Wink Martindale defined as a ‘splash hire’ for Michigan

On Friday morning, ESPN‘s Adam Schefter reported Michigan is set to hire former New York Giants defensive coordinator Don “Wink” Martindale. Martindale is expected to serve in the same role under head coach Sherrone Moore at Michigan.

Earlier this offseason, Martindale unceremoniously parted-ways with the Giants after clashing with head coach Brian Daboll. Martindale hasn’t coached at the college level since 2004 when he was the defensive coordinator under Jack Harbaugh at Western Kentucky.

In a conversation with On3’s Andy Staples, the Wolverine’s Clayton Sayfie raved about Michigan’s latest hire.

“You’re keeping it in the family. The scheme is going to be similar,” Sayfie said. “He’s 60 years old. He hasn’t been in college football since 2003 at Western Kentucky and a few of his years at Western Kentucky were under Jack Harbaugh.

“It’s a splash type of hire, getting a guy out of the NFL. And, I think it could be a pretty good fit for Michigan at least for a couple of years, if that’s what they get out of him.”

Jack Harbaugh isn’t Martindale’s only connection to Michigan. He also spent nine seasons with the Baltimore Ravens, including four years as the team’s defensive coordinator. Of course, during his tenure in Baltimore, Martindale served under head coach John Harbaugh, former Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh’s brother.

Moreover, Martindale mentored Jesse Minter, who spent three years with the Ravens. Minter was Michigan’s defensive coordinator for the past two seasons. He will be Jim Harbaugh’s DC for the Los Angeles Chargers in the 2024 campaign.

With so many connections, Martindale’s defense at Michigan will likely be reminiscent of those who came before him. Obviously, it was working. Michigan finished its national championship season with the No. 1 defense in the country, only allowing 247 yards per game.

Staples had his own analogy for the hire.

“It’s sort of like you lose Snoop Dogg and Eminem, and then you hire Dr. Dre,” Staples said with a smile.

More thoughts on the Wink Martindale hire

Sayfie isn’t the only one hopeful for the hire. Earlier this week, On3’s Jesse Simonton dove deep into Michigan’s biggest pickup yet under Moore.

“In his last six seasons as an NFL DC, Martindale’s defenses ranked first or second in blitz rate in five of the six years. 

“Will he continue to employ such an aggressive scheme with the Wolverines? Or will he dial it back taking over a defense that must replace its top two linebackers (Junior Colson and Michael Barrett), all-world safety Mike Sainristill and top edge rusher Jaylen Harrell? 

“Martindale must also adjust to the new reality of working in the age of NIL and the transfer portal. He probably won’t have a ton of recruiting responsibilities, but that only adds more to Moore’s plate, too.”