The BIG HOUSE Blog

Michigan Tuesday: Basketball Bits

2026-05-05T10:11:00.001-04:00

Michigan Basketball WON The National Championship! I still find it hard to believe, but I know it happened. Anyone else still in shock, like me?

Let's look at what's next:

Michigan's proposed starting lineup next year:

Cadeau
McKinney

McCoy
Estrella
Thiam

Not too bad coming off a National Championship where 3 of your top players are heading to the Draft. The thought Rez might come back continues to be less likely as the latest mocks have right around the 15th pick range. Damn those mocks!

Does Michigan need a backup point guard? I trust Dusty but he doesn't seem to be looking for one in the portal. True freshmen Hartman and Brown are considered shooting guards over point guards. Maybe one has really good handles.

Speaking of Dusty, fear went through the Michigan fan base yesterday after the Magic fired their head coach on Monday and reports were they are very high on Dusty. Shams and others don't expect him to move from Ann Arbor after winning a National Championship. What a relief! (Hey Warde, if you have any power left in the athletics department, ink the damn extension!)

McCoy was re-ranked by Rivals as the #3 player in the country. He is very disruptive on both sides of the floor and a great defender. He is a good finisher but needs to work on his shot. With the proposed starting lineup above, I do see the possibilities of offensive slumps. Which leads me to the the next portal prospects.

Word on the street is Dusty is looking at 6'8 Cal Poly Forward Hamad Mousa who averaged 20 points per game. Can he be effective in the Big Ten? Hard to say but its worth the risks for scorer/shooter I heard Michigan's best player last season was from UAB.

There seems to be a bit of a conflict for the Duke/Michigan Prime match up on who owns the TV rights as the Big Ten/Fox feel they own the TV rights for that game.

Michigan Monday: No Lip Service

2026-05-04T08:44:00.005-04:00

With Basketball bringing home the Natty and Football in between Spring Ball and Fall Camp, there isn't much to report on around these parts, until the Athletic Department investigation completes with the expectation that it either econerates Warde or walks him out.

Both Basketball and Football are still recruiting. Basketball in the portal and Football across the US. Looks like Juke is either going Pro or to Rocky Top. So he is out of the mix.

Still Coach Whitt and his staff are doing work to catch up on the 2027 class. They landed a local big fish this weekend in Jakari Lipsey a 4-star OT from KZoo. Jakari is a pure athlete and a bit raw for OT right now but has a huge upside. He is 6'5 290 and a 3 sport athlete in high school (Football, Basketball, and Track).

His upside is clear as he is closer to his cellar then his ceiling at this point. Many programs agreed and he had offers from the likes of LSU, UCLA, BC, Auburn, UNC, Tenn, Minnesota, MSU and many more.

With Jim Harding in the Maize and Blue and considered the top OL coach in the country, I think its a perfect fit! Welcome Big Man!

The Big Ten carved up $1.37B in revenue and sent it to the schools. I don't think they need any outside funding/investing.

No sponsorship of any kind but Dicks Sporting Goods has Basketball NC gear on sale now!

Coach Whitt calls for a Salary Cap, I'm sure that is in the works.

I've been a fan of Duncan Robinson for a long time, I did not know about his brother's struggles until an ESPN report this weekend. Duncan had a very poor National Championship game and now I know why, his brother went missing on that Final 4 trip. Its a sad story and one that reminds us how important mental health is.

Cadeau and Trey Donaldson were not invited to the NBA Combine but the G-League Combine. With a good performance they can get into the NBA combine, but probably a sign that Cadeau has a high percentage chance of returning to A2.

Michigan Thursday: Dusty Speaks

2026-04-30T10:41:00.005-04:00

Dusty spoke about his team, freshman, and transfer yesterday and how they are going to put a team that competes to get to Detroit next year.

Highlights:

Deal is not signed yet, but Dusty considered it done on the handshake

On Thiam being like the other Michigan transfer centers: "He's a lot different. Obviously, he's a center and he's big, talented and skilled, but his game isn't like theirs. It is exciting to have another player with the talent he has we can tweak our system to and play through a little bit, but he's got a lot of tools in his toolbox. He's going to be fun to coach, but yeah, we're excited for him."

On adding LSU Jalen Reed: "We thought he was a very good take because he can certainly outperform his expectations if he's healthy. If he's not as healthy as early as he hoped, then we will have the depth to overcome that. He's a talented young man and a great human being."

Dusty feels like the right type of guys have been attracted to them this off-season. Really like the people they brought in and feel they're good culture fits as well.

7'3 big man Marcus Moller is doing well right now, but has one more procedure left.

"We feel like Elliot is first and foremost a cheat-code in the pick and roll and he needs certain things for him to maximize his ability, so that factored into us targeting certain players."

5-Star CG Brandon McCoy will be a major contributor next season

Still looking at a couple transfers

Mara and Rez both have tough decisions to make with the NBA Draft or coming back.

Wolverine Wednesday: Lost One

2026-04-29T09:31:00.006-04:00

Recruiting used to be about, facilities, fit, family values, tradition, education, and top coaches that can develop you into an NFL Draft pick. A few programs also offered secret bags of money to an Uncle, a job for mom, a new house for grandma, etc. Now, it's all about the bag.

4-star safety Darrell Mattison was Coach Whitt's first committed recruit at Michigan last month. He visited Ole Miss this weekend and de-committed yesterday. If I had to guess, Ole Miss made a better offer.

