When a player is in the running for a major postseason award, it usually means big things are happening for their team. And for Michigan football, entering Kyle Whittingham's first season as head coach, the Wolverines will need every bit of star power they can get—especially with a schedule that looks as tough as it gets.

ESPN recently broke down its projected top 25 teams and posed an intriguing question: if each team had one player poised to win a major award, who would it be? While freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood made headlines last offseason by predicting a future Heisman Trophy win, ESPN had a different name in mind—and it's one that should excite Michigan fans.

Enter John Henry Daley, the edge rusher who followed Whittingham from Utah to Ann Arbor. Though he's been flying a bit under the radar locally—likely due to his ongoing recovery from a ruptured Achilles (he's expected to be fully cleared by June 1)—national outlets are buzzing about his potential. ESPN's Jake Trotter believes Daley could take home the Ted Hendricks Award, given annually to college football's best defensive end.

And the numbers back it up. Daley tied for seventh nationally last season with 11.5 sacks, and his advanced stats are even more impressive: he ranked fourth in edge pressure rate at 19.6%, and his average time to first pressure was just 2.65 seconds—barely behind Miami star Rueben Bain Jr. (2.63), who was selected 15th overall in last month's NFL draft. If Daley can replicate that production in a Michigan uniform, he'd become the Wolverines' first Hendricks Award winner since Aidan Hutchinson in 2021.

Michigan's defensive line was already the team's strongest unit, and adding a healthy Daley only raises the ceiling. As offensive coordinator Jason Beck works to retool the attack, defensive coordinator Jay Hill's unit will need to carry the load early. With a player like Daley leading the charge, the Wolverines might just have the edge they need to make some noise—and bring some hardware back to Ann Arbor.