Tag: Andrew Babalola

2026 Season Countdown: #26-30

#26. Andrew Babalola – OT – Overland Park (KS) Blue Valley Northwest: Babalola is a 6’6″, 305 lb. second-year player who missed the 2025 season due to an ACL tear during fall camp. A former 5-star recruit, he now has a chance to potentially start at left tackle for the Wolverines. The problem is that he’s battling with Blake Frazier, a third-year player who also came into college as a pretty darn athletic tackle prospect. Babalola missed a year of on-the-field development and wasn’t extremely technically developed as a prep player, so I think he will begin the year as the sixth lineman or potentially the Rhino. There are usually injuries and/or re-shufflings on the offensive line, so he could very well move into the starting lineup at some point this season.

#27. Shamari Earls – CB – Richmond (VA) Thomas Dale: The 6’2″, 195 lb. sophomore played in six games last season, but it was a pretty forgettable year. He didn’t record any statistics whatsoever. But going into the 2026 season, it sounds like Earls has developed into approximately what people expected, and he has jumped past most of the guys on the roster. If not for the transfer arrival of Smith Snowden and the slightly unexpected return of Zeke Berry, Earls might be penciled in as a starter at cornerback. It sounds like he will be the third outside corner, and that guy plays quite a bit of football throughout the season. Snowden and Berry will both be out of eligibility after this season and starting cornerback Jyaire Hill will probably jump to the NFL, so Earls has an opportunity this season to play significant minutes and then be prepared to step in as a full-time starter in 2027.

#28. Cam Brown – P – Coolangatta (Australia) Palm Beach Corrumbin State: Brown is a 6’3″, 185 lb. player who spent his 2025 freshman season at UNLV for Dan Mullen. He punted 22 times for 943 yards (42.9 yards/punt), forced 8 fair catches, and landed 8 punts inside the 20-yard line. Michigan has a returning starter at punter in Hudson Hollenbeck, but Hollenbeck was pretty inconsistent last season with several shanked punts. I expect Brown to be the starter in 2026, but with an experienced and pretty capable backup, he’s not necessarily paramount to Michigan’s success this year.

#29. Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng – LB – Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy: Owusu-Boateng is a 6’1″, 216 lb. sophomore who played in seven games in 2025, making 4 tackles. Linebacker is a very uncertain group in 2026 because the Wolverines lost their top three linebackers: Jimmy Rolder (NFL), Ernest Hausmann (left the team), and Cole Sullivan (Oklahoma). They also didn’t do a great job of replacing the position in the transfer portal. One would think a team like Michigan could attract and/or afford some top talent, but they got some so-so transfers. Perhaps Max Alford or Aisea Moa or Nathaniel Staehling will turn out to be stars, but the jury is still out. Regardless, Owusu-Boateng seems like someone who will be a good player down the road, but he’s very light at 216 lbs. and doesn’t have much experience. I expect him to be a backup in 2026, but I’m not sure anyone but perhaps the coaches knows how this will play out.

#30. Hogan Hansen – TE – Bellevue (WA) Bellevue: Hansen is a 6’6″, 240 lb. junior who caught 6 passes for 74 yards in 2025. In some ways, he looks like the smoothest tight end Michigan has had outside of Colston Loveland in the past several years. In other ways, he looks exactly like 2024 Colston Loveland in that he was injured for most of 2025. Hansen appears to be a potential difference maker as a receiving tight end with his smooth hands, but he will need to stay healthy. Tight end is another interesting position battle in 2026, because there’s the Rhino position (see Andrew Babalola above), there are a couple fullback types in the mix (Jalen Hoffman and Eli Owens), and then there are a few true tight ends like Hansen, Zack Marshall, and Deakon Tonielli. I like what Hansen brings to the table as a receiver, and new offensive coordinator Jason Beck did a good job getting production from tight ends in 2025 at Utah: Dallen Bentley had 48 catches for 620 yards and 6 touchdowns for the Utes, and J.J. Buchanan – who was listed as a tight end – was flat-out used as a receiver because his skills were recognized as a mismatch. Furthermore, Beck turned former Wolverine Dan Villari into an all-around threat in 2023 at Syracuse, where Villari totaled 6 touchdowns as a passer, runner, and receiver.

