The 2026 season continues to creep closer and closer, and fans are starting to feel the excitement of college football in their living rooms again. There are a lot of changes for Michigan fans this season, the biggest being Kyle Whittingham on the sideline, and it has to make fans wonder if the identity of Michigan is going to change with the head coach.
The Wolverines have always had this defense that was able to suffocate offenses, and it was key to Michigan winning the National Championship back in 2023 under Jim Harbaugh. That shouldn't change under Whittingham; if anything, the defense is looking better than most thought it would.
Michigan tight end legend, Jake Butt, stopped by to talk on the Crain and Cone show with On3, and he absolutely loves what the defense is showing before the season, especially in spring ball. Even with the defensive line needing to be reconstructed, Whittingham believes the depth at those positions is the deepest on the team, as well as the secondary positions.
Butt agrees with Whittingham, but there is one group on this defense that is looking like the biggest mystery and most likely, the weakest link for the Wolverines.
The linebackers.
“Schematically this Michigan defense will look very similar to what Mike Macdonald was doing”
— Jake “JBOY” Crain (@JakeCrain_) June 4, 2026
-@Jbooty88 on what to expect from this @UMichFootball defense pic.twitter.com/fc26XuhoWs
A solid defenseive line could the linebacker room deemed 'weakest link' for Michigan
Michigan's defense yet again looks stacked as the Wolverines somehow continue to bring in top talent on the line year in and year out, but there is one position group that has a big fat question mark: the linebackers. This linebacker group is a mystery, but it still has depth, like the rest of the defense, but no one knows how they really will perform.
Here is a list of the projected linebackers that will contribute the most this season for Michigan:
- Nathaniel Staehling - Redshirt senior from North Dakota State
- Troy Bowles - Redshirt sophomore
- Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng - Sophomore
- Chase Taylor - Sophomore
Other than Staehling, this is a very young group that doesn't have a ton of experience on the field early in their careers. Staeling brings one phenomenal season from NDSU, tallying 74 tackles, three interceptions, and one sack. Boweles brings one solid season with the Wolverines into 2026 after recording 27 tackles, one sack, and one forced fumble last season.
It is Owusu-Boateng and Taylor who are bigger question marks, as the former was an elite 2025 recruit and the latter only got a small taste of playing college football last season. There is depth behind these guys, but this unit is projected to get the most time on the field.
As Jake Crain said, following Butt's analysis of this group, Michigan is lucky to have a great defensive line, or this could be a disastrous scenario for the Wolverines. Having a good defensive line will take some of the pressure off this linebacker room as they continue to get more and more comfortable on the field together.
This Michigan defense is going to have to continue to dominate, especially if the offense takes time yet again this season to get on track. Will the linebackers be a bend, but don't break type of unit, or could they break this defense altogether? That will remain to be seen until the start of the 2026 season.
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