Despite everything that happened following the 2025 Michigan football season, the Wolverines have emerged in a better place, thanks to the hire of Kyle Whittingham.
The long-time Utah head coach hit the ground running in Ann Arbor. Whittingham has built a strong roster, keeping together most of the key components from last season's nine-win team, while adding some key reinforcements from the transfer portal.
The transfer portal can be risky. Sometimes, you don't know as much about the players you are getting as you think. It can be a crapshoot. It's easier when a guy like Whittingham can bring some players with him, as the former Utah head coach did.
Outside of player retention, the elite players Michigan football added from the transfer portal were mostly from Utah, and we look at three transfers, who were worth every penny of NIL money for the Wolverines this offseason.
John Henry Daley
Michigan football lost its best pass rusher to the NFL draft in Derrick Moore. That's the bad news. The good news is that John Henry Daley feels like the perfect replacement.
The 6-foot-4, 255-pound EDGE had 11.5 sacks and 17.5 tackles for loss last season under Whittingham, after just one sack and one tackle for loss during the 2025 campaign.
Henry Daley suffered a season-ending injury in November, but he's expected to be 100 percent this summer and by the time fall camp rolls around.
Whittingham has already been talking up the defensive line as a strength. It looked that way during the bowl game, and if Henry Daley can produce like he did last season, this Michigan defense could be better than expected.
J.J. Buchanan
Daley was ranked 62nd among transfer portal players via 247 Sports. J.J. Buchanan, the former tight end turned wide reciever, who also signed with Michigan football after playing for Whittingham last season, was ranked 19th among all players in the transfer portal.
Buchanan was rated as the fith-best wide receiver available in the portal, yet it still feels like the rising sophomore isn't quite getting his due.
Buchanan hauled in 26 passes last season for 427 yards (16.4 average). He also caught four touchdowns, but the impressive thing about the former Utah Ute is the way that he finished his freshman season.
Over the last four games, Buchanan had 11 receptions for 256 yards and two touchdowns. He had a reception of at least 29 yards in each of the last three games, with a 60-yard catch against Kansas State, a 58-yarder against Kansas, as well as a 29-yard gain against Nebraska in the bowl game.
60 percent of Buchanan's production came in those last four games. The 6-foot-3, 225-pound pass catcher is just scratching the surface. Pairing him with Bryce Underwood should do wonders for the young quarterback.
Beyond that, with Underwood, Buchanan, and Andrew Marsh all rising sophomores, it could be really fun to watch this Michigan passing attack grow over the next two seasons as the Wolverines try to become legitimate national title contenders once again.
Smith Snowden
Another former Utah player ended up in Ann Arbor for this coming season, Smith Snowden, a 5-foot-10 cornerback who was ranked 63rd among players in the transfer portal.
The Wolverines return both starting cornerbacks from last season, Jyaire Hill and Zeke Berry. Hill could have been a day-two pick this season if he opted for the NFL draft. He returned, and there's a chance to play his way into the first round this season.
Snowden could end up playing the nickel role for the Wolverines, but having three standout cornerbacks, with Smith being a second-team All-Big 12 selection last season, will be a weapon, especially with Jay Hill calling the defense.
Snowden has four career interceptions, with two each in 2024 and 2025. He also combined for 17 pass breakups the past two seasons, and is a willing tackler with 59 career solo tackles.
You saw Curt Cignetti bring over some key pieces from James Madison to Indiana. That helped the Hoosiers find immediate success. Ideally, some of these former Utah transfers should be able to have a similar impact this season.
Indiana made the College Football Playoff in Cignetti's first season. There's no reason Michigan can't make it in Whittingham's first season, especially with the roster in its current state.
Add us as a preferred source on Google