The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1545685
22 ■ THE WOLVERINE 2026 FOOTBALL PREVIEW igan slotted slightly below where Athlon has the team. Lindy's projects U-M to finish fifth in the Big Ten and 16th nationally. The publication ranked Kyle Whittingham at No. 6 nationally (an 8.5 grade out of 10, "outstand- ing hire") on the list of coaching changes, stating that "Coach Whit is the perfect old-school mentor to establish normalcy following the mess of a situation in Ann Arbor and … a grand-slam for the Wolverines. … The question remains whether a guy with no ties to Ann Arbor can keep the wins and talent train rolling." Under the category of "Most Pivotal Coordinator Moves," Michigan OC Jason Beck was listed No. 1, joining Michigan from Utah, and DC Jay Hill (from BYU) was No. 7. "First-year Wolverines coach Kyle Whittingham went big-game hunt- ing for his two coordinators, bringing his offensive ace-in-the-hole from Salt Lake. Beck's strong run-first approach fits Whittingham and Michigan well. Hill transformed one of the nation's worst de- fenses into a top-15 unit with the Cougars and … joins the staff of his former coach at Utah, Whittingham, for the second time in his career." Lindy's led its 2026 outlook for Michi- gan with the question, "Whittingham brings stability, will wins follow?" The annual magazine went on to describe quarterback Bryce Underwood's incon- sistent showing during spring practice as "springtime panic … but Whittingham wasn't among those overly concerned." Good news: "The immediate cred- ibility and stability Whittingham brought upon moving from Utah went a long way toward settling the thoroughly unsettled program following the December ouster of Sherrone Moore. No new Power 4 coach landed better coordinators than Whit- tingham with Beck and Hill." Bad news: "Sophomore Andrew Marsh is Michigan's only receiver with at least 30 career catches. That's how green the Wolverines are on the outside overall. Much is expected of transfer starters Jaime Ffrench (Texas) and JJ Buchanan (Utah). Our Call: "Michigan is one of five Big Ten teams capable of get- ting to the playoffs this season. The Wolverines' strength will be their athleticism near the line of scrim- mage, including star Utah transfer John Henry Daley, who registered 11.5 sacks last season." My, how the times have changed. Lin- dy's picked its top 15 conference games and "The Game" — Michigan vs. Ohio State — ranked only seventh on the list. Two other Big Ten matchups slotted higher this year: No. 1, Oregon at Ohio State and No. 2, Ohio State at Indiana. However, Michigan's rematch with Okla- homa ranked No. 3 among Lindy's top 15 nonconference games. The Wolverines' 2026 slate was ranked No. 14 among the 20 Toughest Sched- ules. "Kyle Whittingham's first barom- eter game is Oklahoma on Sept. 12 before Big Ten contests against Iowa, Penn State, Indiana, Oregon (road) and Ohio State (road). Didn't see this in Salt Lake City." Lindy's tabbed U-M running back Sav- ion Hiter No. 6 on its list of Ten Impact Freshmen: "He'll pound after contact and form a relentless 1-2 ground punch with Jordan Marshall. New coach Kyle Whit- tingham loves that stuff." The publication also reported that "the run game should still be Michigan's strength, with Whittingham hinting (teasing?) that they might find ways to get the veteran Marshall (932 yards, 10 TDs) and five-star freshman Hiter on the field at the same time." Daley is Lindy's pick for Big Ten De- fensive Player of the Year and U-M's Top Newcomer, while Underwood was pro- jected as U-M's Most Valuable Player and also credited with having the strongest arm in the conference. Sophomore wide receiver Andrew Marsh was listed as the Wolverines' emerging star. The publication's overview of the U-M program for 2026 sticks to conventional wisdom: "Michigan's primary focus is to continue to develop Underwood while ATHLON SPORTS 1. Ohio State 2. Georgia 3. Texas 4. Notre Dame 5. Indiana 6. Oregon 7. Miami (Fla.) 8. Oklahoma 9. Texas A&M 10. LSU 11. Ole Miss 12. Texas Tech 13. Michigan 14. USC 15. Alabama 16. BYU 17. Washington 18. Penn State 19. Houston 20. Utah 21. Tennessee 22. SMU 23. Louisville 24. Boise State 25. Iowa LINDY'S 1. Oregon 2. Texas 3. Ohio State 4. Notre Dame 5. Indiana 6. Georgia 7. Miami (Fla.) 8. LSU 9. Ole Miss 10. USC 11. Alabama 12. Texas A&M 13. Oklahoma 14. Texas Tech 15. BYU 16. Michigan 17. Houston 18. Louisville 19. Washington 20. SMU 21. Iowa 22. Utah 23. Penn State 24. Clemson 25. Florida State PHIL STEELE'S 2026 COLLEGE FOOTBALL 1. Notre Dame 2. Georgia 3. Ohio State 4. Texas 5. Indiana 6. Oregon 7. Miami (Fla.) 8. Alabama 9. Texas Tech 10. BYU 11. USC 12. SMU 13. Oklahoma 14. Ole Miss 15. Michigan 16. Texas A&M 17. Clemson 18. Louisville 19. Penn State 20. Navy 21. Tennessee 22. LSU 23. Boise State 24. Utah 25. Washington Top 25 Preseason National Rankings Wolverines On All-Big Ten Teams Athlon* Lindy's Phil Steele RB Jordan Marshall 1st 1st 2nd DL John Henry Daley 1st 1st 1st CB Jyaire Hill 1st 1st 1st OL Andrew Sprague — 1st — OL Blake Frazier — 3rd — AP Andrew Marsh — 3rd 2nd DB Chris Bracy — 3rd — DB Zeke Berry — — 3rd DL Enow Etta — — 3rd OL Jake Guarnera — — 4th DB Smith Snowden — — 4th * Athlon only published first-team picks in magazine