The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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OCTOBER 2026 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 25 formed in a dozen games at edge rusher, racking up 19 tackles, with 5.5 for loss and 1 sack. He's not seeking scraps these days. Nichols wants to scrap opposing offenses, in meaningful ways, at critical moments. That's what his work leading up to the 2026 campaign afforded him. "I was definitely ready," Nichols said. "It was exciting. I've always wanted to play more. and that's been one of my things. But you've got to wait your turn. In this era of college football, people for- get that. If you sit there, people also forget about you. It's easy to get caught up in that stuff, but you can't. It's just part of the game." Nichols certainly asserted himself in Michigan's razor's-edge opener against Western Michigan. Defense ruled in the harrowing 13-12 victory, and Nichols' ef- forts paced the Wolverines. His 9 tack- les included 2.5 for loss and 1.5 sacks. He added a pair of quarterback hurries, be- coming one of the most noticeable Wol- verines under defensive coordinator Jay Hill's command. "It's exciting just knowing that no matter what, you're going to be a factor in that game," Nichols said. "When the plays come to you, you just have to make them. I feel like that's the mindset everyone on this team needs to have — do my one-11th at 110 percent, and if everyone does that, we'll be fine." It didn't feel completely fine in the opener. The Michigan defense didn't al- low Western Michigan to reach the end zone, and that proved crucial. The Wol- verines never got there themselves, other than on their opening and closing posses- sions of the game. A cliffhanger against Western Michigan — a WMU crew with a shot at the Group of Six's College Football Playoff bid — isn't what any of the Wol- verines had in mind for a first game. Nichols proved the most blunt after- ward. Asked how he felt about the fans rushing the field afterward, Nichols took on the question like shedding a block. "Yeah, that wasn't a moment we really wanted to be living in, to be honest," Nich- ols said. "I mean, it's Western Michigan." Later, he added: "Sick to my stom- ach is the way I would explain the feel- ing of that game. It should have never come down to that. Obviously, I'm glad we came out 1-0, but we have some stuff to fix, and we'll fix it, and we'll only get better from here." Nichols also spoke at a players-only meeting called by Michigan's captains in the days following the near disaster against the Broncos. There were some blunt offerings in that one, graduate safety and captain Rod Moore invoking the word "soft" regarding Michigan's play. Nichols sought to tell the truth and light a fire. At the same time, he recog- nized all the heat coming from outside of Schembechler Hall and stressed the unity the team needs to cement in the early days of the season. Captain Jordan Marshall, the junior running back, called Nichols "a positive voice" in a meeting filled with hard, tough talk. "That's just what of felt like we needed at the time," Nichols said. "There's no reason to keep bringing negative stuff into the building while you've got a lot of that outside of the building. Just keep loving each other, and that's all we can do." The whole message from the coach- ing staff involved doing, leading up to the showdown with Oklahoma. The phrase for the week was "Do more" — more of whatever it takes to play better and get the job done. Nichols felt fully on board with that. "Just extra hours in the building, extra film study, extra time working on your craft," he said. "You can always get better. Anyone can get better. I think everybody knows that." Nichols knew it when he came to Mich- igan. "I just put my trust in the process and I learned from dudes like Derrick [Moore], J-Stew [Josaiah Stewart] and Jaishawn [Barham], and I just waited my turn," he offered. "I mean, I always knew it was go- ing to come eventually. I just have to keep my foot on the gas pedal." The mold-it-'til-you-make-it ap- proach isn't new to him at all. It's what put him in the starting lineup in Year 3 of his Ann Arbor sojourn. It's what he ex- pects will form a more solid crew of Wol- verines moving through the 2026 season. He's looking to become a major part of the solution. "Now it's my turn to make my impact on the game, and I just hope I can go in there and change some things about the outcome," he said. He certainly doesn't hold back on the field. As a matter of fact, he's been dubbed a "psycho" regarding his on-field persona by teammates. "I have no problem being called that, because of the way I carry myself on the field," Nichols said. "It's the only time you're allowed to hit somebody — playing football — so why not act like that when you're out there? You're allowed to, so that's what I do." So far, he's been part of a crazy good defense — right where he wanted to be. ❏ Oklahoma Effort Highlights Tough Tandem at Defensive End Michigan has featured plenty of dynamic defensive end duos over the past dozen years. From Aidan Hutchinson on down, the Wolverines have put the fear of sod into opposing quarterbacks. That's not about to change in 2026, if early returns are any indication. The Wolverines' 17-10 takedown of No. 11 Oklahoma in Game 2 made national news — this time in a good way, fol- lowing a less-than-satisfying opener against Western Michigan. Senior defensive end John Henry Daley produced a sack and 3 tackles for loss among 8 overall takedowns, and junior Dom Nichols also helped make life miserable for Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer. Nichols got in on a sack, a TFL and a quarterback hurry while keeping the heat on in one of Mateer's more forgettable performances. Nichols got a paw on one attempt by the veteran quarterback that — had it come a split-second sooner — would have been ruled a fumble rather than an incomplete pass. Some thought it was a fumble. No matter, in the long run. There's more to come, according to Michigan defensive ends coach Lewis Powell. "He has gained some strength, just a little bit better fundamentals and technique with being more consistent on setting the edge and stopping the run," Powell said of Nichols. "Just knowing that, our objective here now is we've got to stop the run first and then the pass. He understands the importance of stopping the run, and he's worked really hard on it." When it's time to come after the quarterback, Nichols isn't holding back. "We're excited," Powell said. "I think he's going to be a big part of our success moving forward." — John Borton