2025 Season Countdown: #46-50

50. DT Ike Iwunnah (RS Sr.): Iwunnah was a nice little success story in 2024. In a pretty rare career swing, he went from not playing at all in his first three years to being a pretty key rotation player in the defensive line as a redshirt junior. Michigan was very talented at defensive tackle last year but pretty thin outside of Mason Graham, Kenneth Grant, and Rayshaun Benny. The great defensive lines over the past few years have had to play about five guys on the interior pretty regularly, and Iwunnah broke into that rotation, making 8 tackles and 1 tackle for loss. This season should see more of the same with Benny and Trey Pierce back, along with transfers Damon Payne (Alabama) and Tre Williams (Clemson). Last year’s rank: #83.

49. WR Anthony Simpson (RS Sr.): Simpson transferred in from UMass after starting his career at Arizona, playing two seasons at each stop. Altogether, he has a respectable 68 receptions for 910 yards and 3 touchdowns in his college career, but most of that (57 catches, 792 yards, all 3 TDs) came in 2023 for the Minutement. The 5’11”, 184-pounder could be a bit of a gadget guy and might provide some run-after-catch abilities. I don’t expect him to start, but there’s a possibility that he could play a similar role to what we saw from Semaj Morgan during the 2023 national championship season.

48. S Jacob Oden (So.): Oden earned his way onto special teams late in the season, playing in four games and preserving his redshirt. The 6’1″, 196-pounder could be a bit of an insurance policy in 2025, depending on the health of former starter Rod Moore, who missed all of 2024 with an injury. Michigan lost starter Makari Paige and heavy contributor Quinten Johnson, bumping up Oden, Brandyn Hillman, and Jaden Mangham, the last of whom transferred from Michigan State prior to last season. Oden will probably start seeing some time on defense this fall. Last year’s rank: #87.

47. OT Andrew Babalola (Fr.): Aside from quarterback – where freshman Bryce Underwood seems likely to starter over Fresno State transfer Mikey Keene – the left tackle battle is probably the most interesting one on the team. Babalola (5-star, #3 OT, #16 overall) is listed at 6’6″ and 300 lbs. on Michigan’s roster and could potentially be the starting left tackle by season’s end. But he’s contending with redshirt sophomore Andrew Link, who started at right tackle last season, and redshirt freshman Blake Frazier. Link appears to be the nominal starter going into fall, and Sam Webb thinks Frazier will win the job. Regardless, Babalola should get some playing time this fall and will probably be the front-runner to start in 2026.

46. S Mason Curtis (So.): Curtis is one of the most interesting players on the roster when it comes to figuring out how to rank him and how much he will play. He looked like a possible edge player as a recruit, then a linebacker, and then settled in somewhat at safety last season, playing in five games at safety and making 8 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, and 1 interception. At 6’5″ and 200 lbs., he looks a little odd at safety but he could potentially be a “big nickel” this season if/when Michigan decides to deploy that look. Last year’s rank: #112.

2025 Spring Football Preview: Offensive Line

RETURNING PLAYERS: Greg Crippen (RS Sr.), Giovanni El-Hadi (RS Sr.), Connor Jones (RS Jr.), Brooks Bahr (RS So.), Nathan Efobi (RS So.), Evan Link (RS So.), Blake Frazier (RS Fr.), Jake Guarnera (RS Fr.), Luke Hamilton (RS Fr.), Ben Roebuck (RS Fr.), Andrew Sprague (RS Fr.)
NEWCOMERS: Lawrence Hattar (RS Sr.), Brady Norton (RS So.), Andrew Babalola (Fr.), Kaden Strayhorn (Fr.)
DEPARTURES: Raheem Anderson (transfer to Western Michigan), Tristan Bounds (transfer to Arizona), Andrew Gentry (transfer to BYU), Dominick Giudice (transfer to Missouri), Myles Hinton (NFL Draft), Jeffrey Persi (transfer to Pitt), Josh Priebe (NFL Draft)

OUTLOOK: Michigan really struggled up front in 2024, the first year under new offensive line coach Grant Newsome. They did seem to make some progress late in the year, but it was too late to salvage anything but a couple surprise victories against Ohio State and Alabama. The top performer up front was Myles Hinton, a mammoth Stanford transfer. Transfer left guard Josh Priebe struggled at times, and from the center to the right tackle was a travesty for much of the year. Greg Crippen and Dominick Giudice played hot potato with the reins of the center position for the entire year, Giovanni El-Hadi performed disappointingly at right guard, and redshirt freshman Evan Link posted multiple PFF grades of 0.0 in pass protection.

