In 2003, the Big Ten Conference instituted the Big Ten Sportsmanship Awards. One member of each varsity sports team on every campus is nominated by the institution and two Outstanding Sportsmanship Award winners are selected from each school.
The student-athletes chosen shall be individuals who have distinguished themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior. In addition, the student-athletes must be in good academic standing and must have demonstrated good citizenship outside of the sports-competition setting.
Michigan Big Ten Sportsmanship Recipients
| Year | Male Recipient | Female Recipient |
| 2003 | Jed Ortmeyer, ice hockey | Maya Mandel, swimming & diving |
| 2004 | Pat Owen, wrestling | Lisa Gamalski, volleyball |
| 2005 | Kevin Dudley, football | Michelle DaCosta, tennis |
| 2006 | Andrew Ebbett, ice hockey | Becky Marx, softball |
| 2007 | Brian Hung, tennis | Katie Erdman, track& field |
| 2008 | Michael Parke, soccer | Krista Clement, basketball |
| 2009 | C.J. Lee, basketball | Teddi Ewing, softball |
| 2010 | Jason Jung, men's tennis | Brittany May, water polo |
| 2011 | Jordan Kovacs, football | Courtney Boylan, women's basketball |
| 2012 | Jordan Kovacs, football | Claire McElheny, volleyball |
