Michigan’s four captains for 2026 tell you plenty about where the program is headed - and they start with the biggest surprise of the group.
Bryce Underwood, the quarterback, is among the four players elected Monday night. That’s notable because this kind of honor usually goes to upperclassmen, and Underwood had to earn it the hard way.
Kyle Whittingham is not the type to blow smoke for the sake of optics. Underwood was going to have to prove himself as both a quarterback and a leader, and his captaincy suggests he has done exactly that after spending the offseason working to improve in that area.
The expectation now rises with the title. Being a captain means more than just being one of the top voices in the locker room; it also comes with the burden of being one of the best players on the field. Underwood will need to be better this season than he was last season, because how far Michigan goes will depend heavily on how much he can carry them.
He won’t be doing it alone. Jordan Marshall is stepping into the spotlight after waiting behind Kalel Mullings, Donovan Edwards, and Justice Haynes through his first two seasons.
Marshall finally entered the starting lineup when Haynes missed the second half of the 2025 season with a foot injury, and he was Michigan’s best offensive player last year against Ohio State despite only playing a handful of snaps. His burst on the opening drive gave the Wolverines hope, even if that hope didn’t last long.
As a captain, Marshall fits the mold: quiet, steady, and brutally effective. He runs with force and should bring some edge and physicality to the offense.
On the other side of the ball, Derrick Moore Pierce gives Michigan a captain who has built his way up from a former three-star recruit to a starter. There’s been some outside concern about the defensive line, but Whittingham and his staff have described it as a strength.
Pierce, alongside Enow Etta, is central to that belief. He was one of Michigan’s representatives at Big Ten Media Days and has spent much of the offseason in the spotlight.
Now the task is to back that up by helping slow the long list of offenses Michigan will face this season.
Then there’s Rod Moore, whose selection might be the most meaningful of all. He is the first three-time captain in either of the last two centuries, a remarkable line for a player who has already become a Michigan legend. He may not have been an All-American, but his place in the program’s memory was secured the moment he intercepted Kyle McCord to seal Michigan’s win in what will likely be the highest stakes The Game has ever been played in.
Moore’s path since then has only added to the story. Knee injuries wiped out all of his 2024 season and most of his 2025 season, but he is back for his final year hoping to leave an even larger mark. He should help anchor what could be an excellent secondary and a real strength for Michigan’s defense.
Tom Brady once said that the greatest honor of his career had nothing to do with the NFL. It was being named a captain at Michigan.
That context hangs over this group now, because captaincy in Ann Arbor clearly still means something. For Underwood, Marshall, Pierce, and Moore, it’s more than a title.
It’s a sign that Michigan expects them to lead, and to deliver.
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