Michigan Musings: Who Holds the Championship Belt?

Who holds the Michigan Championship Belt? This in-depth feature explores the top athletes from Michigan’s major sports programs, ranking their individual dominance and impact on team success:

Welcome to Michigan Musings! Every Monday — at least until the start of football season — this will serve as your prime source for all things Michigan Wolverines . A weekly digest featuring thoughts and commentary on (mostly) the top stories from the week that was. Similar to a newsletter (Brewsletter?), this will feature an assortment of stories and opinions from football to basketball to hockey to pop culture and everything in between.

Grab a cup of coffee, sit back, and let’s dive in.

Who holds the Michigan Championship Belt?

Back when his fingers worked, Bill Simmons wrote about The Action Hero Championship Belt . In the piece, Simmons looked at which action movie stars dominated the box office and cultural zeitgeist. Era by era, from Steve McQueen to Liam Neeson in 2014 — Keanu was on the precipice of reclaiming the belt with John Wick later that year — Simmons examined which stars were at the top of the industry and, thusly, held the championship belt.

After attending the Royal Rumble on Saturday night in Indianapolis, this got me thinking. Who currently holds the Michigan Championship Belt? Which Michigan athlete had the best season across the four major sports — football, basketball (men and women), hockey, and baseball, apologies to any potential dominance from wrestling or field hockey — that stood out individually and translated into overall team success? Unlike previous years, the answer for 2024-2025 is not immediately clear. Looking back through every year post-Covid, some years have three or more viable contenders.

2021-2022

Honorable Mention

• Running back Hassan Haskins had a banner year for the Wolverines. Haskins rushed for 1,327 yards and a program-record 20 touchdowns, including five against Ohio State. Paving the way for Haskins, was one of the most run-dominant offensive lines in Michigan history. The combination of Ryan Hayes, Trevor Keegan, Andrew Vastardis, Zak Zinter and Andrew Stueber won Michigan’s first Joe Moore Award and put together a performance the late John Madden called “as good as he’s ever seen.” Could Haskins have been this good without the offensive line? Could the O-line have been this productive without a back like Haskins? That dilemma weakens Haskins’s case, but in no way diminishes it.
• The hockey team reached the Frozen Four and was led by four of the top-five picks in the 2021 NHL Draft. Of those four, forward Matty Beniers and defenseman Luke Hughes both finished as top-10 finalists for the Hobey Baker Award (hockey’s Heisman). But with the talent spread out and the underachieving final result — a flaccid performance in an OT loss to Denver — no individual player was able to crack the top-three for the belt.
• Future Jayhawk Hunter Dickinson led an underperforming basketball team that reached the Sweet 16 in scoring. That’s all I have to say about that.

Top Contenders

• Baseball’s Clark Elliott was named first-team All-Big Ten and the Big Ten Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player as he led the Wolverines to their first conference title since 2015 and a runner-up finish in the NCAA Regional. Elliott batted .337 with an OPS of 1.090 and was selected No. 69 overall (nice) in something called the “Competitive Balance rounds” in the 2022 MLB Draft.
• Naz Hillmon was stupendous in Ann Arbor. Hillmon became the first Michigan women’s player to be named an All-American — a feat she achieved in back-to-back years — and the first to be named to four first-team All-Big Ten teams. She left the program as the all-time leader in rebounds (1,063), double-doubles (52), and free throws made (487), and is the only Michigan player — man or woman — to total over 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds in a career. As a senior, Hillmon led the Wolverines to their highest-ever ranking in the AP Poll (No. 4) and the program’s first and only Elite Eight appearance. Hillmon was selected No. 15 overall in the 2022 WNBA Draft becoming the first Wolverine to be drafted since 2005.

Winner

Despite Hillmon’s strong case, defensive end Aidan Hutchinson was undeniable this year. Hutch set the program single-season sack record with 14, including three in Michigan’s first win over Ohio State since 2011, led the Wolverines to their first out-right Big Ten title since 2003 and first-ever College Football Playoff (CFP) appearance, finished runner-up in the Heisman Trophy voting, and was selected No. 2 overall in the 2022 NFL Draft. Above all, Hutch was a team captain who helped drag the Wolverines out of the mud following a disastrous 2-4 season and sparked one of the greatest three-year runs in program history.

2022-2023

Honorable Mention

• First-year starting quarterback J.J. McCarthy usurped incumbent Cade McNamara and injected a jolt of electricity into the position. McCarthy incorporated a missing rushing element (306 yards, five touchdowns) while also bettering McNamara in every statistical passing category. McCarthy only falls to honorable mention due to throwing a pair of pick-sixes in the upset loss to TCU in the CFP.
• Hockey defenseman Luke Hughes was the most dynamic blue liner in the country this season. Over 39 games, Hughes scored 10 goals and dished out 38 assists on his way to being named a first-team All-American. The No. 4 overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft left Ann Arbor after his sophomore season with a career plus/minus mark of plus 50 and two trips to the Frozen Four.

