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Visitors: Michigan vs. Michigan State

TRANSFER PORTAL

Donaven McCulley – WR – Indiana: McCulley is a 6’5″, 203 lb. former quarterback who transitioned to receiver at Indiana. He entered the transfer portal in the off-season and was courted by Michigan, but he was convinced to rejoin Indiana’s squad. After not being a major factor early in the year (2 catches, 21 yards, 1 TD in the first five weeks), he decided to re-enter the transfer portal and is now considering Michigan again. UPDATE: McCulley visited Virginia Tech and may visit Michigan later, but did not come to Ann Arbor this weekend.

2025

Andrew Babalola – OT – Overland Park (KS) Blue Valley Northwest: Babalola (5-star, #2 OT, #11 overall) committed to Michigan.

Avery Gach – OT – Franklin (MI) Groves: Gach is committed to Michigan (LINK).

Quante Gillians – DE – Rochester (NY) Aquinas Institute: Gillians is a 6’3″, 278 lb. prospect who has been committed to Syracuse since June 2024. Michigan offered him in the last month, and he also has offers from Boston College and Pitt, among others. He’s a 3-star, the #101 defensive lineman, and #978 overall.

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Illinois 21, Michigan 7

Bad game plans are the norm. After Saturday’s 21-7 loss to Illinois, Sherrone Moore said he needs to re-evaluate himself as a head coach. I’m not ready to throw Moore out after half a season with no functional quarterback, but I am very disappointed in him and offensive coordinator Kirk Campbell. There are all kinds of glaring issues with this offense:

• If ground-and-pound is your identity, stick with it. Michigan needs to be a run-first team. That’s the only way they’re going to win. Everybody has known that the entire off-season, even when we had higher hopes for Alex Orji or Jack Tuttle or Davis Warren or whoever. Early in the game, Michigan was using the passing game and Donovan Edwards. How are you going to wear down a team down the stretch by throwing the ball with a weak passing game and running Donovan Edwards? The bulls in the backfield are Kalel Mullings, Benjamin Hall, and Alex Orji. Pound the ball!
• Speaking of Alex Orji, he should be on the field. Probably the most frustrating thing about Michigan’s offensive personnel decisions is that Alex Orji – who played last year while J.J. McCarthy was here and who was deemed “one of the best 11″ by Campbell in the off-season – has disappeared from the offense for the past two games. How do you go from one of the best 11 to a guy who doesn’t see the field at all? I was not a fan of Orji as a starting quarterback who played the entire game, but he can be used as a mooseback runner. Hell, Michigan used Hassan Haskins in a wildcat role. You can put a 6’3”, 235 lb. guy back there with Mullings and/or Hall and/or Edwards and still do some things. Orji just can’t be playing an entire game as the only option.
• Donovan Edwards is both underused and frustrating. How did Michigan take one of the better receiving backs in the country and turn him into a guy who has 9 catches for 46 yards through seven games? He also had zero receptions in this game. Michigan needs to figure out ways to get him the ball. And then, of course, he had a very frustrating fumble on Michigan’s longest run of the day, a 19-yarder where the ball was punched out. He had 7 carries for 38 yards, but with the 19-yarder ending in a fumble, that’s basically 6 carries for 19 yards . . . which is nothing special.
• Plan for Jack Tuttle. Tuttle isn’t a guy who can do straight dropback stuff to win the game. He’s a game manager type who needs to be a complement to the run game. The offensive line can’t pass block – although I feel like they did slightly better in this game – and the receivers can’t get open with regularity. Michigan’s coaching staff should be using for Tuttle the game plan they used with Alex Orji, while occasionally mixing in a downfield/intermediate shot, maybe once a quarter.

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Preview: Michigan vs. Illinois

RUSH OFFENSE vs. ILLINOIS RUSH DEFENSE
Michigan is #39 in rushing offense (191.3 yards/game) and #44 in yards per carry (5.06). Kalel Mullings has emerged as the #1 back for the offense (589 yards, 6.5 yards/carry, 6 TD) because of his ability to break tackles and move the chains, but he and Donovan Edwards (353 yards, 4.8 yards/carry, 3 TD) split carries in the last game with 14 each. There may be a shakeup on the offensive line: injured LT Myles Hinton is expected to return, which could allow fill-in tackle Jeff Persi to get a shot at right tackle; and it sounds like Greg Crippen will get a start at center over Dominick Giudice. Defensively, Illinois is #77 against the run (149.2 yards allowed/game) and #96 in yards allowed per carry (4.54). The last two opponents, Penn State and Purdue, have both run for 239 yards. The leading tackler is redshirt sophomore safety Matthew Bailey (6’2″, 215) with 38 stops; following him are redshirt junior MLB Dylan Rosiek (6’1″, 235) with 35 and redshirt junior free safety Miles Scott (5’11”, 210) with 33. The Illini don’t have a ton of size up front – their biggest regulars are two 305 pound nose tackles – but they do have a 6’3″, 275-pounder at OLB in Gabe Jacas who leads the team with 5 tackles for loss. Michigan should have an advantage when running the ball, especially if Crippen and/or Persi can be improvements over Giudice and redshirt freshman RT Evan Link.
Advantage: Michigan

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2025 Recruiting Update: October 16, 2024

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2025

Saint Louis (MO) Christian Brothers defensive end Triston Abram, an Indiana commit, was offered by Michigan. He’s a 6’4″, 225-pounder who also has offers from Boston College, Kansas State, and Memphis, among others. He’s a 3-star, the #58 edge, and #782 overall.

Lake Worth (FL) Santaluces wide receiver Jamar Browder, a North Carolina State commit, was offered by Michigan. Browder is a 3-star, the #119 wide receiver, and #782 overall. He committed to NCSU back in June. The Wolfpack are having a rough season, and Browder recently visited Michigan’s campus for an unofficial visit. He’s planning to return in early November for an official.

Massillon (OH) Washington offensive tackle Nolan Davenport, a Wisconsin commit, was offered by Michigan. Davenport is a 6’6″, 260-pounder with offers from Missouri and Penn State, along with the Badgers. He’s a 3-star, the #54 offensive tackle, and #716 overall in the 247 Composite. He has been committed to Wisconsin since June 2024.

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2024 Ex-Wolverine Updates: Week 7

Here’s a roundup of the former Michigan player, former commits, and former coaches (or players-turned-coaches). NOTE: I will not regularly post updates about offensive linemen since stats are minimal and just posting PFF grades is kind of boring, but I did this week just to show who’s playing where and what their opening day role was.

FORMER PLAYERS

WR Andrel Anthony (Oklahoma): Anthony has not played since week one due to an injury.

LB Jeremiah Beasley (Missouri): Beasley made 1 tackle in a 45-3 win over UMass.

QB Alan Bowman (Oklahoma State): Oklahoma State (3-3) had a bye following their third straight loss. So far this season, Bowman is completing 59.3% of his passes for 12 touchdowns and 8 interceptions.

LB Semaj Bridgeman (Michigan State): Bridgeman has not recorded any stats yet this year for MSU.

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