Nothing to worry about here, the new Michigan staff is working hard on the trail and will get talented players.

Brandon McCoy Jr. and Lincoln Cosby are offically Wolverines now. Lincoln is going to redshirt as he recovers from an ACL injury. Dusty had a big recruiting class.

Dusty also signed Moustapha Thiam a center from UC out of the portal. Did you know, Cincy beat Michigan in a exhibition last October and Thiam had 15 points on 6-9 shooting, since then Michigan won a Natty and Thiam is now a Wolverine.

Reports are Juke is down to Michigan, Tenn, and the NBA Draft. It seems the NBA Draft is the leader in the clubhouse.

Brendan Sorsby having a gambling problem puts the NCAA in a tough spot, there are reports he did place bets on IU to win when he was their QB. If those reports are accurate, your in Pete Rose territory here. College Football becoming professional football is going to have professional problems.

Michigan Monday: Wolverines Draft in Review

2026-04-27T08:44:00.002-04:00

If there was one common theme for Michigan in the 2026 Draft, it was the former Wolverines finding homes with familiar faces. Let's take a look at where all the Wolverines landed, even the undrafted free agents (UDFA).

-Derrick Moore to the Detroit Lions in the 2nd Round. Staying home!

-Marlin Klein to the Houston Texans in the 2nd Round to play with Nico!

-Jaishawn Barham to the Dallas Cowboys in the 3rd where many Wolverines have been drafted!

-Jimmy Rolder to the Detroit Lions in the 4th round. Staying home!

-Max Bredeson to the Minnesota Vikings in the 5th, to play with JJ and who was even at his draft party!

-Rayshaun Benny to the Baltimore Ravens in the 7th to play for Coach Minter!

Recap: Finally the Lions start fishing from the local pond and pick up two talented Wolverines. Marlin had a great combine which I think shot him up some draft boards, he is still nowhere near his ceiling. Max is a perfect fit in Minnesota and Jesse Minter does Rayshaun a solid!

Special Note, very happy for former Michigan TE Matt Hibner, he spent 4 years on the roster and caught two passes behind some great Michigan TE's. He went to SMU last year and had a very good year and was drafted in the 4th round, by guess who? Jesse Minter!

UDFA:

-Z signs with NY Giants and John Harbaugh

-McCulley to the Dolphins and owner Stephen Ross

-Tommy Doman (transferred to FL) to the Bills

-Nikhai Hill Green (transferred to Charlotte, Colorado, Alabama) to the Rams

-TJ Guy to Ravens and Coach Minter

-Damon Payne to KC

Happy for all the players that found a home. Also the sad story of Ernie Hausman continues and it will be interesting to see if he gets an invite for a tryout. Offensive lineman El-Hadi and Crippen and DT Tre Williams are still waiting for a UDFA contract or an invite to a Rookie Camp.

Michigan Friday: A Daft Draft

2026-04-24T09:43:00.003-04:00

That was a strange opening night of the NFL Draft, it was a huge crowd but seemed to lack energy and then the picks started to roll in. Here are a few things I questioned:

Tate was OSU's #2 WR and was picked #4 in the draft. Has a college teams second best WR ever been taken #4 in the NFL Draft?

OSU had some really good players, must be the coaching that they didn't do better last season?

The NFL are drunk on QB's, taking Ty Simpson #13 is just dumb. He can't help the Rams next season and is a 2nd round talent. Who has played 15 college football games.

KC trading picks to move up for the LSU CB, why?

The Lions had some decent choices for OT's and seemed to pick one with a ton of experience

Bama's Kaden Procter has a huge upside but struggles with his weight and focus, many are predicting a bust. Sounds like the perfect Dolphins draft pick.

ND had both RB's drafted in the first round.

Michigan's new OL coach had two players drafted on Thursday! Including the top OT!

Michigan Players expected to get drafted:

Derrick Moore 3rd Round
Rayshaun Benny 3rd - 7th grade
Jaishawn Barham has a 4th round grade
Marlin Klein TE Round 4-5 Grade
TJ Guy has a day 3 late round grade
Donaven McCulley when on a top 30 visit but is expected to be a Day 3 pick up.
Jimmy Rolder, Round 5-7
Dominic Zvada Free Agent
Max Bredeson Free Agent

Michigan Basketball got a talented but often injured power forward out of the Portal from LSU in 6'10 245 pound Jalen Reed. Jalen is coming off back to back season ending injuries but is a talented player if he can stay healthy.

Michigan Tuesday: The War of Warde

2026-04-21T06:00:00.012-04:00

You know how I feel about Warde as Michigan's leader of the athletics department. He is way over his head and has overseen the most roller coaster time in the history of the program. My opinion is, that Warde should not be leading this program any longer, his good things (hiring Dusty and Coach Whitt) does not over weigh his huge mistakes. It's amazing to me how such a powerful University can't find a true leader to lead this athletics organization.

Angel did an interview with Warde and his answer were very by the book. My biggest takeaway is that he has no fear of losing his job.

Q: So you don't have any concerns about your job security?

A: No.

Q: Why are you so confident?

A: I'm confident in what I've done and how I've done it, and what I've asked people to do. Again, I'm not perfect, and I don't know anybody who is, but I'm confident that I have done everything to make sure that we do things the right way within the department. The rest of it, I don't sit and worry. I worry about moving us forward and continuing the success that we've developed over the years since I've been here.”

