight ends, like [6- 5, 246-pound senior] Deakon Tonielli, [6-4, 245-pound senior] Zack Marshall and [6-5, 240-pound] Hogan Hansen. Those guys will see more of the pass catching responsi- bilities come their way, and they'll be more like [sophomore transfer] JJ Buchanan was used early on in the season last year at Utah before ultimately becoming a wide receiver. The ability to create mismatches with those guys as receivers is big, and I call it a bit of a blurred line. "We saw it with Colston. We didn't see it as much last year, maybe because we didn't have an elite tight end. We started to see more of Zack Marshall and some Deakon at the end of the season, but Hogan was hurt. "When you want to go five wides and you ❱ ❱ X-FACTOR X-FACTOR Can HOGAN HANSEN stay healthy? The junior dealt with injuries last season but is the best pass catcher of Michigan's tight ends, having shown flashes of special potential in both in 2024 (7 receptions for 78 yards and 1 touchdown) and with limited action in 2025 (6 catches for 74 yards). PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL TIGHT FIT Michigan Tight Ends Look To Contribute With Versatility Tight End Production Last 10 Seasons Season Receptions Yards % Of Rec. Yds. TDs 2025 56 604 24.9% 2 2024 79 792 47.2% 6 2023 70 925 28.9% 5 2022 62 790 25.7% 5 2021 57 618 19.3% 5 2020* 22 199 13.2% 1 2019 41 542 16.6% 7 2018 54 793 28.3% 4 2017 54 697 31.3% 5 2016 59 667 24.2% 6 *Only played six games due to the COVID-19 pandemic BY JOHN BORTON M ichigan featured a host of extremely productive pass-catching tight ends over the past dozen years, including All- Americans such as Colston Loveland and Jake Butt. The landscape could be changing with the advent of a new coaching regime in Ann Arbor, although a determined group of tight ends in Schem- bechler Hall stands ready to help the cause in various ways. "I think we fit into all phases of the of- fense," junior tight end Hogan Hansen