There has been a lot of turnover on the offensive line, with seven players either moving on to the NFL (Hinton, Priebe) or transferring. Giudice, Andrew Gentry, and Jeffrey Persi all had significant starting or playing experience, and all three decided to play elsewhere, leaving somewhat of a void in the remaining offensive line.

The bowl game against Alabama featured Link at left tackle and freshman Andrew Sprague at right tackle, and that may be the configuration we see to begin the spring. Link looked more comfortable on the left side, and Sprague showed some promise at right tackle, especially from an attitude perspective. Add in an off-season of strength and conditioning, and Sprague should be ready to roll.

As for new faces for 2025, Ferris State transfer Lawrence Hattar could possibly be penciled in to start at guard; he’s a fifth year player with lots of starting experience at the Division II level. Andrew Babalola is a 5-star prospect who’s big enough and athletic enough to compete for playing time at one of the tackle positions. Junior college transfer Brady Norton has potential down the road, but he’s probably a developmental guy at this point.

A couple other players who have been rumored to be in contention for playing time are redshirt junior Connor Jones and redshirt sophomore Nathan Efobi. Redshirt freshman Blake Frazier has been mentioned as having potential if he can get/stay healthy, and redshirt freshman Ben Roebuck had college-ready size when he arrived in 2024. All of those players are huge question marks since we haven’t really seen them on the field except during spring games.

Overall, the offensive line is a group with a lot of individual talent, but very little cohesion from playing together. Center Greg Crippen and offensive guard Giovanni El-Hadi have spent lots of time together as two fifth year seniors, but the rest of the players are either young or new to the system. It’s probably a pipe dream to hope for a return to the Joe Moore Award-level play we saw in 2021 and 2022, but it’s going to be very disappointing if Michigan can’t perform better in the trenches than they did in 2024.

2025 Offensive Recruiting Update: November 27, 2024

With National Signing Day looming in early December – and lots of recruiting movement – I wanted to catch up on some of the most recent happenings as Michigan tries to fill out its 2025 recruiting class.

QUARTERBACK

COMMIT: Belleville (MI) Belleville quarterback Bryce Underwood committed to Michigan (LINK). It seems as if Fort Myers (FL) Bishop Verot quarterback Carter Smith at least suspected that was going to happen, and he decommitted beforehand; Smith recently committed to Wisconsin and will be a Badger instead, perhaps with eyes on getting a bit of revenge against the Wolverines down the road.

KEEP AN EYE ON: Michigan will also be looking to add a quarterback through the transfer portal, and USC transfer Miller Moss has been rumored to be a possible candidate.

Hit the jump for more.

Visitors: Michigan vs. Northwestern

2025

Andrew Babalola – OT – Overland Park (KS) Blue Valley North: Babalola is committed to Michigan (LINK).

Jayvan Boggs – WR – Cocoa (FL) Cocoa: Boggs is a 6’2″, 200 lb. prospect who has been committed to UCF since August 2024; he also has offers from Florida State and Missouri, both of which he visited officially. Michigan offered Boggs this past week after seeing him live last week; head coach Sherrone Moore and offensive coordinator Kirk Campbell were both at his game last Friday watching 2026 quarterback commit Brady Hart, Boggs’s teammate. Boggs is a 4-star, the #30 wide receiver, and #231 overall. This is an official visit. UPDATE: Boggs is no longer planning to visit.

Shamari Earls – CB – Chester (VA) Thomas Dale: Earls is committed to Michigan (LINK). This is an official visit.

Tobi Haastrup – DE – Houston (TX) Mayde Creek: Haastrup is a 6’4″, 230-pounder with offers from Florida State, Michigan, Oregon, Texas Tech, and USC, among others. He’s a 4-star, the #24 edge, and #279 overall. This is an official visit to Ann Arbor and he has a visit lined up for Oregon next weekend.

Hit the jump for more.