Let me clear something up completely. You don't pay a law firm millions of dollars to do an investigation on the Athletics department if your not expecting a change of leadership. If the findings come out negative or troublesome, there is zero chance Warde retains his job. Signs are pointing to a negative finding is that the expectation was this investigation was to be completed in January, it's April, and law firms get paid by the hour.

Want more proof that Warde is poor leader and not getting his message received by the people he leads? (bold is mine). The question was did you or the regents ask for the investigation into the athletics department?

You’d have to ask the Regents their conversations about it. The next morning (Dec. 11, 2025 after Moore was fired), I talked to Domenico, and I said I would like the Office of Equity, Integrity and Compliance to work with me to find someone to come in and do a cultural assessment, because apparently my words are not getting through. So I’d like some help in what else can be done.

When you tune out your leader, you don't respect that leader. There is an old saying in the business world, "employees don't leave companies, they leave leadership"

Michigan Monday: Spring Game Not So Deep Thoughts

2026-04-20T09:06:00.001-04:00

I recorded the Spring Game and got to fast forward the commercials. It was nice being able to watch a game in a short amount of time. That is if you could call Saturday's afternoon scrimmage a game. The first quarter highlighted Bryce and Marshall but no tackling. The rest of the game was full contact unless you are a QB.

Many Michigan fans thought Bryce had a poor to bad freshman year leading the team at the QB position. I was a little more warm about his first year as Michigan's QB. Going from High School to playing on the road at Oklahoma, is a Grand Canyon jump in competition. No, he didn't light the world on fire, but all that experience goes into his memory bank. If you remember, JJ was not really even allowed to throw the ball his Freshman year.

Now Bryce has a new staff, a QB coach, and his even hired his own QB coach. On Saturday we expected to see a guy that is better with his fundamentals to match his immense talent. What we saw, was some of the same troubles he had last year. Bad footwork, bad decisions, and inaccurate throws. As many of you know, guys with incredible arm talent, sometimes lack the proper QB fundamentals as they can just rely on their powerful arm. This is what I see with Bryce, his fundamentals go out the door when he gets pressure.

Now the offense line looked terrible in the first quarter as Bryce had zero time to pass the ball. The protection seemed to get better as the game went on.

To make the pressure even worse on the former 5 star, his true freshman backup Carr had a very nice day and looked like the more competent QB. If Bryce is going to become a better QB, he has to do it when no one is watching. The time is now and the time is this summer. I watched Justin Fields at Ohio State's first Spring Game, he was awful and couldn't complete a pass. He got a ton better in that summer. It's time for Bryce to do the same.

I was very concerned about the offense line in the first quarter. They still have a ton of work to do and getting guys back from injury.

The defense line looked pretty good but was that them stepping up or the offensive line being bad?

Hiter is going to be special, he did not look like a true freshman. Brown also looked very good. The RB room is in great shape!

Carr was incredible and like I said above, was the best QB on the field. He threw accurately and even has some speed to get outside and first downs. MVP of the Day.

In a 7-6 game, the defense is way ahead of the offense, which is not uncommon at this stage. Nothing to worry about.

There was a couple drops at WR, but I do like the talent in that room and Michigan looks like they are good shape with all the transfer coming in. Moa could be special but needs the summer in the weight room and the nutrition program.

Bobby Kanka local kid, made a huge hit on 4th down on the goal line.

It was hard trying to watch the secondary on BTN, but they looked like they were fundamentally in the right places and were breaking up passes.

Didn't love the Pitt kicker missing a makeable field goal. There was no punting or kick returns.

The Spring Game is meant to show like 10% of the offense and defense. Bryce has a lot of work to do and Michigan needs to take many more steps forward to be playoff worthy next season. I'm going to trust Coach Whitt that the team is together and got better during this period. That is all you can ask for. During the summer, they need to take another big step forward.

Michigan Friday: Spring Game - What I Want To See

2026-04-17T10:34:00.003-04:00

Michigan's Spring Game and the first one under Coach Whitt is tomorrow. It looks to be a chilly, windy, and maybe a rainy day. Perfect Football weather! 2:00 on BTN

Here is my wish list of what I want to do see:

Nothing - I want to see the most vanilla offense and defense possible. The coaches are smart enough to not show anything important. I actually would prefer not to see Bryce, Marshall, Marsh and any other important player. It's ok, if Hiter has a couple runs but not many!
Fundamental Football - Good Blocking and Tackling
Depth on both lines
A Freshman WR that can contribute next season
Better Special Teams
Good Field Goal Kicking and Punting
Did Michigan get the best Carr QB?
A star TE in the making
Strong LB play
Good depth at CB and Safety
Herbie's kid getting snaps
A similar smile on Coach Whitt's face like Harbaugh had when he realized in his first Spring Game, that he really is the Head Coach of the Michigan Wolverines.

The most important thing - No injuries!

Enjoy the day!

Michigan Thursday: News and Notes

2026-04-16T09:50:00.006-04:00

Yax was at Golden State @ Clippers last night. We wish him good luck with the NBA Draft!

I trust Dusty, but the lack of transfer portal commits is making me a bit nervous

It seems the new Michigan Football staff is finding its footing for the 2027 class. Always a slow start when you have a brand new staff.

