I was listening to the Late Kick Podcast hosted by Josh Pate this morning and he was talking about a question posed to him by a fan. The question asked who the most exciting player he ever watched in college football was. This is an incredibly fun game to play with friends on a Friday night sitting on a deck drinking some cold ones that I would highly recommend.

However, it got me thinking about the most exciting Michigan football players over the last 20 years. There will undoubtedly be some controversy to a list of the most exciting Wolverines during that time but that’s where the fun lies.

Let’s get into it going in reverse order.

5. Mario Manningham

Mario Manningham was a key player in the Michigan football offense from his first snap as a freshman to the last snap in his Junior year. He compiled 137 catches for 2,310 yards and 27 touchdowns during his career at Michigan.

Manningham is responsible for one of the most memorable plays in Michigan football history when he caught the game winning touchdown vs Penn State as time expired in 2005. I can still hear it now… “TOUCHDOWN MANNINGHAM! MICHIGAN WINS!” His performance vs Notre Dame in 2006 is one of the most ridiculous stat lines of all time. He had 4 catches for 137 yards and 3 touchdowns. He also caught the game winning touchdown vs Michigan State in 2007 late in the fourth quarter to seal the game against little brother.

Manningham ended his career with a stellar performance vs Florida in the Capital One Bowl. He rushed the ball 7 times for 53 yards and had 5 receptions for 78 yards and a touchdown. Manningham combined speed and talent with the ability to make big-time plays in big-time moments. Super Mario is one of the best receivers of all time at Michigan and he earns the #5 spot on this list.

Michigan linebacker Junior Colson appeared in 43 games during his collegiate career with 36 starts. Colson led Michigan in tackles the past two seasons with 101 in 2022 and 95 in 2023.

Colson also came up big this past season against Michigan’s toughest opponents — he led the team with 11 tackles versus Ohio State and led Michigan with 10 tackles against Alabama in the Rose Bowl.

Colson does a lot of things at a very high level and would be a steal in the third or fourth round. He rarely misses tackles, he hits extremely hard, and he’s incredibly strong and tough. He has football smarts in zone coverage and has a good knack at diagnosing plays presnap. However, he must improve diagnosing zone runes and his overall abilities in man coverage, especially laterally where there are times he does not keep his feet moving and a speedy receiver leaves him in the dust. Colson’s a great teammate and will be willing to do whatever it takes to get better at the next level. There are elements to his game that are still raw, but you can’t coach heart and hustle, which Colson has a lot of. He is willing to fly to the football and hit with authority, and what coach doesn’t love that?