The 2016 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the sport of college football during the 2016 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Wolverines played in the East Division of the Big Ten Conference and played their home games at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Michigan was led by head coach Jim Harbaugh, who was in his second season.
Coming off the team's first 10-win season in four years in Jim Harbaugh's first season as head coach in 2015, Michigan began the year with high expectations, being ranked seventh in the preseason AP Poll. They won their three non-conference games in dominant fashion. In the following two games, the Wolverines obtained a top 10 victory over Wisconsin. Michigan continued to win, rising to number two in the College Football Playoff rankings at 9–0 before falling on the road to Iowa on a last-second field goal. Two weeks later, Michigan traveled to Columbus, Ohio to face arch-rival Ohio State with an opportunity to claim a spot in the 2016 Big Ten Football Championship Game with a win. The Wolverines lost in double overtime, 30–27, ending the regular season in third in the Eastern Division behind Ohio State and Penn State. Michigan received an invitation to the 2016 Orange Bowl, where they lost to Florida State, 33–32 to end the year at 10–3.
The team was led by unanimous first-team All-American linebacker Jabrill Peppers, who was the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and a finalist for the Heisman Trophy, finishing in fifth. Cornerback Jourdan Lewis was also a consensus first-team All-American, as was tight end Jake Butt, who was the recipient of the John Mackey Award as the nation's top tight end. Quarterback Wilton Speight led the team in passing, finishing with 2,538 yards and 18 touchdowns on the year.
Preseason In 2015, Michigan compiled a 10–3 record (6–2 in conference play) during the regular season and played the Florida Gators in the Citrus Bowl, where Michigan defeated the Gators 41–7. This was Michigan's best record since the 2011 season, which saw Michigan finish with an 11–2 record and a Sugar Bowl victory over Virginia Tech.
Michigan suffered staff attrition when defensive coordinator D. J. Durkin left the program to become the head coach at Maryland. On December 21, 2015, Michigan officially announced the hiring of Don Brown as defensive coordinator. On January 7, 2016, it was officially announced that John Baxter would be leaving Michigan to become the Special Teams coach at USC. In response to both the Baxter and Durkin departures—Durkin had also coached linebackers for Michigan in addition to his position as defensive coordinator—Michigan promoted their recruiting coordinator Chris Partridge to Special Teams and Linebackers coach. On February 18, 2016, Greg Jackson left Michigan to become the defensive backs coach of the Dallas Cowboys. He was replaced by Brian Smith, who most recently served as an assistant linebackers coach with the Philadelphia Eagles under Chip Kelly.
The team conducted four of its spring practices at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida between February 29 and March 4, 2016, which coincided with the university's annual spring break. The final practice was held as an open practice for fans and recruits, and saw an attendance of over 5,000 people. The practices were considered controversial, as coaches from the SEC and ACC protested what they believed to be an attempt to gain an upper hand in recruiting prospective athletes; however, at the time, no NCAA rules stated that the practices would not be allowed to take place. Michigan also conducted several satellite camps—football camps meant to expose prospective student athletes to colleges who might otherwise not find and recruit them due to distance or other factors—in 22 states, Australia, and American Samoa following the NCAA's reversal of a ban enacted only months prior.
Although agreed to many months earlier, in April, the university announced it had signed an 11-year, $127.12 million contract with Nike, Inc. on March 16 that would go into effect on August 1, 2016, for 31 Michigan Wolverines sports teams to switch from wearing Adidas apparel to Nike. The Wolverines became the first football program to wear the jumpman logo and every piece of football apparel donned by the team that is visible is Jordan Brand attire. Michigan unveiled its new uniforms and gear during a ceremony at the Ford Piquette Avenue Plant on August 2. Michigan alumna Dana Jacobson hosted the event, while former Wolverine great Charles Woodson was also in attendance.
Recruiting
Recruits
Michigan's recruiting class consisted of 28 recruits, including seven that enrolled early. Michigan's recruiting class was ranked No. 6 by Scout, No. 4 by Rivals, and No. 6 by ESPN. The highlight of the class was the consensus number one recruit in the country, Rashan Gary.
Schedule
Rankings
Entering the season, Michigan was ranked No. 7 in the AP Poll and No. 8 in the Coaches' Poll. Following its opening victory over Hawaii, Michigan rose to No. 5 in the AP Poll and No. 6 in the Coaches' Poll, and then rose to No. 4 in the AP Poll and No. 5 in the Coaches' Poll following its victory over UCF. Michigan held serve in the polls following its victories over Colorado and Penn State. Michigan rose to No. 4 in the Coaches' Poll following its victory over Wisconsin, and remained at No. 4 in both polls following its win over Rutgers. Michigan rose to No. 3 in the AP Poll during its bye week. Michigan rose to No. 2 in both polls following its victory over Michigan State and was ranked No. 3 in the season's first edition of the College Football Playoff (CFP) rankings. Following its loss to Iowa, Michigan fell to No. 4 in both polls, but remained at No. 3 in the CFP rankings. Michigan rose to No. 3 in the AP Poll following its victory over Indiana, and remained at No. 4 in the Coaches' Poll, and No. 3 in the CFP rankings.
