Why Michigan Fans Are Wearing Cheeseheads During March Madness
A name that sounds like cheddar sparked Michigan’s wildest fan trend, and it says a lot about team loyalty.
Published April 7 2026, 1:11 p.m. ET
Photos of Michigan fans showing up in foam cheeseheads are making the rounds online. But when it comes to showing out, Michigan fans turn every game into an experience.
One of their most recognizable traditions is the “Maize-Out.” Instead of random colors, the entire crowd wears maize, creating a unified wall inside arenas like Crisler Center.
Their team's fight song is just as loud. Win or lose, fans sing “The Victors.”
The cheesehead hats look funny, but they’re not just a gimmick. Fans are nodding to a player whose name sounds like cheddar while celebrating someone who stayed loyal to the Wolverine State.
Why are Michigan fans wearing cheeseheads?
The cheesehead look is a playful joke aimed at Will Tschetter, whose last name is pronounced “cheddar,” according to Michigan’s roster bio. Will is a 6-foot-8, 230-pound graduate forward from Stewartville, Minn.
Michigan lists him as one of the team’s vocal leaders. The school describes him as energetic, tough, and known for his locker-room and bench presence.
He stayed with the program through a redshirt year, an 8-24 season in 2023–24, and a coaching change from Juwan Howard to Dusty May. Will told Maize N Brew he had “opportunities to go elsewhere,” but he wanted to stay because of the relationships and stability he found. That loyalty turned him into one of Michigan’s most popular players.
“Obviously, there’s opportunities to go elsewhere,” Will said. “I just felt like my situation at the end of the day couldn’t get any better than it was here. Yeah, I could have gone and shot the ball more times a game or had the ball in my hands, but I don’t think quality of life-wise and happiness-wise, I would have found something like I did here.”
This season, he played in 39 games with one start. He averaged 3.6 points in 13.9 minutes per game. Michigan also named Will its Big Ten Sportsmanship honoree for 2026. Last season, he appeared in all 37 games off the bench and averaged 6.4 points.
The Wolverines won their first title in decades.
The Wolverines just finished one of the best years in program history. According to AP, Michigan won the Big Ten regular-season title with a 19-1 league record, earned a No. 1 seed in the Midwest Region, beat Arizona 91-73 in the Final Four, and then beat UConn 69-63 on April 6 to win the national championship. The Wolverines finished 37-3, which Michigan says set a program record for wins and tied the Big Ten single-season record. It was also the school’s first national title since 1989.
In 1989, Michigan Wolverines men's basketball shocked the college basketball world during the 1989 NCAA Tournament. According to MLive, the team had just fired head coach Bill Frieder right before the tournament started, after he accepted another job. Assistant coach Steve Fisher stepped in as interim and then led the Wolverines on a wild title run.