Top Contenders

• Running back Blake Corum was having one of the best rushing seasons in program history before a Week 11 knee injury prematurely ended his season. Corum rushed for 1,463 yards — still the eighth-best season ever for a Michigan running back — and 18 touchdowns through 10.5 games. Despite his injury, Corum still finished seventh in the Heisman Trophy voting.
• In Corum’s absence, Donovan Edwards more than rose to the occasion. Edwards rushed for 520 yards and three touchdowns in three his first three career starts against undefeated Ohio State, Purdue in the Big Ten Championship, and TCU in the CFP. In Columbus, Edwards cemented an immortal performance with 216 yards, two touchdowns (two iconic Gus Johnson calls), and Michigan’s first win in the Shoe since 2000.

Winner

In a shocking upset similar to Jey Uso winning the Rumble on Saturday, Adam Fantilli wins the title! The Michigan hockey forward became only the second Wolverine to win the Hobey Baker, while also being named a first-team All-American, Big Ten Freshman of the Year, and the Big Ten Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. Fantilli helped lead the Wolverines to another Big Ten Tournament title and a second-straight Frozen Four. Despite missing four games, Fantilli led the country in points (65), goals (30), and assists (35), and his points per game average of 1.81 was third-highest in college hockey history. In the middle of his historic season, Fantilli also added a World Juniors gold medal and while chipping in five points over seven games, before eventually being drafted No. 3 overall in the 2023 NHL Draft.

2023-2024

Honorable Mention

Hockey’s Gavin Brindley was named the Big Ten Player of the Year after tallying 53 points (25G, 28A) during his sophomore season. Brindley helped Michigan pull off upset victories over North Dakota and Michigan State in the NCAA Tournament, and return to the Frozen Four for a third straight season.

Top Contenders

• Following the collapse against TCU, quarterback J.J. McCarthy returned with a vengeance. Completing 72.3 percent of his passes for just shy of 3,000 yards with 22 touchdowns and only four interceptions, the numbers still do not do him justice. McCarthy was the ultimate team-first quarterback who had no issue handing the ball off nearly 38 times a game while consistently bailing out the offense on third-and-long. The junior was named first-team All-Big Ten and finished tenth in the Heisman Trophy voting before being selected 10th overall in the 2024 NFL Draft.
• 99 percent of the time, senior and two-time team captain Mikey Sainristil carries the belt. In only his second year playing defense, Sainristil led the team with picks (six), pick-sixes (two), passes defended (six), and was second with two forced fumbles. Furthermore, Sainristil led the Big Ten and set a program single-season record with 232 interception-return yards which would have ranked him third among RECEIVERS for yards for the 2024 Wolverines. Sainristil was named a first-team All-American and was the heart and soul of arguably the best defense in Michigan history. Inches away from claiming the title, Sainristil was speared off the top like Jeff Hardy by the undisputed champion in one of the hotly disputed Michigan years of all time.

Winner

There’s only one choice to hold the belt last year…Blake Corum. Corum was a team captain, a two-time All-American, and finished top-ten twice in the Heisman voting, but he was so much more. 27 record-setting touchdowns aside, think of his announcement to return to Michigan for unfinished business. The fourth-quarter touchdown scampers against Penn State and Ohio State. The bloody face in Happy Valley. Throwing up the “6-5” in the end zone for injured Zak Zinter one play later in The Game. The back-to-back runs in overtime against Alabama in the Rose Bowl to punch Michigan’s ticket to the National Championship. The game-sealing touchdown runs to clinch the national title. Corum embodied Michigan like no other Michigan running back before him. His name is up there with the likes of Woodson, Howard, Harbaugh, Harmon, and Oosterbaan. Despite being 5-foot-8, no one has stood taller than Corum at Michigan in over 25 years.

2024-2025

With Corum forced to vacate the belt, the title race is wide open right now. The football season produced top contenders Mason Graham and Kalel Mullings. Graham was the best player on the team and has a chance to be the highest-drafted Wolverine since Hutchinson in April. Mullings was the only thing keeping Michigan’s offense alive this past season and his third-down run against Ohio State was one of the all-time signature plays in the history of the rivalry.

Michigan hockey lacks a true star this season, but on the hardwood, the women have two five-star freshmen in contention. Syla Swords and Olivia Olson are both off to blistering starts to their careers in Ann Arbor, but they might be too green to make a legitimate claim to the championship belt this season. The men also have several contenders: Danny Wolf, Vlad Goldin and Tre Donaldson have all had their shining moments, however, the turnovers and inconsistency might hinder their claims.

Is there a dark horse we are overlooking? Potentially a player like kicker Dom Zvada who upgraded Michigan’s kicker currency from money to gold with a record-setting season in terms of accuracy and bombs from over 50 yards? For now, Mullings has the lead, but there are still a few months left with several athletes atop their respective ladders, pawing at the elusive title. While the title is being disputed, never forget, natty or not, how long it has been since OSU beat Michigan.

Quick Hits

• Pro Blue: There is a chance that former Wolverine Brandon Graham will suit up for the Eagles in the Super Bowl despite tearing his triceps in Week 11. Before the season, Graham announced that this would be his final season before retirement, so for him to have the opportunity to finish his career on his terms is incredible news.
• Sign-Stealing Allegations: Michigan is not going quietly into that good night.