Predicting Michigan Football’s offensive depth chart after spring ball

No surprises here either, as Jordan Marshall was Michigan’s leading rusher last season and will lead the room this year. Savion Hiter has been a hot topic and looked the part in the spring game. At 6-foot, 210 pounds, Hiter has a college-ready frame and shouldn’t have a problem adapting to the physicality at this level. He’s got some good burst and vision at the line, which should only raise his ceiling as a freshman.

Further down the depth chart, things get a bit more hectic. Bryson Kuzdzal will enter the year as RB3 after filling in for Marshall and Justice Haynes at the end of 2025. Micah Ka’apana likely would have been the fourth man on the depth chart, but an injury this spring will have him on the shelf for the year. True freshman Jonathan Brown, Tomas O’Meara and Donovan Johnson will be duking it out for spot carries throughout the year.

Wide Receiver

Starters: Andrew Marsh, J.J. Buchanan, Jaime Ffrench

Depth: Salesi Moa, Channing Goodwin, Jamar Browder, Kendrick Bell, Travis Johnson, Jacob Washington, Jaylen Pile

Following the spring game, Whittingham proclaimed Andrew Marsh and J.J. Buchanan are the top two receivers for right now, with the team needing to figure out the rest of the depth from there. Jaime Ffrench and Salesi Moa seem like good bets to be a part of that group, with neither one having a clear leg up over the other.

Beyond the top four, Channing Goodwin will look to bounce back after a rough finish to 2025. Jamar Browder will also look to take the next step forward in his development after seeing the field minimally as a freshman last year.

If there’s a wild card in the group, it might be freshman Travis Johnson. He might be a bit more of a project, but he was a highly-sought after recruit that could develop into a good deep threat in due time. He could stand to put just a little more weight on his 6-foot-2, 185-pound frame as well, but don’t be surprised if his name is one you start hearing more as the year goes on.

Tight End

Starter: Zack Marshall

Depth: Hogan Hansen, Deakon Tonielli, Jalen Hoffman, Eli Owens, Crandall Quinn

Zack Marshall unexpectedly got plenty of playing time last season, showing some receiving ability (16 receptions for 199 yards) to go along with his already-strong blocking. That was in large part thanks to Hogan Hansen missing time with injuries. As of right now, we’ll give Marshall the slight nod to be the starter, but him and Hansen could probably be interchangeable in the top spot, with Deakon Tonielli lagging behind as No. 3.

In Jason Beck’s offense, the H-back is likely to be a thing of the past with the team looking to spread out its formations more and not rely as much on the run game. We’ll probably see guys like Jalen Hoffman and Eli Owens on the field less than previous years, although both (Hoffman especially) can provide value as receiving threats and will be in the mix for opportunities.

Offensive Line

Starters: (LT) Blake Frazier, (LG) Evan Link, (C) Jake Guarnera, (RG) Nathan Efobi, (RT) Andrew Sprague

Interior depth: Brady Norton, Houston Ka’aha’aina-Torres, Lawrence Hattar, Luke Hamilton, Adrian Hamilton

Tackle depth: Andrew Babalola, Malakai Lee*, Marky Walbridge, Manuel Beigel, Avery Gach

At this point in the offseason, there’s not much of a reason to expect a change in the offensive line’s pecking order. The Wolverines have the benefit of bringing back six guys that started games at various points last year, as well as Andrew Babalola, whose ceiling is likely higher than any offensive lineman on the roster.

Babalola was still a bit limited this spring after injuring his knee last fall camp, so he is still working his way back to full strength in the hopes he can once again fight for a starting job. He’s the wild card that could shake up the starting lineup, possibly bumping either Andrew Sprague or Blake Frazier to the bench or a guard spot. The same could be said for freshman Malakai Lee, a highly-touted four-star recruit that will be enrolling in the summer.

If there’s another spot that could get interesting this offseason, it’s probably the right guard spot, where junior Brady Norton and senior Nathan Efobi will be battling it out after both having started games with mixed results in 2025.