Mike Boynton didn’t wait long to make his presence felt at Michigan.
The new head coach has already earned trust inside the program, with players who stayed after the Dusty May exit - essentially the whole roster - pointing to Boynton as the right man for the job. That confidence makes sense given how central he was in recruiting those players under May, and now he’s the one making the calls from the top.
His first offer as head coach is a name that will immediately catch Michigan fans’ attention: Mateen Cleaves Jr.
The Glendale, Arizona, product and Dream City Christian point guard is a four-star prospect in the Class of 2028, and Michigan has joined a short list that already includes Michigan State and Rutgers. According to 247Sports Composite rankings, Cleaves Jr. is No. 37 overall, the No. 6 point guard and the No. 3 player in Arizona.
The offer lands with extra weight because of the name attached to it. Mateen Cleaves is still remembered fondly in East Lansing as a central figure on Michigan State’s 2000 national championship team. He was heavily recruited by Michigan at one point, but a scandal involving a Wolverines booster off campus pushed him toward the Spartans instead.
From there, Cleaves built a decorated Michigan State career. He was a three-time captain, won a championship, earned Most Outstanding Player honors at the Final Four, was named Big Ten Player of the Year twice, led the conference in assists and finished as the Spartans’ all-time steals leader with 193. He was then taken No. 14 overall by the Detroit Pistons, played several years in the league and had his number retired in East Lansing.
For Michigan, the timing of the offer adds another layer to an already heated basketball rivalry. The Wolverines and Spartans have been trading punches for years, with Tom Izzo steering Michigan State through it all. Last season, things escalated when Jeremy Fears Jr. had a couple of dirty plays against Michigan, and Dusty May was quick to call it out.
Now that responsibility belongs to Boynton, and he’s starting early. If he can eventually land Cleaves Jr., it would be a loud opening statement - and one that would surely sit poorly with Izzo.
In Other News...
Michigan Hit With Another Lawsuit As Warde Manuel Pressure Boils Over
The latest off-field headache for Michigan comes from former football assistant Chris Partridge, who has filed a lawsuit against the university, athletic director Warde Manuel, president Santa Ono, Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti and the Board of Regents. Partridge says he was wrongfully fired during the 2023 season, a move that came after he was accused of discussing the investigation with a player before being cleared, and the filing adds another legal layer to a program that has already spent months dealing with fallout from the Connor Stalions sign-stealing scandal and the Matt Weiss investigation.
What makes this one especially combustible is the way it keeps the pressure on Manuel at a moment when his future is already under scrutiny. The allegations in the filing have not been proven in court, but they arrive as a Michigan Board of Regents meeting is expected to address Manuels status with the university, turning what might have been a routine governance matter into another flashpoint for a department that has not had much room to breathe. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Fans Have Every Right To Be Frustrated About Jordan Marshall
Michigans backfield did not get much national respect this offseason, with CBS Sports leaving the Wolverines off its top-10 college football running back groups. That omission is easy enough to argue with after Jordan Marshall emerged as Michigans most productive runner in 2025, leading the team in rushing yards and touchdowns while averaging 6.2 yards per carry and drawing a strong overall grade from PFF.
Marshall still enters 2026 as the clear lead option, but the picture around him is shifting. Freshman Savion Hiter adds another layer of talent to the room, and a new offensive coordinator will help shape how Michigan uses its backs, which makes the next step for Marshall and the offense worth watching even if the national rankings have already moved on. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan May Have Found A Crucial Answer At Linebacker
With Michigan moving on from its top three linebackers, the spring spotlight has shifted quickly to the next wave, and Chase Taylor is right in the middle of it. The sophomore, part of the 2025 recruiting class, already saw the field in 10 games last season, and now he is being talked about as one of the players most likely to help stabilize the position as the Wolverines reshape the defense under Jay Hill.
Taylor has been grouped with Troy Bowles and Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng as one of the top three linebackers on the roster this spring, which says plenty about how fast the picture is changing. For Michigan, the appeal is obvious: Taylor brings the size and athleticism coaches want in the middle of the defense, and the question now is how quickly that promise turns into a bigger role when the games start to matter. [Read more 🡒]