SAD NEWS: Wolverines key player announced to leave

An ex-five-star quarterback is expected to use the transfer portal.

The former five-star local prospect was thought to be a pretty big loss for the Wolverines, but now there’s a chance he might wind up in Ann Arbor.
The Michigan Wolverines’ failure to sign five-star quarterback Dante Moore out of high school was seen as a significant setback. For a considerable amount of time, Michigan was thought to be the most sensible option for the 6-3, 210-pound Detroit prospect; however, Moore finally decided to play football on the west coast.

Moore is now expected to use the transfer portal following just one season at UCLA.

Moore told 247Sports, “I just want to go to a place where I can get developed for these next upcoming years.” The most important thing is to make sure you’re improving yourself every day and surround yourself with people who will support your personal development. Therefore, I would say that the most important things are moving to a place where I can grow, continue to love and enjoy playing football, be surrounded by people who are passionate about college football, and be around amazing athletes.”

There’s still uncertainty about whether he would fit in Ann Arbor at this time. At the conclusion of the 2023 season, Michigan’s unchallenged quarterback, JJ McCarthy, will have to make a choice. He has two options: enter the NFL Draft as a projected first-round selection or stay another season at Michigan, where he might improve to be a first- or second-round selection.

Of course, there are also guys like Jadyn Davis, an incoming freshman, and Alex Orji, a sophomore. If McCarthy chooses to declare for the league, both quarterbacks offer intriguing options for the Wolverines going forward and the chance to challenge for Michigan’s starting quarterback position in 2024.

When it comes to adding players to their roster, Harbaugh and company have been very active on the portal in recent years, and there’s every reason to think they’ll continue to be so this off-season. Is the former Detroit product going to be included? It’s definitely something to watch.

Michigan is a “school to watch” in Quinshon Judkins’ portal recruitment, according to 247Sports.
Quinshon Judkins, a standout running back for Ole Miss, was said to be using the transfer portal on Thursday to find a new place to call home before his junior season. Soon after, rumors started to circulate about possible places for him to play next season. Brad Crawford of 247Sports brought up Michigan as one school to keep an eye on.

It wouldn’t be shocking to see the Wolverines in the running for Judkins, even though Michigan hasn’t been mentioned as a potential suitor thus far. Crawford offered the following explanation for why Judkins might make sense in Ann Arbor:

Being one of the top players in the country, Judkins ought to have a sizable following. Crawford also mentioned Alabama, Oregon, LSU, and Florida State.

Over the past two seasons, Judkins has established himself as one of college football’s top running backs. Judkins won the SEC Newcomer of the Year award in 2022 in addition to being selected to the SEC All-Freshman team. With 16 touchdowns and 1,567 yards gained on the ground, he concluded his rookie season strong.

This past season, he only ran for 1,158 yards on three fewer carries, which was a slight decrease in his yardage total. He did, however, still manage to find the end zone fifteen times, and his receiving workload increased marginally as well.

Judkins’ decision is somewhat unexpected considering Ole Miss has been using the portal quite a bit this offseason and will have a ton of production coming up the following season. While Judkins has the potential to have a significant impact somewhere in 2024, the Rebels should be a serious contender for the championship the following season.

Maybe Judkins will play that season in Michigan. If not, though, Michigan supporters need not worry, as the Wolverines will still have two highly regarded true freshmen in Jordan Marshall and Micah Ka’apana, along with Kalel Mullings, Ben Hall, and Cole Cabana. Who knows? Maybe Donovan Edwards will make a comeback to play RB1 in Ann Arbor.