Apparently Michigan's football program prepares its NFL prospects to shine on the stage as well as on the gridiron.
Bears rookie tight end Colston Loveland, who was drafted out of Michigan with the 10th pick this year, recently went viral for singing Mario's "Let Me Love You" in front of his new teammates at training camp. He killed it, stage presence and all, hyping up the full room of Bears as the instrumental played in the background.
.@colstonlovelan1's invited to the cookout 😂#1920FootballDr
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) August 15, 2025
Another Michigan product, Lions star pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson, has some experience on lead vocals too.
As the Lions were featured on HBO's annual docuseries Hard Knocks: Training Camp ahead of Hutchinson's first season, the former No. 2 pick provided one of the series' most memorable moments, belting Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean" for his version of rookie karaoke.
thinking about the time aidan hutchinson sang “billie jean” on hard knocks — probably one of the five or six best moments in the history of the show pic.twitter.com/Jrn2rmyuVj
— Shea Serrano (@SheaSerrano) August 23, 2023
I mean, just look at how hype the Lions got when that chorus hit.
At Lions training camp Thursday, Hutchinson was asked for his thoughts on Loveland's similar viral moment. And he couldn't help but give his fellow Wolverine and new NFC North rival a slight jab for having the instrumental playing when Hutchinson went a capella.
"I'm not a hater, I loved it. I thought he was getting a little groovy with it," Hutchinson said of the performance via Mike Payton of A to Z Sports. "But the fact that they can have background music, like put on the instrumental and then he sang to the instrumental, you don't understand what it's like when you're up there and it's pitch silent and you got to create your own beat.
"I thought it was pretty good, thought he got the crowd going, but I'd like to see it without an instrumental behind it."
If anyone's going to criticize Loveland's performance, it's fair to come from Hutchinson, who put on one of the best rookie performances we've ever seen publicly. The two meet for the first time in the NFL during Week 2 in Detroit. Maybe they can put on an impromptu concert and let the crowd decide.
More NFL on Sports Illustrated
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Aidan Hutchinson Had One Critique of Colston Loveland After Viral Rookie Skit.
