The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1546004
72 THE WOLVERINE ❱ AUGUST 2026 W hile so much pressure is be- ing put on sophomore quar- terback Bryce Underwood to take the next step in his development, just as much should be placed on Michigan's defensive front seven. To do what? Gen- erate pressure on Underwood's counter- parts—opposing quarterbacks. Last season, the Maize and Blue were above-average to middling at disrupt- ing opposing signal-callers. They were tied for 58th in sacks per game (2.15) and 64th in sack percentage (6.17). They were better at hurrying the quarterback, even if they could not get him to the ground. According to Pro Football Focus, Michi- gan tied for 34th in its pass rushing grade (80.3), which accounts for hits, hurries and sacks. The unit was not elite, but edge rushers Derrick Moore and Jaishawn Bar- ham were skilled enough to make them respectable. However, the Wolverines lost almost all their pass rushing production from last year. Moore, who was elite on his own with 41 total pressures and the ninth- best PFF pass rushing grade for an in- dividual who played at least 20 percent of his team's snaps (92.4), is gone. Bar- ham, who had 21 pressures and could be a menace off the edge, is gone. Defensive end TJ Guy and defensive tackle Rayshaun Benny, who had 18 pressures apiece, are also gone. In fact, of the nine Wolverines who tallied at least 10 pressures last sea- son, only three are back in the winged hel- mets: defensive end Cameron Brandt and interior linemen Trey Pierce and Enow Etta. Brandt, Pierce and Etta accounted for only 38 of those nine defenders' 164 pressures (23.2 percent). This isn't a situation either where Brandt, Pierce and Etta had so few be- cause they were backups with limited playing time. Pierce was a starter who had the second-most snaps among Michi- gan's defensive tackles, though he was hobbled with injuries at times last season. While Brandt was not a starter, he played just as much as those at the top of the depth chart. His 405 snaps were only 35 behind Moore (440) and were more than both Barham (375) and Guy (362). Etta did not see the field as much as the starting tackles, but he still had 295 snaps. The reason they had so few is that, aside from flashes from Pierce, they have not demonstrated prowess in pass rushing. All their pash rushing grades range be- tween 61.6 and 60.5, which is just average on PFF's grading scale. Brandt's 10.9 win percentage was outside the top 100 of all Power Four defensive ends who played 20 percent of their team's snaps. Etta's 6.5 win percentage was inside the top 100 for Power Four defensive tackles, but he just squeaked in at 97th. Pierce was nowhere near the top 100 at 4.2 percent, but he was not 100 percent either. For Michigan, this is concerning be- cause Brandt, Pierce and Etta are all pro- jected to be starters in 2026, and none are a certainty, or even a threat, to be profi- cient at pass rushing. The wild card, though, enters at the other defensive end spot. After Michigan hired former Utah head coach Kyle Whit- tingham to be its main man, defensive end John Henry Daley followed him to Ann Arbor. Daley was a monster for the Utes on the outside last season. He had 11.5 sacks, but most impressively, he collected them in only 11 games. As such, his aver- age of 1.05 sacks per game was second in the nation. He also was second in PFF's pass rush- ing grade (93.4), third in PFF's win per- centage stat (23.0) and sixth in PFF's pash rushing production metric (11.5) among Power Four edge rushers who played at least 20 percent of their team's snaps. There is no question that Daley can be the terror off the edge that Michigan desper- ately needs. Suppose he is healthy, though. Daley's amazing season unfortunately ended early when he ruptured his Achilles tendon last November. Obviously, a ruptured Achilles is a significant injury with an estimated recovery timetable of six to 12 months. This raises many questions, as there will have been only about nine to 10 months between his injury and Michigan's season opener. Daley has been optimistic; how- ever, he said in March that he was target- ing June 1 as the date he could go "full-go with no limitations." Even so, many ath- letes who have suffered this injury have needed more time to fully regain the agility and athleticism they had previously. Michigan is hoping that is not the case. If Daley is not full-go and Brandt, Pierce and Etta don't take the next step as pass rushers, the pressure will not be on Mich- igan's opposing quarterbacks. It will be on themselves instead. ❑ INSIDE THE NUMBERS ❱ DREW HALLETT The Pressure of Getting Pressure Of the nine Michigan defenders to record at least 10 pressures in 2025, defensive end Cameron Brandt is one of only three who are set to return this fall. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL Staff writer Drew Hallett has covered Michigan athletics since 2013. Contact him at drew.c.hallett@gmail.com and follow him on X (Twitter) @DrewCHallett.