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The player movement portion of the college football offseason has come and gone in a whirlwind. With rosters set but fall camp not yet underway, we’re left conjecturing what the 2026 season will look like. The coaching staff has certainly improved year over year as head coach Kyle Whittingham takes over, but which position groups have done the same?
Today, we’ll go position by position and assess whether they’ve improved or regressed on paper. Of course, the players could prove us wrong on the field in the fall, but we went through this to help inform our overall impressions and expectations for the upcoming season.
Quarterbacks: Moderately improved
Development, development, development. That’s the name of the game for the quarterbacks. Michigan’s record this fall will largely hinge on the play of Bryce Underwood. While his freshman season was underwhelming, no one should be willing to give up on him just yet. A sophomore leap is very common in college football, so I expect to see improvement here. The group as a whole is a bit deeper as well, with Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi and Tommy Carr backing up Underwood.
Running Backs: Marginally improved
The running backs are expected to be one of the best groups for the Wolverines this year. However, the same could be said last year. When Justice Haynes and Jordan Marshall were healthy, they were a lethal one-two punch. However, they were rarely healthy at the same time. Assuming full health, the Marshall-Savion Hiter combo should be just as good, if not better than what we saw last year. Throw in Bryson Kuzdzal returning as the third-stringer with another year under his belt, and this is a star-studded group.
Fullback: Dramatically regressed
No offense to Jalen Hoffman and Eli Owens who both have shown promise, but Max Bredeson is a program legend at fullback. This category would have been dramatically regressed with just about anyone on the planet following Bredeson.
Tight Ends and Receivers: Dramatically improved
The 2025 Wolverines saw a freshman burst onto the scene in Andrew Marsh and … that was about it. Semaj Morgan’s repeated drops are what lingers in my mind as well. Whittingham and company retained Marsh and brought in essentially a brand new starting lineup in transfers JJ Buchanan, Jaime Ffrench and Salesi Moa. This will be one of the best receiver rooms Michigan has had in quite some time.
As for the tight ends, the play out of Marlin Klein was mediocre, but not up to expectations. If Hogan Hansen and Zack Marshall can stay healthy, we should see roughly the same amount of production as last year, if not more.
Offensive Line: Moderately improved
The 2025 offensive line had potential but was ravaged by injuries. Evan Link, Andrew Babalola and Gio El-Hadi all missed time, which thrust younger players into the lineup a year too early. This year, Jake Guarnera and Andrew Sprague anchor a line that is supplemented by several highly-touted recruits who have had enough time to develop and should now be productive starters. Blake Frazier, Babalola and more figure to be key pieces that are finally ready to contribute. I wouldn’t expect this line to produce like the 2023 team did, but it should be much better than what we saw last year.
Interior Defensive Line: Marginally regressed
Trey Pierce figures to be one of the best defensive tackles in the Big Ten and will certainly anchor the group. However, after Pierce and Enow Etta, the depth gets dicey. Last season’s team had a high floor but a low ceiling with guys like Damon Payne Jr. and Tre Williams. This season’s team has a high ceiling but a low floor. I’m guessing this group will take a small step back this year before a giant step forward in 2027.
Edge: Marginally regressed
This was the toughest group to categorize. While John Henry Daley could be a major upgrade, we also don’t know how healthy he’ll be this fall. There are highly rated recruits galore behind Daley and Cam Brandt on the depth chart, so the group should produce well. However, Derrick Moore was arguably the best player on the Wolverines last year and was a second-round pick by the Detroit Lions. A fully healthy Daley might be better than that, but we’ll err on the side of caution for now.
Linebackers: Dramatically regressed
Ernest Hausmann and Jaishawn Barham anchored a deep and talented linebacker unit last year. Case in point, Jimmy Rolder wasn’t technically a starter all season and was still drafted. The 2026 Wolverines are not that. Cole Sullivan’s transfer to Oklahoma was as painful as it gets. There are loads of players with high potential such as Chase Taylor and Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng, but neither of them have seen a lot of meaningful snaps yet. It will be a case of throwing things at the wall and seeing what sticks.
Secondary: Moderately improved
Michigan is running it back at cornerback with Zeke Berry and Jyaire Hill. You have to think both will improve with another year under their belt and an improved coaching staff. On top of that, Michigan brought in cornerback Smith Snowden from Utah and safety Chris Bracy from Memphis who are both being raved about. Throw in a potential Rod Moore return (fingers crossed) and this is a unit that should be better than last year by a sizable amount.
Specialists: Moderately regressed
The loss of Dominic Zvada certainly hurts, as he was one of the better kickers in Michigan history, despite a down 2025 season. However, it’s nearly impossible to judge the incoming specialists without seeing them on the field in game action. A TBD may be more appropriate here.
Throw it all together, and this looks like (on paper) a vastly improved offense and a defense that is taking a small step back. I don’t foresee the defense falling off of a cliff by any means, but the Wolverines lost a ton of talent while they were able to retain most of it on offense.
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