Michigan and Marquette has signed a home and home. First game is at Crisler next November.

Mara seems to be leaning to the NBA Draft while keeping his college eligibility

Not sure we are going to learn much from the Spring Game this weekend if its the 2's and 3's. Which is fine with me. Keep the real offense and defense under wraps.

New Michigan President has brain cancer and will not take office, we wish him well and good health through this process.

Oscar Goodman is back next year for Michigan Basketball.

Wolverine Wednesday: One Door Shuts Completely and Another Opens

2026-04-15T09:26:00.001-04:00

I'm fascinated by how the world works sometimes. Michigan is riding high right now with a fresh National Championship, a new feeling of potential from Spring Practice, a brand new QB commit, and an ugly situation where the old boss avoids jail time but now has 18 months probation.

Sherrone Moore has zero business being mentioned in this blog or any other Michigan media in my opinion after today. His time was a complete failure at Michigan and I 100% blame Warde for it. I know Warde hired Dusty and got him extended and Coach Whitt looks to be the perfect hire, but those couple good deeds does not erase the complete lack of leadership he has shown from his time as AD at Michigan. He has one of the most powerful and coveted jobs in all of college sports and we will see how long that lasts after the investigations closes. The one that was supposed to be completed in January.

Sherrone gets 18 months probation and court fines for losing his mind after he was fired. I don't live in Ann Arbor but if I did, I would consider those 18 months to be 18 months too long to have him in the community. The best thing for Sherrone and U of M is for him to go away and never come back. That is it and hopefully that is the last time his name will appear on this blog.

Now to the good news!

Michigan received a verbal commit for the 2027 class from 4-star QB Kamden Lopati from Utah. Kamden was recently an Illinois commit and decommitted earlier this week. He had a number of suiters but it came down to a Michigan - ND decision and he picked the Wolverines. He was familiar with Michigan's new staff from their Utah days. Welcome Kamden! (and yes Brett Bielema is pissed).

Another strange story from yesterday. Iowa has had wins vacated by the NCAA in 2023 after they agreed they tampered with a QB from another school prior to the transfer portal opening. On a side note, Cade McNamara might of had the worst transfer decision in the history of the program. If he stayed at Michigan, he would be a National Champion and would've started again after JJ left for the NFL. He had two historically bad years at Iowa, then finished at East or Middle TN State this past season. What a second? He transferred to Iowa right? 👀

Will Tschetter has signed a pro deal to play is Australia. Congrats Will, always a Champion!

Michigan Tuesday: Big Dollars Rolling In The Portal

2026-04-14T09:31:00.000-04:00

Michigan's top two targets in the portal were Kansas Big Man Flory Bidunga and still is Wake's Guard/Wing Juke Harris. Flory signed with Louisville for $5M and reports are that Juke has an offer from UNC for over $5.5M a year. For example, former Michigan Center Danny Wolf with the NY Nets made $2.8M this past year.

I'm all for players making money and getting paid market value but the Transfer Portal is becoming NBA Free Agency.

Still no word on what Rez and Mara are thinking about the NBA Draft. The whispers are that Rez is seriously considering coming back to Ann Arbor and Mara is strongly considering the NBA Draft. I believe both are considered back half of the 1st round candidates in the Mock Draft's I've seen. If Michigan loses both to the NBA, they will need at least 1 more big man out of the portal. Juke might got through the NBA evaluation process before he commits.

Speaking of the NBA, happy the Pistons are back, but the league as a whole was really bad this season.

After a week of The National Championship, Frozen Four, and The Masters. I'm looking for what's next! Or maybe a vacation! 😀

Michigan Monday: Masters Thoughts and Scrimmage Thoughts

2026-04-13T08:30:00.003-04:00

There is an old saying in professional tournament golf, "you can't win the tournament on Thursday but you sure can lose it." I think Rory might have just been then exception to the rule. Rory played great golf on Thursday and Friday in Augusta and then held on during Saturday and Sunday as his game went in the other direction. Rory was -12 on Friday night and Scottie was even. On Sunday night, Rory was -12 and Scottie was -11. Rory left the door open for everyone in the field to come get him and many played really well, just none of them were close enough to the lead to over take him.

Congrats to Rory for going back to back, it was just unfortunate for us fans who wanted some Sunday drama.

Todd Blackledge is not someone I would consider a college football insider. He is just a solid color commentator on NBC. Though working for NBC gives him some access to Michigan Football. Here is a tweet from the weekend:

Felt like a crisp fall morning watching @UMichFootball

scrimmage. Takeaways: *Expect Underwood to make a jump in development under OC Jason Beck & watchful eye of QB coach Koy Detmer. *OL has talent, but must improve as pass protectors. *RB,DL,DB all can be strong groups.

The offensive line Pass Pro is obviously an issue but I'm also wondering who was playing and who wasn't. This might be the best representation of what we might see next season as the Spring Game is expected to be just a back-up bowl. It's encouraging to hear Bryce is making progress under the new staff.

Michigan Basketball had a great weekend with a Championship Parade! Though their portal recruitment is off to a bit of shaky start. Michigan had Juke Harris on campus Saturday for the parade but now reports are that UNC is offering him $5.5M to play for them next season. Kansas big man Flory Bidunga decided to take the bag from Louisville over Michigan and others.

Congrats to JJ and his wife who got married last weekend.

