Michigan’s roster hasn’t started to fray after Dusty May’s departure, and redshirt junior forward Harrison Hochberg says a big reason is the work being done behind the scenes.
In a conversation with Hail Media, Hochberg explained that he and guard Trey McKenney have helped lead the effort to keep the Wolverines together for next season. That has meant plenty of time spent around each other away from basketball, from barbecues at Hochberg’s house to a day renting a boat on Whitmore Lake.
“We set up a lot of different activities,” Horchberg said. “We had barbecues at my house, we rented a boat one day on Whitmore Lake, which was awesome.
Just had a few different player meetings and stuff like that. Just trying to keep the group in the same room as much as possible.”
McKenney was the first Wolverine to publicly signal that he would be back for the 2026-27 campaign after May’s exit, and Hochberg’s comments suggest that decision has helped set the tone for the rest of the room.
Even with the coaching change, Hochberg said the belief inside the locker room hasn’t changed. He said the team still sees itself as a national championship contender.
“We all believed Sunday night, when we went to bed when coach May was still the coach, that we could win the national championship,” Hochberg said. “We are all going to go to bed Monday night, Tuesday night, Wednesday, Thursday believing the same thing… If the guys in the locker room don’t change, we are going to be good and I think everyone started believing that.”
Hochberg also had strong praise for the current staff Michigan will have in place next season, describing them as approachable and easy to be around.
“Our coaches, they are all great dudes,” Hochberg said. “They are all mid-40s, they all played college ball and they are just great people to be around.”
He added that once the new players spent time around the rest of the staff after May left, they saw how many good people were already in the program, which made staying in Ann Arbor more appealing.
What stands out most is that Hochberg, despite barely seeing the floor over three years at Michigan, appears to be one of the key voices helping hold the roster together. In that sense, he’s become a real glue piece for the Wolverines, even without a regular role on the court.
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