2026 Michigan Football Preview
Jake Wimberly
Abby Boyd Contributing-
What’s to like:
Michigan's biggest strength continues to be the line of scrimmage. The Wolverines consistently recruit and develop offensive and defensive linemen, allowing them to control games with physical football. That identity has remained the same despite coaching changes and players leaving early for the NFL, and it's one of the main reasons Michigan continues to compete at a high level.
The culture inside the program has also become one of its biggest strengths. Michigan has developed players as well as almost anyone in the country, and the recruiting classes continue to bring in talented replacements each year. Losing NFL talent is expected, but the Wolverines have consistently shown they can reload without changing who they are as a football team.
What’s not to like:
Bryce Underwood has plenty of talent, but he is still relatively unproven at the college level. Expectations will be high from the start, and playing quarterback at Michigan comes with added pressure. The Wolverines don't necessarily need him to carry the offense, but they do need him to make good decisions and continue developing throughout the season.
Michigan also has to replace several players who moved on to the NFL. While the Wolverines recruit well enough to replace those departures, experience still matters. New starters will need time to settle into bigger roles, and developing chemistry early in the season will be important if Michigan wants to remain among the Big Ten's top teams.
What does the Hourglass say?
Michigan- Big Ten (8-4)
Power ranking 77.65 .
2026 Michigan Analytics
National recruiting rating (three year metric): #17- outside the boundary of a National Championship Roster.
National Coaching Ranking:
Kyle Whittingham- 8th in Power 5 and 4th in the Big Ten.
2026 coaching value= 35.8 (average 2026 Power 5 coaching value=21.93) Kyle Whittingham is ranked higher of the pack for coaches in the Power 5.
Quarterback Play: Bryce Underwood- ranked 21st in the Power 4, 7th in the Big Ten; 2026 QB value= 39.3 (Power 4 average- 26.43).
Impact Ball Catcher Metric: Michigan has an Impact Ball Catcher Metric of 2. This puts the Wolverines at the lower tier for the Big Ten in this metric.
Final Thoughts:
Michigan enters another season with the expectation of competing for a Big Ten championship. The Wolverines remain one of the conference's best teams in the trenches, and the overall talent level is still among the best in the country. How quickly Bryce Underwood develops and how well Michigan replaces its NFL departures will go a long way in determining the team's ceiling.
2026 Schedule analysis:
Projected Hourglass W/L record: Games in red denote games that could be a one possession game or even a different outcome than projection.
9/5/26 Western Michigan- Win
9/12/26 Oklahoma- Win
9/19/26 UTEP- Win
9/26/26 Iowa- Win
10/3/26 At Minnesota- Win
10/17/26 Penn State- Loss
10/24/26 Indiana- Loss
10/31/26 At Rutgers- Win
11/7/26 Michigan State- Win
11/14/26 At Oregon- Loss
11/21/26 UCLA- Win
11/28/26 At Ohio State- Loss
