The Wolverine Digest Pod

Hunter Dickinson is no longer a Wolverine — the big center made it official by committing to Kansas. The fact that he's gone isn't a surprise and where he ultimately ended up really isn't either when you consider his reasoning. Upon leaving Michigan, Dickinson dished on what he made as a student athlete under the new NIL allowances now in place and it's pretty paltry compared to what stars are getting at other schools. Dickinson will now attempt to capitalize on his name, image and likeness while in a Jayhawks uniform, which he'll more than likely be able to do at a higher level than in a U-M fit.

On the football front, Jim Harbaugh is still killing it in every way. The 2024 recruiting class is No. 1 in the country and just added another very nice piece, the returning roster is one of the most talented and experienced ones in the entire country and his not-so-young quarterback is starting to pop up on draft boards as analysts and scouts dive deeper into just what JJ McCarthy is as a quarterback.

Now former Michigan big man Hunter Dickinson appeared on a podcast ahead of his decision and didn't really say much. Of course, we now know that Dickinson will play at Kansas next year, but at the time of this episode, we talked about his impact at Michigan, what he might do at a new school and what his overall legacy is as a Wolverine. We also touch on the rest of U-M's roster a bit now that Dickinson is now gone.

On the gridiron, things are humming a long as well as they have under Jim Harbaugh. Michigan is just one of two teams in the entire Big Ten with ZERO questions marks at quarterback. With that in mind, it's easy to understand why U-M is going to be the favorite in the Big Ten after winning two titles in a row. Michigan has even moved into the No. 2 spot of ESPN's power rankings behind only Georgia. All in all, Harbaugh has things rolling and he shows no signs of slowing down.

Jim Harbaugh has things absolutely humming right now, despite a few recent losses via the transfer portal. On the basketball side of things, the portal is still a factor as well. Both programs have benefitted from the portal, but recently we've seen players from both sports decide to look around a bit.

Harbaugh has been killing it with the transfer portal, and he's doing the same thing on the recruiting trail as of late. Right now, per 247 Sports, Michigan has the No. 1 overall recruiting class in the country, headlined by five-star quarterback Jadyn Davis and recent addition, four-star tight end Brady Prieskorn. Across the class, Michigan is adding talent while filling just about every position on the field.

Juwan Howard is trying to recover after a disappointing season and he's doing it mostly through the transfer portal. Hunter Dickinson is currently in the portal, but for how long and where will he end up? There's now smoke that Dickinson might actually return to Michigan. We shall see...

When it comes to the football program, things are humming along. Michigan is scoring wins on the recruiting trail and will likely score at least 11 of them on the field in 2023. We talk about that, what could happen if the wheels fall all the way off and make some predictions about the upcoming season.

Michigan's spring game ended up being one of the more entertaining versions in recent memory with the Maize Team edging out the Blue Team, 22-21, after a late-game two-point conversion call by head coach Mike Hart. After the game, Hart touched on some of the developments of the game, one of them being the performance of his freshman running back Benjamin Hall. All in all, the game was a hit, even though many big time Wolverines were watching from the sidelines.

A bunch of surefire contributors sat out of the spring game, which isn't awesome, but it did give everyone a chance to see some lesser known players on a bigger stage. One thing is for certain — this team is loaded. Jim Harbaugh has done a phenomenal job building the roster and should absolutely be recognized and applauded for the near-miraculous turnaround since the disappointing 2-4 season. After beating Ohio State, winning the Big Ten title and making the College Football Playoff for two years in a row, that strange 2020 season seems like ages ago. Now, Harbaugh might have his best team ever heading into 2023.

Michigan advanced in the first round of the NIT after beating a solid Toledo team by 10, but Jett Howard opted out and the team just didn't look overly excited to be playing, at least early on. However, they got it together and now they'll face Vanderbilt in Nashville tomorrow. That'll be the real test in terms of who wants to play and who is just going through the motions.

As for football, we are getting closer and closer to Michigan's April 1 spring game. With that looming, U-M fans are excited to see some new faces and some familiar ones potentially doing new things. It's going to be vanilla, as always, but it's still football in The Big House in April. We all know that Michigan is loaded and will be a force in 2023, so watching the Wolverines in any capacity right now is going to be a nice sight.

Michigan basketball is in a weird place right now. As the No. 3-seeded Wolverines gear up to take on Toledo in the first round of the NIT Tournament, fans of the program don't know what to think. If Michigan runs the table and wins the NIT, cool. It's always good to end your season on a win, but no one is going to be very excited about winning that tourney. On the flip side, if Michigan loses tomorrow, or early in the NIT, it's only going to add to the angst that is U-M hoops right now.

On the gridiron, things are going considerably better. Jim Harbaugh has his program humming as many big time prospects are swinging through Ann Arbor right now. We're only about two weeks away from the spring game and the roster could not be in better shape as the Wolverines look to three-peat as Big Ten champs and return to the College Football Playoff before it expands to 12 teams in 2024, which we talk at length about.

Michigan basketball has been very up and down all year but the Big Ten Tournament was still there for them to make a statement and a run. With those ups and downs this year, that has been some talk about Juwan Howard's ability as a head coach and some have even started to use the words "hot seat" when referring ot his position at U-M.

On the gridiron, things could not be in better shape. Jim Harbaugh has the Michigan football machine humming and 2023 could be even more special than 2021 and 2022, which is really saying something. If the Wolverines can win against Ohio State again and bring home a third straight Big Ten title, advance to the playoffs and play for a national title, the word elite is going to be attached to the program for the first time in a long time, and deservedly so. We talk about all things football as the program marches through spring practice in preparation for the April 1 spring game.

Michigan basketball is slowly working its way back onto the bubble after beating Michigan State and Rutgers in impressive fashion. They're not there yet, but Joe Lunardi does have them back on the graphic. It's going to be fun to see how this team finishes the season.

On the gridiron, Jim Harbaugh and Co. have a couple of spring practices in the book and already have seen some nice things. The O-line is as deep as ever, the cornerback position looks and feels exciting and the Wolverines are very clearly the kings of the Big Ten at this point based on Vegas odds and overall predictions in the conference.

We're in the thick of the offseason when it comes to college football but things are still happening around Ann Arbor. Jim Harbaugh is back for good, for now, and he's made a few new hires that appear to have improved his already stellar staff. The 2023 recruiting class is now all set and several of those guys are already in Ann Arbor as Wolverines. All of that provides a little bit of excitement as spring football is just a handful of days away, with the spring game scheduled for April 1.

On the hardwood, Michigan has now won three games in a row with plenty of quad 1 opportunities coming up, staring with a home game against Indiana on Saturday. Nobody has U-M in the tournament right now, but these final seven regular season games of the year are just what the Wolverines need to bolster the resume in a hurry. Juwan Howard's seat isn't warm yet, but a heating coil is installed.