Mike Danna, a former Michigan DE, wins the Kansas City Chiefs’ second consecutive Super Bowl.

A former Michigan Wolverines football player has won the Super Bowl for ten consecutive seasons. In an overtime thriller at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, the Kansas City Chiefs, led by starting defensive end Mike Danna, defeated the San Francisco 49ers, 25-22.

In Super Bowl LVIII, Danna and company defeated three fellow Michigan products: rookie wide receiver Ronnie Bell, rookie kicker Jake Moody, and third-year cornerback Ambry Thomas. Eight collegiate teams had four or more players selected for the Super Bowl, including Michigan.

The Super Bowl’s player count University 6Oklahoma Five Florida, Georgia, and Clemson 4Middle Tennessee, USC, TCU, and Michigan
3 Penn State, LSU, Stanford, Rutgers, Oregon, Missouri, and Washington Michigan
2.Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, UCLA, Mississippi State, South Carolina, Georgia Tech, South Florida, Ball State, SMU, San Diego State, BYU, Harvard, Alabama, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Tennessee, Purdue, Kentucky, NC State, Kansas State, Miami, Cincinnati, Arkansas

After five seasons, the Chiefs have now won three Super Bowls, and Danna has won back-to-back championships twice.

After transferring from Central Michigan, Danna played one season at Michigan in 2019. In his one and only season with the Wolverines, he racked up 48 tackles, three sacks, and one forced fumble.

In the first quarter, Danna made a lasting impression on the game by drawing a holding call on Trent Williams, a left tackle and eventual first ballot Hall of Famer. He had three tackles in total, one of which was a solo stop. San Francisco was limited to 272 passing yards (7 yards per pass), 2 touchdowns, and 110 rushing yards on 31 rushes (3.5 yards per attempt) by the former Michigan defensive end and his team.

Danna played defense as well when the Chiefs stopped Moody’s extra point attempt with 11:22 remaining in the fourth quarter, giving the 49ers a 16–13 lead (rather than a four-point advantage, had he made it).

With 14:48 remaining in the second quarter, Moody created history by making a Super Bowl record 55-yard field goal to start the game and give San Francisco a 3-0 lead. Harrison Butker, the kicker for Kansas City, then smashed the record with a 57-yard boot late in the third quarter. With 1:53 left in the fourth quarter, the 49ers led 19–16 thanks to a 53-yard field goal from the former Michigan kicker. Butker added three more points as the Chiefs closed the gap to draw the game.

As he had been throughout the whole playoffs, Bell did not participate in the game. Although Thomas didn’t start the game or record any stats, he came in for a few crucial plays towards the end.

Danna started all three of the previous postseason games and finished with four tackles and two quarterback hits. Throughout the regular season, he recorded 6.5 sacks, 7 tackles for loss, 13 quarterback hits, and 3 pass breakups. Going into the upcoming season, he is a free agent.

Before the game, Danna declared, “This is the most important game of my life, of my career.” “I adore wearing this red here with the Chiefs. Nothing compares to this. It is indeed a dream realized.

During the regular season, Moody made 21 of 25 field goals, including one that was 57 yards long. He

scored 60 out of 61 extra points. The former Michigan kicker made five of seven field goals to end the playoffs.

Thomas played in 15 regular-season games with six starts, recording 43 tackles, one interception, and seven pass breakups. With 11 tackles, he started the team’s two postseason games before the Super Bowl.

As a rookie wide receiver with the 49ers, Bell caught six catches for 68 yards and three touchdowns.

The 49ers quarterback coach is former Michigan quarterback Brian Griese.

Stock watch: J.J. McCarthy is projected as a top-five choice in the post-Super Bowl mock draft.

Before he even heads to the NFL Combine later this month, J.J. McCarthy’s stock has already begun to rise, suggesting that the Michigan Wolverines could have their star quarterback leading the way in the 2024 NFL Draft class. He is now in the first round of the top-10 discussions thanks to his arm talent, athleticism, and winning background.

The Michigan signal-caller is expected to trade up with the Los Angeles Chargers to the Minnesota Vikings at No. 5 overall in Damian Parson of The Draft Network’s mock draft, which was released on Monday. Parson made his second trade in as many choices, with the Atlanta Falcons predicting that they would move up to No. 3 overall in order to choose Jayden Daniels of LSU.

Caleb Williams of USC and Drake Maye of North Carolina went to the Chicago Bears and Washington Commanders, respectively, at No. 1 and No. 2.

“An additional exchange? Indeed! Minnesota is aware of its limited options, according to Parson. “They can either make a move for a young signal-caller or re-sign Kirk Cousins to avoid drafting one. NFL players and scouts have a greater affection for J.J. McCarthy than the broader draft community. His complete skill set will be able to develop if he is paired with Jordan Addison, Justin Jefferson, and Kevin O’Connell.”

In another mock draft released on Monday, Nick Baumgardner of The Athletic selected McCarthy for the Denver Broncos with pick No. 12 overall.

Baumgardner wrote, “This could be too high for McCarthy.” “However, many teams—including Denver, which has limited resources—need a quarterback. McCarthy, who is 20 years old, is an excellent athlete with arm talent and quick acceleration. Although he still needs to improve on his ball placement, there are more advantages than disadvantages. In this draft, he is not the 12th-best player. Still, I think he’s a first-round talent, ranking him ahead of Michael Penix Jr. and Bo Nix. Whoever QB4 is, it’s difficult to imagine them playing past No. 14.

Jim Harbaugh, the head coach of the Chargers after coaching Michigan, is one of McCarthy’s biggest supporters. Harbaugh recently praised his former starting quarterback during an appearance on The Rich Eisen Show.

When conducting the interviews, they delve into the ways in which this young man—who is only 21—is wired. Remember what I said, and don’t be shocked if he ends up being the best quarterback available,” Harbaugh stated.

McCarthy, a 27-1 starter at Michigan, led the Maize and Blue in passing this season with 2,991 yards, 22 touchdowns, and 4 interceptions. He is presently ranked 57th on Pro Football Focus’ big board among players eligible for the 2024 NFL Draft.

McCarthy may tumble into the second round, but he also has the potential to surpass or match his previous head coach. That would put him in the race to be taken in proximity to Michigan’s Chad Henne, who went 57th overall and was the second-highest quarterback selected since Harbaugh. to the Dolphins of Miami in 2007.

Michigan has only had one quarterback selected in the draft since that time. Jake Rudock, a 2016 seventh-round pick of the Detroit Lions, was awarded the honor.

The 2024 NFL Combine, which is scheduled for Indianapolis from February 25 to March 4, is the next step in the process. The draft this year will take place in Detroit, which is only 45 minutes away from Ann Arbor, on April 25–27.