Michigan is about to start the 2026 season with its third head coach in the last three years, and there is a lot of hope in Ann Arbor that this one will stick. Kyle Whittingham was named the head man for the Wolverines back in late December and is tasked with bringing this team back to its former glory, or at least making the College Football Playoff.
Looking at Whittingham's first season with the Wolverines, it won't be an easy one with the reigning National Champions, Indiana, Ohio State, Oregon, and Oklahoma as the heaviest hitters. The rest of the schedule has a few trap games here and there, such as UCLA, which is a sneaky team this season, and Minnesota, led by dark-horse quarterback Drake Lindsey, but Michigan could fare well.
With the summer months winding down, game predictions are coming out more frequently, and On3's J.D. Pickell has officially made his for Michigan. The problem with his predictions is that it is so predictable and frankly just lazy. Pickell has Michigan losing all the big games against Oklahoma, Indiana, Oregon, and Ohio State, giving Whittingham no credit in his first season.
Michigan record prediction pic.twitter.com/hbe530JbpG
— J.D. PicKell (@jdpickell) July 15, 2026
Kyle Whittingham isn't getting any credit with J.D. Pickells Michigan predictions
Of course, whenever a new coach takes over for any program, especially a big program like Michigan, expectations have to be tempered. However, Pickell is predicting that Whittingham won't be able to win any of the big games, especially the ones played in The Big House, like Oklahoma or Indiana, which just feels like taking the easy way out and putting no faith in the Wolverines.
It is not like Whittingham took over a team that has missed a bowl game for years. He took over a program that won a National Championship three years ago, has managed to make bowl games in the years following, and has a former No. 1 overall, five-star prospect quarterback leading the way.
Sure, Bryce Underwood didn't perform up to expectations last season, but he was a freshman, and let's face it, he didn't have the best supporting cast. Heading into his second season, Underwood has a new offensive coordinator in Jason Beck, a beefed-up wide receiver core, and the No. 1 running back in the 2025 recruiting class, Savion Hiter, to help him out.
The talent for Underwood is there; why else would he have been a five-star recruit out of high school? Sure, some guys come out of high school and are just busts, but there have been glimpses of greatness from Underwood, and he just might need the right staff around him, which could be Whittingham's staff.
Whittingham is known to win with the most random three-star players; it's what put him on the map at Utah. Now, he is coaching four and five-star recruits at Michigan, which could completely change the ball game. Whittingham has a history of winning, which is why the Wolverines wanted him in Ann Arbor, and giving him no respect ahead of those big games can just be another chip on his shoulder.
The 2026 season will be a 'prove it' year for Whittingham, and really show if he has what it takes to compete in the Big Ten.
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