The Michigan football season ended on a high note in 2024 with the signing of No. 1 overall recruit Bryce Underwood and the takedown of No. 2 Ohio State on the road in Columbus. However, the 7-5 finish to the regular season was a disappointment given high expectations after a National Championship in January.

While the football season was a bit of a letdown, men’s basketball and hockey are off to great starts. The basketball team, led by first-year head coach Dusty May, just beat No. 11 Wisconsin on the road in Madison and took down a ranked Xavier in the Fort Myers Tip-Off Tournament to win it all. Hockey split the weekend taking on a ranked Western Michigan, but they were 10-3-1, sporting sweeps of No. 5 BU, No. 20 Notre Dame, and Penn State heading into last night’s game against No. 4 Minnesota.

It’s often joked in my family, and I’m sure in yours, that we sacrificed one program for the success of another. It’s a pretty common joke online, too. Over the last 50 years or so, each of the big three men’s programs has seen success and failure. So, is there any truth to the saying, “They can’t all be good.”

A few disclaimers:

First, the best and worst finishes for each program are subjective. For example, I listed the 1981-82 season as the worst for that decade. The team in 1982-83 had a worse conference finish (9th instead of 7th) but had a better overall record. Neither team had a postseason appearance, so I went with the better conference finish.

Next, this only covers the last 50 seasons or so. I have some time on my hands but not enough to go over the entire history of each program. If you want to do that, I’d love to hear what you find out!

1973 – 1982 | Michigan football and basketball find consistent success, Michigan hockey only has two postseason appearances

Michigan Football

Best Finish (1980); Rose Bowl win over Washington, the first postseason win after several losses for Schembechler; (10-2, 1st in Big Ten)

Worst Finish (1979); Loss in Gator Bowl; (8-4, 3rd in Big Ten)

Despite the struggles in bowl games, Bo Schembechler and the Michigan football team consistently finished at the top of the conference. They either won or shared the title with another team for most of this period.

Michigan Basketball

Best finish (1975-76); Lost Championship game to Indiana; (25-7, 2nd in Big Ten)

Worst finish (1981-82); No postseason appearance (8-19, 7th in Big Ten)

For basketball, Johnny Orr and Bill Frieder helped lead their teams to some impressive tournament appearances, including a National Championship appearance in 1975-96. The Wolverines lost to Indiana 86-68.

Michigan Hockey

Best finish (1976-77); Lost Championship game to Wisconsin (OT); (28-17-0, 3rd in WCHA)

Worst finish (1978-79); No postseason appearance; (8-27-1, 10th in WCHA)

Hockey struggled for most of this stretch. The main exception is the 1976-77, when the Wolverines lost in the Championship game to Wisconsin in overtime. Their only other postseason appearance came after the 1973-74 season where they got knocked out in the first round.

1983 – 1992 | Michigan football and basketball dominate, Michigan Hockey postseason appearances still limited

Michigan Football

Best finish (1989); Rose Bowl win over USC; (10-2, 1st in Big Ten)

Worst finish (1984); Loss in the Holiday Bowl (6-6, Tied for 6th in Big Ten)

Michigan football continued its conference dominance during this ten-year stretch, despite a 6-6 finish in 1984. Even when Bo Schembechler handed the reins to Gary Moeller, Michigan still finished at the top of the conference for his first three seasons.

Michigan Basketball

Best Finish (1988-89); NCAA Champion; (30-7, 3rd in Big Ten)

Worst Finish (1990-91); Lost NIT 1st Round; (14-15, 8th in Big Ten)

Basketball had an insane stretch of postseason appearances in this decade. Winning the NIT tournament in 1983-84 and the NCAA tournament in 1988-89. The Wolverines didn’t miss a postseason during these ten years but did have to vacate the 1991-92 Final Four appearance and the 1992-93 season, because, you know, Fab Five.

Michigan Hockey

Best finish (1991-92); NCAA Frozen Four; (32-9-3, 1st in CCHA)

Worst finish (1985-86); No postseason appearance; (12-26-0, 8th in CCHA)

For most of this decade, the Wolverines struggled to make the postseason but hired Red Berenson ahead of the 1984-85 season. It’s crazy to think back on Red’s early years with the Wolverines, not finishing with a winning record until his fourth season as head man, but by the end of the 1992-93 season, they had finished at the top of the CCHA and made back-to-back Frozen Four appearances.

1993 – 2002 | Michigan hockey becomes a program, Michigan basketball, and football start to take steps back

Michigan Football

Best Finish (1997); National Championship (12-0, 1st in Big Ten)

Worst Finish (1996); Outback Bowl loss to Alabama (8-4, Tied for 5th in Big Ten)

Listen, Michigan football was still winning games with Lloyd Carr and they won a freaking National Championship in 1997 for crying out loud! However, the early 90s came with some 8-4 seasons and less-than-stellar finishes in the Big Ten.

