Fall camp is about to put Michigan’s biggest question under the microscope, and it’s not a flashy one. It’s the kind of battle that usually decides whether a season gets traction or starts wobbling early: the trenches.
After a 9-3 year that ended in turmoil and embarrassment, Michigan is trying to turn the page with new head coach Kyle Whittingham and get back to football. The roster is in better shape than it might have been after Sherrone Moore was fired in December, and there are still plenty of jobs up for grabs once camp opens. But the line play is the matchup that looms over everything else.
That’s because Michigan’s recent history has already made the point. In its last five games against Ohio State, the Wolverines went 4-1, and the lone loss came in the one game they were beaten up front on both sides.
The defensive line couldn’t get to Julian Sayin. The offensive line couldn’t create room in the run game or keep Bryce Underwood from taking punishment.
That’s football in its purest form: the battle at the line of scrimmage decides the rest.
Michigan’s 2023 national title team was built exactly that way. Zak Zinter and Trevor Keegan anchored the offensive line at guard, while Kenneth Grant and Mason Graham gave the defense two first-round talents in the middle.
That group was deep, talented, and good enough to dominate. Two years later, the talent drain is real, even if that special 2023 group was never going to be easy to replace.
On offense, though, Michigan looks to be in decent shape. Blake Frazier, Andrew Sprague, Jake Guarnera, and the returns of Andrew Babalola and Evan Link from injuries give the Wolverines a path to a settled starting five. The main issue is how that five ends up lining up.
The current thinking has Babalola at left tackle, with Link and Frazier handling the guard spots. Guarnera could become the anchor in the middle, while Sprague would bookend the line with Babalola at right tackle. The concern is whether Link or Babalola need time to shake off the rust after serious injuries that ended their 2025 seasons.
If either one isn’t ready to go, Michigan may have to reshuffle. That could mean moving Frazier back out to tackle, which would open a guard spot for someone like Nate Efobi.
Ideally, though, the Wolverines want this group to grow together and settle in quickly. Competition will continue in camp, but the goal is to have the line mostly sorted before the Sept. 5 opener against Western Michigan and as polished as possible before Oklahoma and Brent Venables bring an aggressive defense to town.
The defensive front is where the uncertainty gets sharper. Michigan no longer has Mason Graham or Kenneth Grant, and the program has to identify new answers at defensive tackle and on the edge during camp.
There is promise in the room. Carter Meadows arrives as a decorated true freshman, though the danger of leaning on a freshman to carry the load is obvious.
John Henry Daley brings proven production as a Utah transfer, but he is also working back from a significant injury and could need time to find his footing in games. Daley is expected to start, but Michigan still has to figure out who lines up next to him.
The options include Meadows, Dominic Nichols, Cameron Brandt, and Nate Marshall. One of them needs to become a real-time presence if Michigan is going to generate a pass rush against the Big Ten’s top quarterbacks.
Inside, Whittingham sounded encouraged in the spring, calling the defensive tackle group a strength. Trey Pierce, Enow Etta, and Jonah Lea’ea are important pieces of that rotation, and Whittingham also pointed to Deyvid Palepale as a late-offseason addition worth noting. The group still has to produce more than it did last season, but Michigan believes it has a better handle on that part of the defense.
So when camp opens, the most important work won’t be in the spotlight. It’ll be in the middle of the line, where Michigan has to prove it can protect its quarterback, generate push, and replace the kind of force that once made the Wolverines so hard to beat.
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Michigans New Defense Could Change Everything Against Big Ten QBs
Michigan is making a notable defensive pivot for 2026, turning to Jay Hill, the former BYU coordinator, to install an attacking system built around a 4-2-5 look. The hire signals a clear desire to sharpen a unit that wants to play faster and disrupt more often, and Hill brings a track record of forcing turnovers with a style that kept offenses uncomfortable. At Big Ten Media Days, head coach Kyle Whittingham laid out the challenge ahead, pointing to the leagues quarterback talent and the kind of weekly stress those passers can put on a defense.
For Michigan, the appeal is as much about identity as it is about results. Hills defenses at BYU were aggressive and opportunistic, a contrast from the more frustrating stretches the Wolverines endured under the previous coordinator, when takeaways were harder to come by. The new setup should give Michigan a different edge against Big Ten offenses, even if the real answer on how well it all fits will not come until the defense starts taking shape in 2026. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Freshman Savion Hiter Is Already Forcing A Big Fall Question
Savion Hiter arrived in Ann Arbor with the sort of rsum that usually buys a little patience, but his spring practice work has already sped up the conversation. The top running back recruit in the 2026 class has put himself in position to matter right away for Michigan, drawing praise from the staff for the way he runs through contact and brings burst to the position. As things stand, he is sitting behind Jordan Marshall on the depth chart, but the early returns suggest the freshman is more than just a future piece.
Tony Alford has been among the coaches impressed by Hiters physical style, and Michigan is clearly looking for ways to make use of that talent without waiting long. The bigger question now is how quickly the Wolverines can turn a promising spring into a real role once the season arrives, especially with the staff considering different ways to get its backs on the field together. For a freshman who has already changed the tone of the room, the next step is figuring out how much of the offense can fit around him. [Read more 🡒]