Michigan OL Blake Frazier entertained by one social media narrative in particular

Michigan Wolverines football junior offensive lineman Blake Frazier started eight games last season and is on his way up as a player entering the 2026 campaign under new head coach Kyle Whittingham.

The work has started in the weight room with Doug Elisaia and staff, where Frazier is seeing a lot of benefits.

“They know what they’re doing,” Frazier said. “Obviously, they produced a ton of guys over at Utah and brought a couple guys from different places, but they’ve been super helpful in adapting to what this team needs and making sure that everybody’s in the spot that they need to be.”

Frazier, who started eight games and became Michigan’s primary left tackle last season, is listed at 6-foot-6, 295 pounds, but has gained weight this offseason.

“I’ve gained a lot of weight. I’m not going to say a number, just because I was talking with our nutrition staff earlier, I like watching people on Twitter argue whether or not I’m big enough,” Frazier said. “That’s one of my biggest time-passers. But I’m in a good spot. The staff’s happy with it. I feel the best I ever have.”

The Austin, Texas, native will likely make some more gains before the season begins Sept. 5 versus Western Michigan.

“Maybe five more pounds at best, but I’m pretty comfortable where I’m at right now,” he said.

In general, Frazier is in a much better place now than he was a year ago. Frazier dealt with injuries for the majority of last offseason but is ready to ride the momentum from his productive time as a starter into this fall.

“I’m a lot more comfortable, I think,” the Michigan standout said. “Last season, I was injured during spring, so I was more focused on rehab than anything. But, from a general sense, I’m in more of a leadership position now on this team, really enjoyed finding new ways to incorporate that role into how I play and everything. Just been really focused on making sure that I’m doing everything I can to make this team as good as it can be.”

Did Blake Frazier ever seriously consider entering transfer portal?

Frazier was the first Michigan player to release a “LFG147” graphic indicating he was staying with the program through the coaching transition to Whittingham.

“Everybody knows what this school means to me, and I knew coming back as a guy that started seven games, I wanted to be somebody that people knew was going to be on this team and looking forward to adapting to the new staff,” Frazier noted. “I just wanted to be somebody that, if anybody had questions or concerns with everything that was going on — it was a big transition — I was a guy people could lean on.

“As soon as everything got settled and people were figuring out where they were going to be, I wanted to make sure that I was one of those guys that was ready to come back and play.”

A Michigan legacy whose father, Steve Frazier, was an offensive lineman in Ann Arbor, Blake never wanted to leave the Wolverines, but did put a little thought into that possibility.

“I think we would’ve been naive to have completely ruled out leaving,” he said. “It was never a heavy consideration of mine, but of course it was looked into, just because I needed to make sure I was going to be in the best position. With an entirely new staff, it’s hard to know that for sure off the rip. But it was never in any consideration to leave.”

Added Frazier, of why he stayed: “This is Michigan. This is where I wanted to be my entire life, and finally getting to be in the role that I wanted to be, as a starting guy I wanted to make sure I wasn’t restarting that, going somewhere else. I’ve developed so many relationships here with teammates and people on staff that are still here. It was important to me that I was one of those guys that people could rely on.”