Radio Radio coverage for all games was broadcast statewide on The Michigan IMG Sports Network and on Sirius XM Satellite Radio. The radio announcers are Jim Brandstatter with play-by-play, Dan Dierdorf with color commentary, and Doug Karsch with sideline reports.
Game summaries
Vs. Hawaii
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To open the season, Michigan hosted the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors. This was the first meeting between the teams since 1998, which saw Michigan defeat Hawaii 48–17.
Michigan won in a blowout, 63–3. Michigan opened the scoring in the first quarter via a 12-yard touchdown pass from Wilton Speight to Grant Perry and added to its lead with a 19-yard touchdown pass from Speight to Jake Butt. Michigan added 21 points in the second quarter via a five-yard touchdown pass from Speight to Amara Darboh, a Lano Hill 27-yard interception return for a touchdown (pick six), and an 18-yard touchdown run from freshman running back Chris Evans, which made the score 35–0 in favor of Michigan at half-time. Michigan extended its lead early in the third quarter with a 43-yard touchdown run from Evans, and then added fourteen more points via a Channing Stribling 51-yard interception return for a touchdown and a four-yard touchdown run from Khalid Hill. Hawaii reduced Michigan's lead to 53 with a 55-yard field goal from Rigoberto Sanchez, but Michigan ended the scoring with a five-yard touchdown run from Karan Higdon.
Michigan's honorary captain for the game was NBA Hall of Famer Michael Jordan, while former Wolverines Charles Woodson and Lamarr Woodley were also honored during the game. Michigan's 60-point margin of victory was the seventh highest margin of victory in program history and the highest since Michigan defeated Northwestern 69–0 in 1975. The game marked the fourth time in program history that Michigan did not punt during a game, and the first time since 2009 (against Delaware State). This was the first time Michigan had two pick sixes in a game since the 1999 Citrus Bowl against Arkansas and the first time since 2011 that it had two defensive touchdowns in one game. Thirty-three Wolverines made their collegiate debut, while seventeen true freshmen appeared in the game, setting a program record. Evans—appearing in his first college game—rushed for 112 yards and two touchdowns on eight carries. He became just the third Wolverine true freshman to surpass 100 rushing yards in his collegiate debut, joining Walter Cross (104 yards, September 12, 1998) and Chris Perry (103 yards, September 2, 2000).
Vs. UCF
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Following its opening game against Hawaii, Michigan hosted the Central Florida (UCF) Knights. This was the first ever meeting between the two teams.
Michigan won in another lopsided victory, 51–14. Michigan opened the scoring in the first quarter via a three-yard touchdown pass from Speight to Butt, and added to its lead via a two-yard touchdown run from Hill and a 45-yard touchdown pass from Speight to Darboh. Michigan added 13 points in the second quarter via a 24-yard, and 36-yard field goal from Allen, and a 14-yard touchdown pass from Speight to Butt. UCF reduced Michigan's lead to 27 points via an 87-yard touchdown run from Adrian Killins, which made the score 34–7 in favor of Michigan at half-time. Michigan extended its lead in the third quarter via a one-yard touchdown run from Hill and a 37-yard field goal by Allen. UCF reduced Michigan's lead to 30 points via a 34-yard touchdown run from Dontravious Wilson. Michigan ended the scoring in the fourth quarter with a 30-yard touchdown pass from Speight to Darboh.
Michigan posted back-to-back 50-plus-point performances for the first time since 1992. Michigan combined for 114 total points in its first two games of the season, the most in program history in more than 100 years.The 1892 team scored 142 points in its first two games; the 1902 "Point-a-Minute" team scored 136 points; and the 1914 team scored 127 points). Over his first two games, Speight has seven touchdown passes, tying him with John Navarre for the most touchdown passes in the first two games of a season by a Michigan quarterback. Butt had seven receptions with two touchdowns for the first multi-touchdown game of his career. Butt's seven receptions give him 100 for his career, moving him into third place for career receptions by a tight end.
Vs. Colorado
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After playing UCF, Michigan hosted the Colorado Buffaloes. This was the first meeting between the schools since 1997, which saw Michigan win its opener en route to a national championship.
Michigan overcame a 14-point first quarter deficit and won the game 45–28. This was the 14th time that Michigan has overcome a deficit of 14 points or more to win. Colorado opened the scoring in the first quarter via a 37-yard touchdown pass from Sefo Liufau to Devin Ross and added to its lead via an 18-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown by Dere McCartney. Michigan responded with a six-yard blocked punt touchdown return by Grant Perry, which reduced Colorado's lead to seven points. Colorado regained its 14-point lead via a six-yard touchdown pass from Liufau to Devin Ross. Michigan responded with 17 unanswered points in the second quarter: a 17-yard touchdown run from Jehu Chesson, a 39-yard field goal by Kenny Allen, and a 45-yard touchdown pass from Speight to Darboh, which made the score 24–21 in favor of Michigan at half-time. Colorado regained the lead in the third quarter via a 70-yard touchdown pass from Liufau to Shay Fields; Liufau suffered an injury on the play and was replaced by Steven Montez for the remainder of the game. Michigan then regained the lead with a 42-yard touchdown run from De'Veon Smith. Michigan added to its lead with a one-yard touchdown run from Ty Isaac, and then ended the scoring in the fourth quarter with a 54-yard punt return for a touchdown from Jabrill Peppers.