Western Michigan Circled as 'Dangerous' Game for Michigan Football in Week 1

One analyst believes Michigan could be overlooking WMU, but is that the case?

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Michigan is set to kickoff the 2026 season on Saturday under the lights against Western Michigan. The Broncos will come to Ann Arbor in hopes of pulling off the upset, and they are led by former MAC Offensive Player of the Year, QB Broc Lowry, along with 1,000-yard rusher Jalen Buckley.

The Wolverines also have a big Week 2 game looming — the Oklahoma Sooners. After losing to Oklahoma last season, the Wolverines are going to want to avenge that loss and land a signature win this season.

However, Michigan has to focus on WMU, and that's something analyst Josh Pate noted on his podcast. He has circled this game as a 'dangerous game' for Michigan.

"I think Western Michigan at Michigan needs to be talked about," Pate said. "Michigan's a 27.5 point favorite...I talked about what I think Michigan could be capable of, but that doesn't mean that you can just look past Lance Taylor and the boys in Kalamazoo

"You know who they have coming into town next week. Everybody knows the Oklahoma game is on deck. Everybody knows you don't want to show anything. I am circling Western Michigan-Michigan. We've got a new well — not a new everything, but a new a lot of things at Michigan.

"We've got a new offense being installed there. I believe in Bryce Underwood, but it could be a little wobbly coming out of the gate. Not to mention, you're not really opening things up against Western Michigan."

Kyle Whittingham won't let Michigan look past WMU

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Whittingham enters Year 1 at Michigan, but he coached 21 seasons as the head man at Utah. He's never coached with the Wolverines, but he understands that upsets can happen at any given time. Although Oklahoma looms, Michigan is saying all the right things when it comes to being ready for the Broncos.

"They're a strong run team," Whittingham said on Monday. "I think it was the last half of the season they averaged over 300 yards a game rushing. The quarterback is a big part of that. The running back is really good. He was the MVP of the conference championship game, the MVP of their bowl game. They've really done a nice job running the football.

"That reminds me of us last year at the University of Utah where we were second in the nation in rushing. They got a very potent rush attack. We've got to be assignment sound. As we talked about, tackle efficiently."

We've seen Michigan teams get scared, or suffer losses, in the home opener, but this season feels different. The Wolverines could easily lose three or four games this season, but Michigan is focused and it starts with coaching.

Western Michigan won't be a pushover by any means, but when Michigan runs down the tunnel to start the football game, expect the Wolverines to be 100% focused on the Broncos.

Michigan's goal is a Big Ten Championship, along with making the College Football Playoff, and if that's the case, every game is going to count for the Wolverines with such a daunting schedule.

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