What a recruiting stretch this week has been for Michigan running backs coach Tony Alford.
Michigan
Film Study: What 2027 RB Lundon Hampton brings to Michigan Football
After snagging a commitment from four-star bell-cow Tyson Robinson this past weekend, Alford nabbed another high-profile tailback in the 2027 class, as Grand Rapids (Mich.) Kenowa Hills star Lundon Hampton announced his pledge to the Wolverines.
Hampton is the fourth in-state commit for Michigan this cycle and the 14th overall member. Michigan beat MSU, Penn State and Iowa for Hampton, who visited Ann Arbor twice this spring, including for the spring game at The Big House. He was offered while on his March trip, and Alford saw Hampton workout during the contact period.
At 6-foot-2, 203 pounds, Hampton is the No. 24 overall athlete in the country and No. 19 recruit in the state of Michigan, according to Rivals.
Maize n Brew breaks down film from Hampton junior campaign, providing an in-depth look at the potential he brings to the table.
Since the beginning of last month, Maize n Brew has seen Hampton twice. First was in Nashville for Battle 7v7 and later for the spring game. Hampton didn’t compete down south, but both instances provided an opportunity to examine his physical build.
Hampton is every inch and weight that Rivals reports right now. He’s filled out and how he compares to his peers physically is noteworthy, especially those at the positions he plays at the prep level. When examining his Hudl film, athleticism aside, Hampton stands out significantly. The sky is the limit for his body development once he enters Michigan’s strength and conditioning program.
Alford recruited Hampton as a running back because of his ability to evade tacklers in the open field and his explosiveness. On film, arm tackle attempts and dives to Hampton’s lower half never delay his forward progressions when the ball is in his hands. He can break runs to the outside, take proper angles, and has the speed to kick it into another gear to outrun defensive backs.
The way Hampton makes cuts through holes between the hashmarks is also noticeable. It’s similar to the prowess of Robinson, so it’s not difficult to pinpoint why Alford wanted the pair. Although Hampton doesn’t have as many route running and pass catching highlights as Robinson, the former can become a target and make an impact in that aspect.
Hampton also brings a versatility trait that could get molded well under the guidance of Michigan’s staff, meaning he may not remain at running back in college. Other top programs were eyeing him to play linebacker, cornerback and safety, and his junior tape shows multiple clips of him contributing at all three positions. He also came down to the line of scrimmage as an edge rusher.
His instincts on defense allow him get off the block and record tackles for a loss. While defending the pass, he sticks to the hip of opposing wideouts to breakup balls in the air or record interceptions. Hampton plays on special teams as well for his high school, serving as punt returner.
He does not have verified times reported in the 40-yard or 100-meter dash, so determining that benchmark and where development could transpire to improve that area will be something to monitor. Also, if he commits to running back only, how will he separate himself from the other rostered players? He’ll bring a heated work ethic because of the opportunity to play for the in-state school, which should elevate progress down the road.
CHIPPEWA COUNTY, Mich., (WPBN/WGTU) — A Wisconsin man is facing felony charges in Chippewa County after Michigan State Police say he stole a vehicle in Green Bay and forced another man to travel with him to Michigan at knifepoint.
According to MSP, troopers were notified by Green Bay police on Tuesday, June 9, that a suspect who had allegedly stolen a vehicle was believed to be headed toward the Sault Ste. Marie area.
Troopers later located the stolen vehicle on M-28 near M-221 after it broke down, but the suspect was no longer with it.
A short time later, police were called to a Dollar General in Kincheloe after a man ran into the store and asked an employee to call 911, reporting that he had been kidnapped.
Investigators say the suspect, later identified as 26-year-old Blaze Gugin, was found inside the Pizza Patch restaurant in Kincheloe and was taken into custody without incident.
Police allege Gugin stole the vehicle in Wisconsin and then threatened his adult male roommate with a knife, forcing him to travel from Green Bay to Chippewa County. After the vehicle broke down, investigators say the two hitchhiked to Kincheloe.
Gugin was arraigned June 10 in 91st District Court on charges of unlawful imprisonment and receiving and concealing a stolen motor vehicle.
His bond was set at $250,000 cash with tether and other conditions. He is scheduled to return to court June 22.
The owner of the stolen vehicle has been notified so arrangements can be made for its return.
The case remains under investigation.
NASA announced this week the four-man crew that will embark on the Artemis III mission, and one of those astronauts has ties to Michigan.
Mission specialist Andre Douglas, who served as a backup crew member for the recently completed Artemis II mission, received a master’s degree in mechanical engineering and a master’s degree in naval architecture and marine engineering from the University of Michigan in 2012, according to NASA.
Douglas will now join fellow astronauts Randy Bresnik, Luca Parmitano and Frank Rubio. Bresnik will serve as commander with Parmitano as the pilot.
The crew is expected to launch into Earth orbit in 2027 to test rendezvous and docking procedures with moon landers being built by SpaceX and Blue Origin before the U.S. sends astronauts back to the moon in 2028.
“To get an opportunity to serve in the Artemis program as someone who kind of just came in the door not too long ago, it’s a huge honor,” Douglas told CBS News.
According to NASA, Douglas was born in Miami and grew up in Virginia, graduating from Western Branch High School in Chesapeake. Douglas received his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in 2008. After earning his master’s degrees from U of M, Douglas later earned his doctorate in systems engineering from Georgia Washington University in 2021.
NASA selected Douglas to join the 2021 Astronaut Candidate Class, and he reported for duty in 2022.
The Artemis III crew will carry out a mission similar to the Apollo 9 flight in 1969. During that time, three astronauts tested the spindly lunar excursion module in Earth orbit.
