Michigan OT Blake Frazier Explains How Jim Harding Has Been a 'Breath of Fresh Air'

After winning back-to-back Joe Moore Awards for having the nation's best offensive lines in college football, the Wolverines' line has taken a step back over the past couple of seasons. For the first time since 2019, Michigan didn't have any offensive linemen selected in the NFL Draft.

However, after Kyle Whittingham accepted the head coaching position at Michigan, the Wolverines' offensive line appears to be headed in a better place with the addition of Jim Harding as the new position coach. He comes to Ann Arbor after a luxurious tenure at Utah, where he led the Utes' offensive line for the past 12 seasons.

Harding is known as one of the most decorated offensive line coaches in the country and he's widely respected. At Utah, he has sent several players to the NFL, and the Utes had two linemen selected in Round 1 of the 2026 NFL Draft.

Harding is already making his mark

Despite needing to see how the team performs on the field this season, Michigan appears to be in a good place entering the 2026 season with Harding leading the group. Recently, starting lineman Blake Frazier spoke on 'In The Trenches,' and he told Jon Jansen that Harding has been a breath of fresh air.

"He's unbelievable. He has been such a breath of fresh air," said Frazier. "I think he's done a really good job of understanding every individual's personality and figuring out how to work with each of us. He works with me different than he works with [Andrew] Sprague. And it's not because he feels differently about us, but just because we respond to different things, we play differently.

"So he's done a great job of that. He listens to what things we feel like we need to work on. He's teaching us new techniques that I personally have not had the chance to develop. So it's been really nice to get to try new things and figure out, how can I make my game as good as it can be?"

There is a reason Utah has had a good, physical line year in and year out. Clearly, the Utes didn't recruit the same type of talent as Michigan did. The Wolverines are littered with more resources than Utah ever had, but it was largely due to the coaching Harding had done at Utah.

With returners such as Frazier, Sprague, and Jake Guarnera, Michigan is hopeful it will return to the Joe Moore Award-winning offensive line this season under Harding.

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