Maryland transfer LB Jaishawn Barham commits to Michigan

The Wolverines land a big time defender in the portal.

A player from the Big Ten is staying within the conference, as former Maryland linebacker Jaishawn Barham has committed to the Michigan Wolverines out of the transfer portal.

As first reported by The Michigan Insider’s Steve Lorenz ($), Barham officially visited Michigan on Dec. 11, and also hosted Michigan coaches for a visit in Baltimore — his hometown — on Dec. 6.

Barham (6-foot-4, 233 pounds) has played a key role for Maryland’s defense the last two seasons. As a true freshman in 2022, he compiled 58 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, four sacks, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and one pass deflection. For those efforts, he was named a freshman All-American and an All-Big Ten honorable mention.

This season saw a bit of a decline in his numbers, as he racked up 37 tackles, three sacks, one interception — which was off J.J. McCarthy — and one pass deflection.

Coming out of St. Frances Academy in Baltimore as a high school recruit , Barham was ranked as four-star as the No. 130 overall prospect in the 2022 class, according to 247Sports’ composite. He originally committed to South Carolina, but flipped to Maryland right before signing his letter of intent. He also had other offers from Penn State, Oklahoma, Florida, Florida State , Nebraska, Notre Dame , USC, Ohio State and more.

Michigan was in need of another linebacker heading into the offseason. With Michael Barrett out of eligibility and Junior Colson potentially leaving for the NFL, the Wolverines now have help at the position, regardless of Colson’s decision. Barham, who has played middle linebacker for Maryland, will pair up with Ernest Hausmann, Jimmy Rolder and others at the position for next season.

The first commitment out of the transfer portal for the Wolverines in this transfer window, Barham will have two years of collegiate eligibility remaining.

According to 247Sports’ transfer portal rankings , Barham is the No. 152 overall player and the No. 10 linebacker in the portal.