Tag: 2025 season countdown

2025 Season Countdown: #14 Giovanni El-Hadi

Name: Giovanni El-Hadi
Height: 6’5″
Weight: 315 lbs.
High school: Sterling Heights (MI) Stevenson
Position: Offensive guard
Class: Fifth year senior
Jersey number: #58
Last year: I ranked El-Hadi #14 and said he would be a starting offensive guard and second team all-conference (LINK). He started all thirteen games and was named Honorable Mention All-Big Ten.
TTB Rating: 84

Last year I said it seemed like El-Hadi had been around forever, and just now he’s entering his fifth year. I also predicted he would be Second Team All-Big Ten, and that was way off, too. So maybe I’m a bit aloof when it comes to El-Hadi.

El-Hadi had mostly played left guard early in his career, but last season he switched to the right side to make way for Northwestern transfer Josh Priebe to start at left guard. Both of them had pretty forgettable seasons. And that was the case for most of the offensive line. It was a pretty ugly year overall except when Kalel Mullings was stepping through tackles in the backfield and turning them into 20+ yard runs.

Now El-Hadi is back at left guard, and my hope is that he plays better as a result. Just like with Evan Link switching back to left tackle (where he played in high school) from the right side (where he played most of last year), I think being comfortable with the footwork, hand placement, eyes, etc. can help an offensive lineman. El-Hadi has been named a captain for the upcoming season, and he pairs with fifth year senior center Greg Crippen for some good experience on the interior. I’m not going to go as far as saying El-Hadi will be an all-conference player in 2025, but he should be improved and the offense overall should look better under new offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey.

Prediction: Starting left guard

2025 Season Countdown: #15 Jordan Marshall

Name: Jordan Marshall
Height: 5’11″
Weight: 216 lbs.
High school: Cincinnati (OH) Moeller
Position: Running back
Class: Redshirt freshman
Jersey number: #23
Last year: I ranked Marshall #73 and said he would be a backup running back (LINK). He played in five games and ran 31 times for 120 yards and returned 9 kickoffs for 225 yards.
TTB Rating: 88

Marshall was a top-100 recruit in the class of 2024 who started off the season being hyped by running backs coach Tony Alford . . . and then didn’t play much running back. A lot of people expected him to be the third back behind Kalel Mullings and Donovan Edwards, but he only carried the ball 31 times on the season, and that includes 23 times in the bowl game against Alabama after Mullings and Edwards were preparing for the NFL draft. Part of the reason Marshall didn’t play earlier was because he was working through an injury, and that allowed him to keep his redshirt by only playing in four regular season games (bowl games don’t count against redshirts). Maybe that doesn’t matter because I would be surprised if he’s still around in 2028, but you never know.

For the past few years, Michigan has had upperclassmen to handle running back duties, including Hassan Haskins, Blake Corum, Mullings, and Edwards, but this year is a little different with Marshall the reported leader in the clubhouse and junior Alabama transfer Justice Haynes right there behind him. Haynes was a 5-star recruit and someone who performed well when given opportunities in Tuscaloosa. Maybe this isn’t Michigan’s best 1-2 combo at running back, but it’s a pretty fantastic stack, at least as far as recruiting rankings go; Haynes was #29 overall in 2023 and Marshall was #78 overall in 2024.

Marshall showed a great deal of toughness during his performance against Alabama, dragging tacklers and running through attempts to take him down. He had very good track times in high school, but the ReliaQuest Bowl was more about his between-the-tackles effort than bouncing things outside or breaking big runs. He’ll have to continue that tough running behind an offensive line that will probably not be great in 2025, though Michigan fans are hoping it will be improved from last year. I seem some similarities between Marshall and Omarion Hampton, whom new offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey helped turn into a first round draft pick this past spring.

Prediction: Starting running back; 220 carries, 1100 yards, 9 touchdowns

2025 Season Countdown: #16 T.J. Metcalf

Name: T.J. Metcalf
Height: 6’1″
Weight: 200 lbs.
High school: Birmingham (AL) Pinson Valley
Position: Safety
Class: Junior
Jersey number: #7
Last year: Metcalf played for Arkansas. He started eleven games and made 57 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 3 interceptions, 1 forced fumble, and 7 pass breakups.
TTB Rating: N/A

T.J. Metcalf was a free agent transfer from Arkansas who fit in immediately upon arriving in Ann Arbor. A starter at safety in 2024 who played in 24 total games for the Razorbacks, he’s a good-sized player who apparently has a football mind. Sam Webb recently stated that Metcalf said he learned Michigan’s defense in about a week this spring, and that’s good news, because the defense is thought to be rather complicated since it’s an NFL system.