Michigan Friday: Good News - Bad News Friday

2026-04-10T08:15:00.004-04:00

It's always easier to start with the bad news and then you can end with the good. Michigan Hockey lost in double OT to Denver last night. Which is such a brutal result for length of game and getting so close to Michigan's second Natty for the week.

Also big 7'2 German Center Malick Kordel is jumping into the portal. I thought we were pretty close to seeing Malick get some real time this past season when both Mara and Rez were in foul trouble but we only saw the big man in garbage time. Good luck to him at his next stop.

Now to the good news portion of the program:

Elliott Cadeau is back for Michigan. This wasn't a real mystery as it expected that both Cadeau and McKinney are both back, but its always nice to have an official announcement.

Also Tennessee 6'11 Forward JP Estrella has committed to Michigan from the portal. He averaged 10 points and 5 boards per game for the Volunteers. Welcome JP!

A number of other transfer portal prospects are expected to be on campus this weekend to witness the Parade and what's it like to be a Michigan Wolverine!

Have a good weekend and Enjoy the Masters and the National Championship Parade on Saturday!

Michigan Thursday: News and Notes

2026-04-09T10:57:00.007-04:00

Freshman Guard Winters Grady who had a foot injury early this season is in the transfer portal and looking for a new home, he will have 4 years of eligibility left. We wish him well!

Seems that Wake Forest 6'7 guard Juke Harris is planning on visiting Ann Arbor this weekend. Juke averaged 21 points per game and put 19 on Michigan when they played this season. Yes, Please!

Pippen who transferred from Michigan to CAL is back in the portal again.

Coach Whitt says Spring Game will be mostly for the 2 and 3's.

RB Micah Ka’apana suffered a lower leg injury and will be out for the season. That guy has had incredibly bad luck so far with injuries.

Michigan is starting to trend for recent visitor in 4-star QB Kamden Lopati who is currently an Illinois commit.

Former Michigan Guard Tre Donaldson is turning pro. He was at Miami last season.

Wolverine Wednesday: A Day To Reflect

2026-04-08T10:16:00.001-04:00

It's been a day and I'm still happy but not grasping the impact of this team. The Fab 5 changed the game but after back to back National Championship games, they left without the trophy. Coach B had some great teams and that block was clean! Even though Louisville got that Natty taken away, Michigan again did not leave with the trophy.

Dusty inherited a program on fire and went into the portal and convinced a couple of bigs to join the team. That laid the groundwork for this years portal recruitment and he grabbed the top player and 3 under the radar players. He recruited skill but he also recruited personality, both were great fit for Ann Arbor and what Dusty wanted to do. Getting a handful of players to stay and mix in talented portal players, this team became the best basketball team in the history of the program.

I'm incredibly happy but I'm already missing this team with the anticipation of the next game.

Quick question to the BHB inmates: What are your thoughts on the National Championship gear? I felt a little burned after the Football NC. I bought a ton of stuff, it was expensive and also very low quality. I'm concerned the basketball national championship gear is similar and I'm being very careful on my selections.

It's ridiculous that Dusty was on Zoom meetings with potential portal prospects on Tuesday morning.

Michigan with new 5-star commit McCoy has the #2 ranked high school recruiting class for 2026. With LJ taking a redshirt, there is going to be a lot of time for young players depending on who jumps in and out to the portal.

Early names in the portal Dusty maybe looking at include: Wisconsin's John Blackwell, Kansas Flory Bidunga, and SDSU Miles Byrd.

National Champions Tuesday: Those That Stay

2026-04-07T09:26:00.006-04:00

Jacob Hamilton | jhamilt3/mlive.com/TNS

When we saw this team for the first time, we thought they could bring a National Championship to Ann Arbor. When we saw the team play in Vegas, we thought they might go undefeated. The team Dusty put on the floor this year was special and last night they proved it again, in a much different way.

Dan Hurley might be a crazy man but he can coach basketball and he did all he could to derail the Wolverines last night. As expected, they slowed down the pace and tried to shoot the Wolverines out of the gym. Whether it was Michigan's solid defense or the Husky shooters were just off, that plan failed. Michigan was too big and too talented to lose on Monday night.

Before I get to the star of the game, a huge hat tip goes to Yax. His performance last night in my mind goes right up there with Isiah Thomas playing on a severely sprained ankle against the Lakers in the NBA Finals. He gutted out 13 points in 36 minutes and didn't even come off the floor in the first half. Now to Elliott Cadeau, the star of the game. Michigan had a limited Yax, zero 3 point shooting for most of the game, and early Mara was not scoring down low. This was setting up to be a Hurley special and Cadeau said no, thank you, this is our year! He lead the Wolverines with 19 points and instead of assisting he stepped up and scored a ton of big baskets. He had one of his best scoring games of the year during the biggest game.

UConn hit nine 3 point shots during the game and the Wolverines only made 2. The difference in the game was Michigan scoring 25 points from the free throw line and UConn clearly being in foul trouble all game. UConn only had 12 points from the line.

The game wasn't pretty, it was a tough defensive match-up as both teams struggled to shoot the ball. Michigan who had scored 90 points in every tournament game only managed to put up 69 points. Still that was enough to beat the Huskies. I would also be remiss if I didn't call out McKinney who hit a huge late 3 and made 2 important free throws after Gayle had missed two from the line. Those points from McKinney made it very difficult for UConn to make a Duke game comeback.