Note: The video above previously aired on June 9, 2026.
Head coach Kyle Whittingham comes to Michigan with a singularly robust resume. After leading Utah since 2005, he is the third-winningest active head coach and second only to Kirk Ferentz in the Big Ten.
Mind you, this is a Utah program that has never won 10 games without Whittingham on staff; a program that has been playing at least 10 games in a season since the ‘50s did not reach double-digit wins until Whittingham joined the staff as an assistant in 1994. Since then, the Utes reached that threshold twice with Whittingham as defensive coordinator and eight times as head coach, including a program record 13 wins in 2008.
Whittingham navigated Utah through two conference changes, Mountain West to the Pac-12 in 2011, and the Big 12 in 2024, and each move came with an adjustment period. His only losing seasons (all three were 5-7 efforts) took place within three years of joining a new conference.
But those were only bumps in the road; excluding 2020 and his first game as head coach — a 35-7 Fiesta Bowl win at the end of the 2004 season after Urban Meyer left for Florida — let’s dive deeper into Whittingham’s winning ways.
Whittingham is 17-3 in season openers, with all three losses coming on the road. Two came early in his tenure against UCLA in 2006 and Oregon State in 2007, and the most recent defeat came in 2022 at Florida. The next time he faced all three of these teams, Utah won by an average of two touchdowns.
This record isn’t propped up by cupcakes either. Utah went 2-0 in openers against Michigan, 3-0 if we include all matchups. In 2008, in what was arguably the high point of the season for the Wolverines, Whittingham came to Ann Arbor and beat Rich Rodriguez by two points. That same Utah team would beat a 12-win Nick Saban Alabama squad in the Sugar Bowl by 14 points.
In 2015, the Jim Harbaugh era officially got underway in Salt Lake City. The Wolverines made it look better at the end, only losing by a touchdown, but the Utes led by multiple scores for most of the contest before winning by seven.
Throughout his career, Whittingham has rarely stumbled out of the gates and has never lost a season-opener at home. He is 10-1 all-time in the month of August and 55-20 in September, a mark that only dips slightly in the months to follow.
Whittingham is 48-28 in October and 48-30 in November. The incredible consistency comes with steady records against all his rivals, regardless of when the games are played. Unlike Michigan vs Ohio State — at least for pre-unwanted expansion — these games don’t take place at the same time every year. They are more similar to Michigan State or Minnesota.
As a head coach, Whittingham has a winning record against all three of Utah’s primary rivals. He is 11-6 against BYU, 11-3 against Colorado (a rivalry that reignited in 2011) and 8-1 against Utah State.
The Holy War is one of the most famous rivalry games in the sport and carries extra significance for Whittingham, who is a BYU alum. He left Utah on a down note, dropping the last three against the Cougars, including the last two by a combined five points. But before his protege Kalani Sitake (Sitake was an assistant under Whittingham for 10 years) began to get the better of him, Utah had won nine in a row, the longest streak in the rivalry since the ‘80s.
Save a year or two here and there, the Rumble in the Rockies was played every year between 1903-1962 before going dormant until 2011. Once resumed, Colorado exacted revenge in the first meeting before Whittingham ripped off a four-game win streak and a six-game (remember we are not counting the season played in front of cardboard cutouts) win streak, with a loss to the 2016 Buffs sandwiched in the middle. With the John O’Korn equivalent at quarterback for the Utes in 2024, Coach Prime smoked Whittingham by 25, but Whitt repaid the debt, winning by 46 last season.
And in the Battle of the Brothers, his only loss to Utah State came in overtime in 2012 during his first losing season as a head coach. He exacted his revenge the next year by four points, doubled down and won by 10 in 2015, and in his final game in 2024, the Utes won by 17.
Whittingham has shown growth in conference championship games. In his first two Pac-12 Championship Game appearances in 2018 and 2019, Utah lost and failed to score more than 15 points each time. The 2018 loss was especially painful, falling 10-3, and losing to Washington for the second time that season.
But in 2021, Utah finally reached the top of the conference. Following an inauspicious 1-2 start and the murder of cornerback Aaron Lowe (the second shooting death of a Utah player in less than a year), Whittingham rallied the troops to win eight of their next nine games and set up a clash with Oregon for conference superiority. Utah had beaten Oregon 38-7 earlier in the year and most expected a closer rematch. The Utes were only favored by three going into the game, but the Utes won handily, 38-10, and reached the Rose Bowl for the first time in program history.
The following year, Utah found itself in a similar situation, in a rematch with USC for the conference title. Utah had beaten USC by one point in one of the best games of the season earlier. In that game, Utah scored with less than a minute remaining and took the lead when Whittingham went for the two-point conversion and the win over the tie to prevail, 43-42. For the rematch, oddsmakers favored Lincoln Riley, Caleb Williams and USC by three, who just needed to win to reach the College Football Playoff.
Early on, it looked like the Trojans would Fight On to the CFP. But after continually pressuring and battering Williams, the Utes overcame a two-touchdown deficit and steamrolled USC, 47-24, and went to the Rose Bowl for a second straight season.
The Utes lost both Rose Bowls — one to Ohio State and the other to Penn State — but let’s not lose sight of the accomplishment. Utah has reached a sustainable level of success for more than 20 years despite only having 64 players drafted since 2005. For context, Michigan has had 116 selected in that time, 82 of which came under (or were recruited by) Harbaugh.
No coach has consistently won more with less talent than Whittingham. The first few years in a new conference have proven the most challenging in the past, but history suggests it’s inevitable he’ll return Michigan to the top of the Big Ten.
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