Andrel Anthony, WR (Oklahoma Duke): Anthony had injury issues over his time in Norman and made just 1 catch for 4 yards this past season. He transferred to Duke after the season.
Jeremiah Beasley, LB (Missouri): Beasley made 7 tackles while playing in eleven games as a freshman.
Tristan Bounds, OT (Arizona): Bounds played just one offensive snap for Michigan this year and transferred to Arizona after the season.
Rising third-year player Breeon Ishmail entered the transfer portal last week.
Ishmail is a 6’3″, 260 lb. player who was listed as an EDGE last season. He made 3 tackles while playing in eight games this past season after redshirting as a true freshman in 2023.
Ishmail was a 3-star, the #91 linebacker, and #1110 overall coming out of Cincinnati (OH) Princeton. He picked the Wolverines over offers from Kentucky, Pitt, Tennessee, and West Virginia, among others. I gave him a TTB Rating of 71 coming out of high school (LINK).
So far nine players from the class of 2023 have entered the transfer portal, including Ishmail.
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Jayden Denegal announced he would be entering the transfer portal after three seasons on Michigan’s campus. Denegal did not play in any games in 2024.
Denegal committed to Michigan in the class of 2022 out of Apple Valley (CA) Apple Valley. He was a 3-star prospect in the 247 Composite, the #28 quarterback, and #452 overall. I gave him an initial TTB Rating of 45 (LINK) with questions about his mechanics, accuracy, processing, and overall athleticism.
Denegal redshirt in 2022 behind J.J. McCarthy and then completed 4/5 passes as a backup in 2023, including a garbage time touchdown against Nebraska. This past off-season, quarterbacks coach/offensive coordinator Kirk Campbell said Denegal was the most improved player, but all that improvement led to zero appearances during the 2024 season when Michigan was in dire need of competent quarterback play.
Remaining quarterbacks on the roster include:
Davis Warren (RS Sr.)
Alex Orji (Sr.)
Jadyn Davis (RS Fr.)
Bryce Underwood (Fr.)
Chase Herbstreit (Fr.)
We may see some more movement on the depth chart, as most analysts believe Michigan will bring in a grad transfer quarterback to help smooth the transition to college for Underwood. But sooner or later, Underwood is likely to be the starter.
Rising fifth year senior Raheem Anderson II announced he would be entering the transfer portal. Anderson spent the past four seasons at Michigan, redshirting as a freshman in 2021 and playing in seventeen games altogether.
Anderson was a 4-star, the #15 interior offensive lineman, and #215 overall in the class of 2021. At the time, I remember Sam Webb saying he was a four-year starter and an obvious captain selection at Detroit (MI) Cass Tech, one of those high-character players who would be a program guy.
Anderson fought for the starting center position this past off-season and was supposedly neck-and-neck with Greg Crippen for a good chunk of practice before Dominick Giudice swooped in and took the spot, pushing Anderson back to #3 on the depth chart. How that position battled played out is curious to me, and I have to wonder if something just wasn’t connecting between Anderson and the coaching staff.
Crippen has one year of eligibility remaining, and Michigan recruited 2024 signee Jake Guarnera and 2025 signee Kaden Strayhorn to play center down the road. The Wolverines may also be exploring transfer portal options to shore up the interior offensive line.
Anyway, Anderson entered the transfer portal with one season left. Incidentally, his brother Khamari Anderson, a 2023 high school graduate from Cass Tech who went to Kentucky, has also entered the portal. It will be interesting to see if they both end up playing together somewhere in 2025. Khamari played in eleven games this past season, making 5 catches for 29 yards in his backup tight end role.
Other 2021 signees to transfer out of the program include WR Andrel Anthony (Oklahoma), OT Tristan Bounds (destination TBD), WR Cristian Dixon (Central Missouri), RB Tavierre Dunlap (destination TBD), TE Louis Hansen (UConn), and DT George Rooks (Boston College).
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 2 tackles in a 39-20 win over Mississippi State.
QB Alan Bowman (Oklahoma State): Bowman did not play in a 56-48 loss to Texas Tech.
LB Semaj Bridgeman (Michigan State): Bridgeman has not recorded any stats yet this year for MSU.