Dusty has done a tremendous job turning this program around and last night netted him and Michigan a National Championship. I still think I'm in shock, I 100% know I was when Gayle threw the ball down the court to close out the game. To quote Dusty, "it still feels like we have another game to prepare for" It's going to be a really long day at work as I'm 100% gassed.

Congratulations to this team, the Michigan Program, and to us! We deserve nights like last night and I hope we have many more to come!

Go Blue to the National Champions!

A sign this process never sleeps: The transfer portal opened at Midnight last night while the Wolverines were celebrating in the locker room. The staff had it opened and scouting for next year.

Michigan Monday: Continuation of the Good Building Vibes

2026-04-06T10:52:00.001-04:00

The University of Michigan loves Lucas Oil Stadium, it has given them 3 Big Ten Championships in Football and now a dominating Final 4 win. Lets hope that good building "feels" continues until Midnight tonight.

I love nights like this one, it just feels good to be alive and care about something so deeply. Yes, this is a kids game and yes, on Tuesday we need to go on with our regular lives, but for 2.5 hours tonight we get to live and have passion for something we have zero control over. I'm going to miss this team, maybe not since the Fab 5 has a Michigan Basketball team been so appointment level viewing for me. Yes, Coach B's teams were really good and a couple should've won the National Championship. But for one reason or another, this team just stuck a cord with me and I didn't want to miss a game.

As for tonight, I'm concerned about Yax and didn't like him limping around doing interviews, etc yesterday. I was hoping for some sleep magic and he would feel better on Sunday, that didn't seem to happen. His injury is not structural which is a bonus, but that doesn't help it feel any better. Michigan needs Yax and I know he will give it a go tonight, I just don't now for how long or how effective he will be. UConn has a similar issue with Solo Ball and a possible foot sprain. I love Michigan's chances tonight, but I sure as hell would love it even more with a healthy Yax.

UConn is not an easy match-up and Hurley can coach. Tarris Reed a former Wolverine is a good player and Michigan's bigs will have their hands full. With that said, Michigan is just as hard to prepare for in one day and I'm sure Hurley has yet to go to sleep and is getting plenty advice from his brother and father. UConn can shoot the 3 and Michigan will need to protect the 3 ball like they are playing Wisconsin.

Michigan needs Yax to be Yax, a career night from Cadeau, we need him hitting his layups and 3's, distributing to his fellow Wolverines, and staying out of foul trouble. We also need another group effort to win this game. Mara has to continue to dominate down low, Rez seemed to get out of his slump in Indy and will need him to be the Reed stopper. In nights like tonight, it usually comes from someone we don't expect. April Roddy needs to be in the house, Burnett needs to continue his good Final 4 play, with hitting 3's and playing strong defense (also make those free throws), McKinney seems to be ready for these bright lights and we need another 16+ from him, and lets not sleep on Tschetter who has been waiting his entire 10 year 😀 Michigan Basketball career for this night. His shot has been way off in the NCAA Tournament but tonight he might just have the magic touch! On defense, Michigan must stay with the 3 point shooters, we all watched the Duke game and saw the comeback. Please do not collapse on the dribble drives and stay with the shooters. Michigan can win this game on defense if they control the 3 point shot.

Fellow Michigan fans, my advice tonight is to savor this feeling as it doesn't come often. Put your faith in Dusty, the Michigan staff, the Michigan trainers/Doctors, and most importantly the Wolverines on the floor. I hope we fill up Lucas Oil and play UConn like their visiting Crisler. I hope Mr. Miyagi visits the Michigan locker room and heals Yax and I hope we go to bed smiling because we got to witness this team play one last game.

Wolverine Weekend Update: Didn't See That Coming

2026-04-05T08:43:00.003-04:00

The Media is sort of a funny unique thing, there really isn't a ton of creativity outside of Charles Barkley. The golf was in a rain delay and there really wasn't much sports on Saturday afternoon, so I had to listen to ESPN's College Gameday which does not do justice to the name of the show, when compared to its football coverage. Each one of those fools picked Arizona to win the game. I hate pre-game shows, its not getting the viewer prepared to watch the game, they have become a terrible version of Saturday Night Live.

Now, when I say "I didn't see that coming" what I meant was a Michigan domination. I thought we were going to have a back and forth and maybe even overtime. The one thing I thought about where Michigan might have an advantage is the 3 freshman starters on Arizona. That is a ton of pressure to put on a young player to carry the water in a Final 4 game. Michigan exploited that weaknees and got out early and never looked back. It was so bad for Arizona, Cadeau was 2-14 shooting in the 1st half and was dominating the game. Mara was the star of the night with a career game high of 26 points.

So now the big question, is Yax close to healthy after going down with a ankle and a knee injury? The Michigan Difference needs to step up today and get him round the clock treatment. Every knee and ankle device known to man and maybe even a hyperbolic chamber in his hotel room. His shot stayed clean but his defense was not even close to what it normally is. With UConn's motion and confusing defense, we will need Yax as close to 100% as possible to win on Monday.

If you have watched this team all year, this is the Vegas Wolverines we've all been hoping to see. The issue is now, with Yax and LJ hurt, can the Wolverines continue to be that team? Dusty has his hands full for the next 24+ hours.

