Michigan’s Donaven McCulley, likened to Nico Collins, poised to lead WR corps in offense

When pundits surmise that the Michigan football offense will take a step forward in 2025, it's usually because they have stars in their eyes beholding freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood. But there are other components that the Wolverines added that they hope will pay dividends this year.

Of course, the main addition was an offensive coordinator in Chip Lindsey, who has had success at nearly every turn, but perhaps a more unheralded addition is wide receiver Donaven McCulley, who came aboard this offseason from Indiana. He didn't see much playing time last year in Bloomington as new head coach Curt Cignetti brought many of his guys from James Madison, but the 6-foot-5 receiver led the Hoosiers in 2023 with 48 catches for 644 yards and six touchdowns -- making him the second most prolific receiver on the roster (the other being UMass transfer Anthony Simpson).

At Big Ten media days, head coach Sherrone Moore said that McCulley reminds him a lot of another Wolverines receiver who showed out during his time, and he anticipates that the transfer will see somewhat of a similar trajectory.

"First off, big, tall, strong, fast, explosive, big playability," Moore said. "He gives you what we kind of got with Nico, and Nico that 2020 year we thought was going to take off even more -- and that’s what he reminds you of."

McCulley rarely gets mentions from the national media as being a big part of the up-and-coming offense in Ann Arbor, but that's a mistake.

Many of the pass plays in the spring game helped shape their opinion, but McCulley, on the maize team (led by QB Jadyn Davis), was only targeted once, and he made an impressive catch despite being covered by two defenders. That's only what we've gotten to see, but those who got to take in spring practice insist that it was a regular occurrence.

What's more, he's cementing himself as a leader in the wide receiving corps, which could pay dividends with younger wideouts learning from him.

"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," Moore said. "So we’re excited to see what he does. And in the locker room, he’s been great. He’s asserting himself as a leader. He’s an older guy, and he’s really taking the reins of that receiver room to be a threat on our offense."

Michigan opened up fall camp on Wednesday with eyes on the August 30 season opener against New Mexico at The Big House.

This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Michigan’s Donaven McCulley set to shine as key WR in 2025