Despite being 3-1, Michigan hasn’t had a desirable start to the 2026 campaign. The Western Michigan win is still in question, and any momentum the Wolverines gained from beating Oklahoma was erased by the loss to Iowa. But the record is the record, isn’t it? Not according to Kyle Whittingham.
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The Michigan head coach said this week that the Wolverines were closer to being 4-0 than being 3-1. A day later, Jordan Marshall agreed with this assessment. Now Michigan’s OL coach has accepted responsibility for how his unit has fared so far this season.
“Truthfully, it’s not where I want it to be and where I think it can be,” OL coach Jim Harding told reporters. “And that falls on me, ultimately. You could say, well, you’ve had this many injuries with this many missed games. And frankly, nobody cares. There’s injuries all across the country. And so we’ve got to do a better job.”
While a majority of criticism has come Bryce Underwood’s way for offensive failures, the offensive line has failed to do its job. Michigan couldn’t generate any gaps in the run game against the Broncos. At the same time, pass protection was poor. That continued against Oklahoma.
Although the Wolverines fared much better against Iowa, the offense couldn’t get the necessary first downs in the last two drives that would have killed the game. Instead, Iowa got the ball back and a chance to win the game.
While Harding didn’t use injuries as an excuse, but they haven’t helped. Michigan is yet to see its fully health O-line. True freshman Ace Hamilton is sidelined for the entirety of the season. RT Andrew Sprague has missed action. The same goes for OT Andrew Babalola.
As a result, Harding is forced to use inexperienced players like Marky Walbridge and Malakai Lee. Four games aren’t enough for the line to get the chemistry right. That shows itself in repetitive pre-snap penalties.
It’s not a bad thing that the players and the coaching staff are publicly taking accountability for issues plaguing the team. Jordan Marshall was caught off guard when he first heard his head coach’s opinion. But after reflecting on the first four games, Marshall agreed with Whittingham.
“When I heard him say that, I thought 0-4? Then I thought about it, and I was like, yeah,” he said Tuesday night after practice, per M Live. “If you want me to be honest, it has felt like that.”
What must make Whittingham angrier is that most of Michigan’s woes are self-inflicted. On the offensive side, the Wolverines can’t stop getting flagged. As a result, the drives are stalled, and there is next to no rhythm. The other side of the ball has fared much better. However, defensive penalties are an issue.
The last game proves that much. The Wolverines controlled the game statistically for the first three quarters, producing a nearly nine-minute advantage in time of possession. But everything fell apart in the last quarter when Iowa bounced back with 13 points, and the Wolverines managed just 6.
Michigan committed eight penalties for 75 yards, finished with a minus-one turnover margin, and surrendered a 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. Iowa then drove 91 yards in the final minutes to score the winning touchdown as time expired. Even that drive had a flag for a late hit that gave Iowa a better chance to win the game.
Whittingham accepted responsibility from the coaching side as well. When asked about Michigan’s failed fourth-and-1 quarterback sneak, he openly acknowledged that he did not like the call and said offensive coordinator Jason Beck also recognized that it was a mistake. Whittingham said the coaching staff needed to do a better job in that situation.