Another storyline for Monday night is the Tarris Reed revenge game. Tarris played at Michigan for Juwan Howard and then transferred to UConn. He has worked on his body and his game and is a lot better player then he was in Ann Arbor. Will Tschetter is going to need to teach the staff, Mara, and Rez about his game.

Michigan historically seems to always play well in the first game of the Final 4, its the 2nd game of the weekend the Wolverines have struggled. Time to flip the script and prepare for Monday night!

Happy Easter Everyone!

Michigan Friday: Good Stadium Vibes

2026-04-03T08:54:00.005-04:00

Michigan Football has played very well in Indy and won 2 Big Ten Titles there. So it's safe to say Michigan has a good feeling about playing in Lucas Oil. What doesn't feel great is watching tape on Arizona and Dusty and his staff have their hands full on Saturday night.

The Wildcats might be the best team Michigan has faced all year. Against Duke, Michigan felt what it was like to play a physical team with skill players. Arizona is physical, big, and has skill players. Duke's downfall was they were also very young and freshmen make mistakes. In a similar fashion, Arizona starts 3 freshmen, a junior, and a senior. Even Dusty said this week in Indy, "Watching Arizona was like watching us".

That is why the line is so close, even Vegas is having a hard time picking a winner in this one. So what is the difference when two teams are so similar? Defense and someone stepping up that the game plan didn't account for.

Michigan on the defensive side must not collapse on the dribble drives and stay with the shooters. Most programs score at the rim or at the 3 point line, the Wildcats have a good mid-range game as well. This next part is going to be very difficult, but Michigan might consider not trying to block every shot and getting in better rebounding position. If Michigan gets out rebounded its going to be a long night for the Wolverines.

For Michigan to move on to Monday, they are going to need some key players to step up. Yax has to be Yax, Morez needs to get out his funk and must defend, rebound, and score in the low post, Mara needs to stay out of foul trouble, and we need April Roddy. Michigan is going to need a big night from Gayle or McKenney or Burnett. Like a 25 point night. Arizona has had a week to scout the Wolverines, we need someone not in the scouting report to catch fire. Michigan also must limit turnovers, as giving the Wildcats extra possessions is very troublesome.

If Michigan plays like they did in Vegas and Cadeau stays away from mix nuts, I think we will get to watch one more game on Monday night!

Michigan hosted 2027 4-star TE Jack McNamara recently and he is very high on the Wolverines. He looks like Cade but I don't believe they are related.

Memo to the Detroit Lions: You can't lose players, not add during Free Agency, and think your going to be better than last year. That strategy did not work last year. It won't work this year.

SEC coaches are saying with the bigger CFP format now, there is no need to play the SEC Championship. I agree with that stance for the Big 10 as well. I always lean towards more football but start the playoffs earlier and get rid of the Conference Championship games. The first conference who does it will have an advantage and the others will follow.

The Fab 5 is back together doing an alternative broadcast on TruTV for the game.

Have a Good Holiday Weekend Everyone!

Michigan Thursday: An April Fools Joke?

2026-04-02T09:59:00.002-04:00

We believe WJR spun an April Fools Joke with help from the Michigan Basketball program. They said that Michigan's Point Guard Elliott Cadeau had an allergic reaction to something he ate and was taken to the hospital via ambulance. Per the report, Elliott was treated, is ok, and would travel to Indy separately from the team.

ESPN even picked it up and made it breaking news. Social media showed Elliott traveling with the team. Do we know this was a joke offically? No, but I believe it was.

Update: Elliott confirmed he ate something (cashew nut) and did have an allergic reaction. So no April Fools Joke.

The team did travel to Final 4 and will prepare for Saturday's game in Indy.

UCLA Football put a video on X with Semaji Morgan in it.

Former MSU QB Kirk Cousins is now working for Tom Brady at the Raiders. There are going to be a lot of Big 10 QB's walking around that training facility.

Michigan Football is hosting a top offensive target today in Top 100 WR Quentin Burrell.

Wolverine Wednesday: One Less QB

2026-04-01T09:38:00.002-04:00

Michigan's former head coach after Harbaugh really miss managed a ton of things in his life. In his role as head football coach, he really miss managed the QB room. For two years straight he had little to no depth and even fewer folks that could actually do the job.

This new staff came in with a different plan. The first was to have a QB Coach for Michigan's highest investment ever at QB. Second was to recruit and sign 2 QB's in the transfer portal. As we discussed yesterday, Carr has impressed and CSU transfer BFN is expected to arrive this Summer.

Many of us thought that there was a hand shake agreement between the Michigan Staff and incoming LSU transfer QB Colin Hurley that he would take a medical redshirt this season as he recovers and learns the system. Well that didn't happen and Colin decided to leave the program yesterday, in what we are hearing was a mutual parting of ways.

This loss doesn't hurt Michigan in the slightest, as he would of been the "break glass in case of an emergency" QB but it does put more pressure to keep Carr and BFN healthy during summer and fall camps.

With the portal closed, not sure what options Colin has, but we wish him good luck in finding his next program.

3-star OL Tristan Dare decommitted from Michigan yesterday. Michigan will be fine in OL recruiting with one of the best OL coaches in the country.

Tiger Woods is "stepping away" to work on recovery and his health. That seems like a smart long overdue move. I know he has charity work and a course architecture company, but I'm not sure what he is stepping away from. He hasn't played a PGA Tour round since the 2024 British Open. I hope the thing he steps away from is driving any of his automobiles.

