College football: Transfer Donaven McCulley ready to be Michigan's No. 1

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The jersey number isn't new for Donaven McCulley. But the history was, he admits. And when the former Indiana standout and his father, Derick, sat down in Sherrone Moore's office for a visit last winter, Michigan's head coach wanted to make sure he understood what it meant. Moore explained the tradition with the No. 1 jersey in Ann Arbor that dates back decades, from three-time All-American Anthony Carter through a series of receiving stars that followed in Greg McMurtry, Derrick Alexander, David Terrell and Braylon Edwards. "He's like, 'You know you're gonna have to earn it in the spring,'" recalled McCulley, who was arguably Michigan's most important addition in the transfer portal this past winter. "And I told him, 'I wouldn't want any other way.'" So it says something, then, that McCulley, the 6-foot-5, 215-pound athlete Michigan is counting on to be its No. 1 receiver this fall, is wearing that coveted single-digit jersey now in fall camp. By all accounts, he earned it with his work in spring practice. "And I'm still earning it right now," McCulley said Monday. "I've always worn the No. 1. I feel like that's just normal to me. But I know it's special here at Michigan, and I'm gonna keep holding that to a standard." That number certainly hasn't guaranteed success at Michigan. After Devin Funchess wore it a decade ago, the next two receivers to do so were Kekoa Crawford and Andrel Anthony Jr. But in 2023, Roman Wilson made the switch from No. 14 to No. 1 and played a vital role in the Wolverines' undefeated run to a national title. Michigan desperately needs McCulley, who wore No. 13 in the spring, to have a similar impact on the field if it's going to rebound from last year's offensive struggles. And while the Wolverines' receiving corps was hardly the biggest issue last fall — quarterback play and the offensive line topped that list — the lack of explosiveness was glaring. Michigan ranked 132nd out of 134 FBS teams in plays of 20-plus yards last season, ahead of only Kent State and Kennesaw State. Only one team (Air Force) had fewer gains of 30-plus yards. No team produced fewer 40-yard plays. Tight end Colston Loveland proved to be Michigan's only reliable target in an anemic passing game, and he spent most of the season battling a shoulder injury. Among the wide receivers on the roster, Tyler Morris led the way with just 23 catches for 248 yards. Morris transferred to Indiana, where he'll miss this season after tearing an ACL in the spring. So that left Semaj Morgan (27 catches, 139 yards) as the Wolverines' leading returnee, statistically speaking. And it added to the importance of McCulley's arrival via the portal, along with former UMass wideout Anthony Simpson. McCulley is the big, physical outside receiver Michigan lacked last season, outside of Loveland. And his ability to win one-on-one matchups and make contested catches carries greater significance as new coordinator Chip Lindsey tries to create more balance offensively while also breaking in a new quarterback, most likely freshman Bryce Underwood. First impressions in spring were encouraging on that front. "He gives you what we kind of got with Nico," Moore said, referencing former UM standout Nico Collins, who went underutilized in Ann Arbor but is a budding NFL star for the Houston Texans these days. "Now, you've got to put in the work to see what he's going to do. But in the spring, he flashed more often than not being a big-play receiver, so we're excited." McCulley seems to be as well, and he's not exactly hiding his ambitions here, declaring Monday his individual goals are to put up a 1,000-yard receiving season with 10 touchdowns this fall. The former dual-threat quarterback actually was Indiana's starting quarterback for a game at Michigan his freshman season. But after a position switch as a sophomore, he showed flashes of his receiving upside in the back half of his junior year, racking up 420 yards and five touchdowns in a five-game stretch to end 2023. He also threw a 44-yard touchdown pass at Michigan on a trick play that season. Then came a coaching change at Indiana, and after exploring his transfer options that winter — issues with transfer credits were an admissions roadblock at Michigan at the time — McCulley ultimately opted out of the remainder of 2024 following an injury in Indiana's season opener. Now a grad transfer in Ann Arbor, he's drawing praise from Moore for the way he's "asserting himself as a leader" and "really taking the reins of that receiver room." Lindsey, likewise, made it clear last week as the Wolverines kicked off camp that he's expecting big things from his biggest target. "He's got a lot of talent," Lindsey said. "He's rangy. He can run. So it's just becoming the best version of him, I think, is what we're pushing him to be. He's accepting that challenge for sure." And to hear McCulley explain it, that's really the No. 1 reason he's here: A chance to prove himself in college, once and for all. "It's everything that I wanted," he said. "That's something I told Coach Moore coming into the program, and that's what I'm doing."