Defense was definitely the strength of the Michigan football team last season, but it took a while for the unit to find its groove. After the 2023 season, Michigan lost a lot of good defensive talent to the NFL, defensive coordinator Jesse Minter also left for the pros. Wink Martindale was hired to replace Minter, and the Wolverines ended up with one of the best defenses in college football despite a shaky start. However, Martindale almost went back to the NFL after the year ended.
Wink Martindale coached in the NFL from 2003 until 2023 before coming to coach for the Michigan football team. He had an impressive first year, and that led to some NFL interviews. Nothing came of them, and Martindale will return to Michigan next season.
Michigan fans weren't happy with how the defense performed during the first half of the season, but after the way that the Wolverines played during their final few games, everyone's opinion on Martindale changed. Michigan fans want him in Ann Arbor, and it doesn't sound like he wants to leave anytime soon.
“I said when I came here that this was an exciting time for me,” Martindale said during a recent appearance on the In The Trenches podcast. “It was different, going from the league to college, but it would take a lot for me to go back to the NFL. I told both Warde and Sherrone when I took this job that I would listen to anyone. And I think where I’m at in my career, really, I deserve that right to do that. … It was one of those things that things weren’t perfect anywhere or anything else. I’m just gonna stay at Michigan because I do love it here. That’s not recruiting or anything else. I do love it here, and I love the players here.
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Michigan held Ohio State and Alabama to a combined 23 points in the final two games of the season. Those games changed the perception of the season, and expectations are high for the defense going forward because of those performances.
“We had a lot of fun, especially toward the end of the year, and I’m looking forward to starting that all over again,” Martindale added.
If the Wolverines' defense can play like they did at the end of last year, this Michigan football team has a chance to have a special year. The Wolverines should have better quarterback play next year, and that will make a big difference.