Michigan Tuesday: Spring Practice News and Notes

2026-03-31T09:48:00.003-04:00

Michigan is in its 2nd week of Spring Practice and things are starting to sneak out and players are meeting with the media. Here is what I've gathered from a number of sources:

Bryce is struggling a bit but being coached the way he should've been as a Freshman. No one is concerned as this is a new offense and its still very early. He also is still a young QB that didn't have a QB coach last season. Which was a huge mistake.

Michigan's Oline is still banged up but could be elite when healthy and under the coaching of Jim Harding.

Could Michigan have one of the best WR's rooms in the country? Maybe!

Carr has looked good but BFN is not on campus yet and the LSU QB is expected to redshirt due to injury.

Defense is ahead of the offense, which is not uncommon at this point.

True Freshman WR Travis Johnson has impressed in camp.

The culture is more Harbaugh like vs. what the team has had the last 2 years.

The S&C program is completely different and good different.

Hiter of course looks good with a huge upside.

John Henry Daley spoke to the media and is feeling good and is expected to be cleared for full football activity on 6/1!

JJ Buchanan has impressed and spoke to the media, he expects this WR room to be elite.

Transfer CB Smith Snowden says the team has bought in to the new staff and new approach.

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U of M Women's Basketball lost to Texas last night, still one of the best seasons in program history!

There is some smoke around 5 star Brandon McCoy joining Dusty's program!

That 7'9 guy on Florida's roster is entering the portal, if he fits.

Michigan Monday: Is There an April Roddy?

2026-03-30T08:58:00.001-04:00

On Friday in my post, I asked for a few things to go right for the Wolverines this weekend in Chicago. Michigan needed to defend the 3, not be sleepy in the 1st half, have a senior step up, shoot the 3, and Yax needed to be Yax. The Chicago Mission has been completed with a successful outcome. Final 4 stage achieved!

Michigan did all that and more. Yax is a special player and we are blessed to have him for only a short time in Ann Arbor. March Roddy is real and it can be spectacular, they really needed him in the 1st half of the Alabama game, when Bama had the Wolverines playing their style of basketball.

On a side note, I thought it was interesting that AT&T kept showing that commercial on the Knicks hiking a mountain and the game they showed was Michigan playing Tennessee in the NCAA Tournament. That was some nice foreshadowing by the advertising agency.

There really isn't much to say about Sunday's game except it looked like the Wolverines were back playing in Vegas late last year. When Michigan defends and hits 3, the Wolverines are very hard to beat. Best part of the game was when Charlie May hits the 3, the bench and the arena went nuts!

Final 4 bound in a town and stadium that has been good to the Wolverines!

I prefer not to think about Arizona right now and enjoy this win for a few more days. On a side note, they really need to consider re-seeding the Final 4.

Congrats to the hockey team on making it to the Frozen 4!

Michigan Football also got a nice commit on Sunday from 4 star OT Sidney Rouleau who is originally from Quebec,Canada but now playing ball in Texas. Sidney is 6'7 and 270 pounds and just completed a 3 day visit to Ann Arbor. Sid has a long list of offers including Miami, Texas, Duke, Florida, Wisconsin, and many more! Bienvenue à Ann Arbor!

Let's hope the Michigan's Women's Basketball team can make this a 3 Wolverine Teams in Final Four's today!

That Duke - UConn game was bonkers! Tarris Reed has turned himself into a really good player.

For those on the Blog that follow golf, Gary Woodland's win this weekend after coming back from a brain tumor is just plain out special.

Tiger Woods still continues to be the most special and the most disappointing athlete of my lifetime.

Michigan Friday: Time To Play Better in The Windy City

2026-03-27T09:47:00.006-04:00

Michigan has played a lot in Chicago in the last couple weeks. If you count the Northwestern game, tonight is the 5th game for the Wolverines in Chicago since February 11th.

Michigan finally has had some time to rest as they have had almost a week off, with their last game early last Saturday. Rest and Recovery is important and so is the extra time to prepare for an Alabama team that can score the basketball. Michigan has struggled at bit on defense against teams that can shoot the 3 and strong on the offensive end. Working for a week on covering the 3 point line, I hope was a focus for Dusty and his talented Wolverines. I would love to see Michigan stay with the shooters and not collapse in the lane when a point guard drives. I'm not a math guy, but I'm still pretty sure 3 is more then 2.

Michigan will continue to need a great effort in the low post, while hitting a majority of their 3's. I still tend to lean on the seniors and would love to see a smart effort from Gayle, Yax needs to be Yax, Burnett defending and hitting 3's, and Tschetter hitting 3's and getting boards.

Lastly, from here on out, Michigan can not have a "sleepy" first half and needs to be locked in from the jump. If Michigan can play their best basketball and focus in, I like our chances.

Someone woke up Warde and he says he wants Dusty to be Michigan's coach for a long time and will work with him on that goal. A real leader would've understood that before premier jobs became available.

The Big Ten had a good night last night as Purdue beat Texas at the buzzer, Iowa beat Nebraska by 10, and Illinois beat Houston in Houston. We hope those trends continue tonight with Michigan and MSU both hitting the floor.

From many of the players, it seems Coach Whitt is more like Harbaugh then the past two years have been. That the weight room is much different in a positive way.