Dusty May said Michigan’s title run came with a cost. Just hours after the national title win over UConn, the transfer portal opened, and he called the roster scramble that followed “the price of winning.”
May on Michigan
Appearing on The Field of 68 with Jeff Goodman, May said the championship changed how opponents and recruits view Michigan. “But it’s it’s complicated. But it’s also the price of winning, winning like we did, because I think everyone improved their value and their stock because of the team’s success.”
He added that the staff was already thinking about the next cycle while the program was still celebrating. A viral screenshot showed assistant coaches recruiting for the 2026-27 roster after the title win in Indianapolis, a quick reminder that the work did not pause for the trophy.
Aday Mara and Morez Johnson Jr
That urgency reached the players still deciding their own path. Aday Mara and Morez Johnson Jr had to weigh returning to Michigan for another season or heading to the draft, while Yaxel Lendeborg ran out of eligibility.
May said the program expected that kind of pressure after a title because the roster had become more valuable. “Whenever you have guys that you know, they’re going to at least test the waters and they’ll probably be drafted, but it’s not certain,” he said. “And so the next group that you’re recruiting in the back of their mind, well, what happens if they do come back or they don’t stay in the draft?”
Michigan for 2026-27
May still sounded confident about the shape of Michigan for next season. “And so we talked about it where we said if we have to go young or we have to rebuild, whatever the case, we’ll be fine because it’s you know, we are very process oriented and process driven,” he said.
He closed that thought by saying, “But it worked out well. We really like our roster for next season.” Michigan won its first national title since 1989, and that success now sits beside a harder task: keeping the right pieces while the portal and the draft pull at the roster at the same time.