His Arkansas career included three interceptions last season, two of which came against former Michigan State quarterback Payton Thorne, who decided to move south to throw his interceptions in an Auburn uniform instead.

Now that he’s in Ann Arbor, he seems likely to play the nickel position formerly inhabited by Mike Sainristil, Zeke Berry, and Makari Paige. Fifth year senior Rod Moore could be an option at nickel, too, but Moore is coming back from an injury. To start the year, I think it makes the most sense to have Moore at nickel, Jaden Mangham and Brandyn Hillman at safety, and then Zeke Berry and Jyaire Hill at cornerback. Sherrone Moore was quoted over the summer as saying Metcalf could be one of the best players not only on the team, but in the Big Ten.

Prediction: Starting nickel; 60 tackles, 2 sacks, 3 interceptions

2025 Season Countdown: #17 T.J. Guy

Name: T.J. Guy
Height: 6’4″
Weight: 250 lbs.
High school: Mansfield (MA) Mansfield
Position: Defensive end
Class: Fifth year senior
Jersey number: #42 #4
Last year: I ranked Guy #27aand said he would be a backup defensive end with 20 tackles and 3 sacks (LINK). He made 32 tackles, 7 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, and 6 quarterback hurries.
TTB Rating: 65

Guy quietly turned into a pretty destructive pass rusher in 2024, finishing second on the team with 5.5 sacks behind Josaiah Stewart’s 8.5. That was perhaps especially impressive because Guy was essentially a backup, starting only three games. I felt like Guy finished the season strongly, making 3 sacks against Indiana and Northwestern and then playing well against Alabama. He has not added any weight since last season, and he can sometimes get pushed around in the run game, but his length and speed make him an asset on the pass rush.

This season Guy should be even more productive with more playing time, and his new #4 jersey (after switching from #42) should look fun getting after the quarterback; it’s not often we see pass rushers wearing single-digit jerseys, which may be one reason why I look back so fondly on #2 Shawn Crable. He may get replaced at times in run-stuffing situations, but the Wolverines have a good situation at edge with Cam Brandt and Dominic Nichols serving as backups, some young players with athleticism, and the potential of using linebacker Jaishawn Barham off the edge as well. I’m expecting a good season out of Guy that will end with him being a day two or day three pick in the NFL draft next spring.

Prediction: Starting defensive end; 40 tackles, 8 sacks

2025 Season Countdown: #18 Evan Link

Name: Evan Link
Height: 6’6″
Weight: 324lbs.
High school: Washington (DC) Gonzaga
Position: Offensive tackle
Class: Redshirt sophomore
Jersey number: #71
Last year: I ranked Link #34 and said he would be a backup offensive tackle (LINK). He started eleven games.
TTB Rating: 72

Evan Link had one of the most inauspicious seasons for a Michigan lineman in my memory. And during that season, he had a couple of the worst games I’ve ever seen for a Michigan lineman. Perhaps the only more frustrating game was the 2023 version against Penn State where right tackle Karsen Barnhart couldn’t even sniff the Nittany Lions’ edges, so Michigan just ran the ball 30+ times to end the game.

Now take that performance, extend it over most of a season, and you have Evan Link’s 2024.

That all sounds a bit negative, but it doesn’t reflect my true thoughts about Evan Link. I think Link is a better player than what he showed last season. First of all, he was a left tackle in high school, and the skills to play on the right side are naturally flip-flopped. Of course, players move around on the offensive line all the time, but some guys can pull it off and some guys can’t. Second, there were times when Link’s feet looked like they were stuck in mud, but I saw in high school the potential to have better feet than we saw in 2024, too.

I’m not saying Link will have a better season in 2025, but I think the potential is there for him to be a solid player. We have seen less athletic players manage okay on Michigan’s offensive line. I felt like Link was thinking too much last year, and if he can get to a point where he’s playing confidently this fall, we could see a better version. He will be battling to start at left tackle, and there’s a possibility he could slide inside to play right guard. The recent injury of freshman Andrew Babalola is disappointing, but I think Link was ahead in the left tackle battle, anyway. Now the competition appears to be Blake Frazier at left tackle, but my money is on Link to start on the left side.

Prediction: Starting left tackle