Michigan Basketball

Best Finish (1993-94); NCAA Elite Eight (24-8, 2nd in Big Ten)

Worst Finish (2000-2001); No tournament appearance (10-18, tied for 9th in Big Ten)

Even though you could argue Michigan’s best basketball season is “technically” the year they won the NIT or finished first in the Big Ten those seasons don’t really count anymore. By 2000, the Wolverines missed out on three straight postseasons.

Michigan Hockey

Best Finish (1995-96); NCAA Champion (34-7-2, 1st in CCHA)

Worst Finish (1999-2000); NCAA Quarterfinals (25-11-6, Tied for 3rd in CCHA)

Enter the best ten-year stretch of hockey for the Michigan Wolverines in the last fifty years. Red Berenson and Michigan made the postseason each season, including two National Championships, multiple Frozen Four appearances, and finishing regularly at the top of the CCHA.

2003 – 2012 | Michigan hockey continues postseason appearances, Michigan football has the worst stretch imaginable, Michigan basketball is smack in the middle

Michigan Football

Best Finish (2003); Rose Bowl loss to USC, (10-3, 1st in Big Ten)

Worst Finish (2008); No bowl trip (3-9, Tied for 9th in Big Ten)

Ugh, the decade of football I think we’d all like to forget about for the most part. The Wolverines had some of their worst overall records ever and lost to App State in 2007. When you thought it couldn’t get worse, Rich Rod and Brady Hoke happened. Despite a win over Ohio State in 2011, there’s not much to look back on in this stretch of football history.

Michigan Basketball

Best Finish (2012-13); NCAA runner-up (31-8, Tied for 4th in Big Ten)

Worst Finish (2004-05); No tournament appearance (13-18, 9th in Big Ten)

Michigan peaked in the John Beilein era with an appearance in the National Championship in 2012-13. While they didn’t win the game against Louisville, Michigan had consistent postseason appearances under head coach John Beilein.

Michigan Hockey

Best Finish (2010-11); NCAA Finalist (29-11-4, 1st in CCHA)

Worst Finish (2012-2013); No tournament appearance (18-19-3, 7th in CCHA)

When it comes to Hockey, it’s a tale of highs and lows. The early 2000s continued to see success in the postseason, appearing in the tournament each year until 2012-2013, when the Wolverines posted a sub .500 record and didn’t make the tournament for the first time in years.

2013 – 2023 | Michigan football started from the bottom, now we’re here! Michigan hockey and basketball have bright spots

Michigan Football

Best Finish (2023); Won CFP Championship, (15-0, 1st in Big Ten)

Worst Finish (2014); No bowl appearance (5-7, 5th in Big Ten)

It took some time, but Michigan football reached the top — Again! Jim Harbaugh, J.J. McCarthy, Blake Corum, Mike Sainristil, and the rest of Team 144 helped the Wolverines win the CFP National Championship at the end of the 2023 season. This stretch includes the 2020 sports seasons, but with all the Covid changes it’s easy to brush that off. While the Brady Hoke Sugar Bowl win didn’t hang around long, Jim Harbaugh couldn’t seem to beat the Buckeyes until 2021, when Aidan Hutchinson and Hassan Haskins helped the Wolverines get over that hump.

Michigan Basketball

Best Finish (2017-18); Won B1G tournament, NCAA runner-up, (33-8, T4th in Big Ten)

Worst Finish (2023-24); No tournament appearance (8-24, Last in Big Ten)

Michigan basketball had a few fun and surprisingly successful tournament runs. Including the year they won the Big Ten Tournament after a plane crash and went on a crazy run to the National Championship game. The hiring of Juwan Howard came with some things to celebrate, but that would fizzle out in the last few seasons, which paved the way for hiring Dusty May.

Michigan Hockey

Best Finish (2021-22); Won B1G tournament, NCAA Frozen Four, (31-10-1, 2nd in Big Ten)

Worst Finish (2016-17); No tournament appearance, (13-19-3, 5th in Big Ten)

Michigan hockey is going places, but had a tough stretch at the end of Red Berenson’s career, missing the NCAA Tournament three times, including his final season as head coach. The hiring of Mel Pearson seemed promising but he got fired by the University ahead of the 2022 season. Thankfully, Brandon Naurato kept the train moving in the right direction and has had two straight trips to the Frozen Four as head coach.

In the end, it looks like there’s some evidence to back up the idea that you can’t have three good teams at once. When football and basketball were winning, hockey struggled, when hockey turned it around, you started to see a decline in football or the basketball team had issues.

For some time, Michigan basketball helped comfort fans when football and hockey started to bottom out. Last season, who cared about the poor basketball performance? Football won the natty!! Even when one team is bad, we’ll always have another to fall back on.

It’s great to be a Michigan Wolverine!