Michigan is one of the biggest mysteries in college football this season, and that was reinforced on Monday by the release of the 2026 Preseason AP Poll.
The Wolverines are ranked 16th in the first AP Poll of the season. That's the same place they are ranked in the Coaches Poll.
Michigan was ranked in the top 20 for most of last season. Essentially, the Wolverines will start the 2026 season ranked in the same place where it ended the 2025 season.
That's fair, though. Joel Klatt has Michigan football in his top 10, but like LSU, he called them one of the biggest wildcards this season because the Wolverines could easily make the College Football Playoff. They could also go 8-4 or even 7-5, based on how difficult the schedule is.
Michigan football has six ranked teams on the schedule, including four in the top 10. The Oklahoma game will be another high-profile matchup, one that will set the tone for the 2026 season.
The Wolverines also host Indiana, before November road trips to Ohio State and Oregon. Michigan's first six games feature three ranked teams, even though all of those games are at the Big House. Iowa (No. 22) is the Big Ten opener, followed by Penn State in the third game of conference play (No. 18).
We predicted a 9-3 record for Michigan, but it's hard to know exactly what this team will be. The Wolverines won nine games last season with a head coach who wasn't completely focused on football.
Kyle Whittingham is. He's also a proven winner. Not only did he win 68 percent of his games, but he also won three conference titles at Utah. Two of those were in the Pac-12 when Oregon and USC were both in the league, and Lincoln Riley just took over the Trojans.
Whittingham is used to doing more with less. What can he do with more at Michigan? That's a question that's difficult to answer. Penn State is going through the same thing. Matt Campbell did more with less at Iowa State, but what about in Happy Valley?
This Michigan football team should be much improved. The problem is that the schedule is as difficult as last season's was easy. There are very few gimmees. Even Western Michigan was a 10-win team last season that has designs on winning the MAC.
Michigan will play seven teams that won at least eight games last season. It's fair to wonder how Whittingham's team will respond, because 19 days before the opener, we just don't know.
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