The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1542067
JANUARY 2026 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 25 RUNNING BACKS: A (Midterm grade: A) If you had to choose one home-run ad- dition to Moore's initial Michigan staff, running backs coach Tony Alford would be the guy. His work with Kalel Mull- ings and Donovan Edwards last year and then Justice Haynes, Jordan Marshall and Bryson Kuzdzal this year — in addition to some fantastic recruiting (incoming frosh Savion Hiter) — has been everything U-M could have hoped for, and more. "He's been outstanding," Moore said of Alford during his final weekly news conference Dec. 8. "I knew he was a home-run hire from a recruitment standpoint and development stand- point, and now it's just proof in the pudding. You got the third running back rushing for over 100 yards. [Kuzdzal] runs hard, runs physical, and Coach Al- ford demands it out of all of them. They all play that way. They all work that way. They all practice that way. "It's awesome to watch those guys develop and how he coaches them, pushes them." Haynes would easily have been a 1,000-yard back had he not suffered a foot injury at Michigan State, and he might have been in the Heisman Tro- phy conversation, too. He racked up 857 yards and 10 touchdowns on 7.1 yards per carry and notched six 100-yard games (probably would have been seven had he not been injured in the first half at USC after running for 51 yards). Marshall will have an opportunity to get there — he's at 932 yards (6.2 per carry) and 10 scores heading into the bowl game — and even third-stringer Kuzdzal ran for 100 at Maryland when the other two were out. "Jordan will be great [for Texas]," Moore said. "He fought through that shoulder that was dinged up in the game before, toughed through it, tried as much as he could. You wish he could have played the whole Ohio State after starting with 6 carries for 70-something yards. He pushed as much as he could." OFFENSIVE LINE: B- (Midterm grade: C) Michigan battled injuries up front this season, but the offensive line settled in and performed at a solid level, becom- ing one of 10 semifinalists for the Joe Moore Award, along with Cincinnati, Duke, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Iowa, Or- egon, Texas A&M, Utah and Vanderbilt. From the Oct. 25 game against Mich- igan State on, the Wolverines started three redshirt sophomores with fresh- man eligibility in left tackle Blake Fra- zier, right guard Jake Guarnera and right tackle Andrew Sprague. Guarnera, who entered the season as the team's fourth offensive guard, wound up grading out the highest by Pro Football Focus among the Wolver- ines' offensive linemen (68.8). Position coach Grant Newsome and the rest of the offensive line staff de- serve credit for piecing together the unit and finding a solid combination of five players working together and improving throughout the season. Despite being much younger and more banged up than in 2024, they were a lot better up front. That 2024 recruiting class is proving to be a strong one on the offensive line. "Coach Newsome and that staff did an unbelievable job with adjusting throughout the year, doing some things differently than we have but still getting the production," Moore said. There were a lot of ups and downs for the Michigan offensive line in the regular season, however. The strength was run blocking, with the Wolverines paving the way for four-consecutive 200-plus yard rushing games versus Michigan State (276), Purdue (253), Northwestern (216) and Maryland (228). That was the first time U-M had a streak like that since 2022 (also four games). But the pass protection was spotty, making Underwood uncomfortable all too often. Despite his mobility, Under- wood was sacked 17 times and pressured on 29.7 percent of his drop-backs. The pressure rate was at 50-plus percent in back-to-back games against Michigan State (52.4) and Purdue (50), and it was no coincidence that the passing game was rendered ineffective in both tilts. WIDE RECEIVERS: B- (Midterm grade: C+) In the first four games, freshman wideout Andrew Marsh hauled in 1 catch for 30 yards, and it came in a 60-point win over Central Michigan. From the Oct. 4 clash against Wiscon- sin on, he reeled in 41 receptions for 611 yards and 3 touchdowns, becom- ing not just the team's top weapon but one of the better ones in the conference. In fact, from Week 6 to the end of the regular season, Marsh ranked second in the Big Ten in receiving yards, behind only Rutgers' KJ Duff (664). That connection between Underwood and Marsh became lethal. The quarter- back had a 79.2 completion percentage when throwing his way, connecting on 42 of 53 passes. However, the Wolver- ines only targeting Marsh once in the Ohio State game was a big disappoint- ment, and there were points in the sec- ond half of the season when the pass game just didn't get going. Junior running back Justice Haynes could easily have been a 1,000-yard back had he not suffered a foot injury at Michigan State. He racked up 857 yards and 10 touchdowns on 7.1 yards per carr y, and notched six 100-yard efforts in seven games played. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL