Michigan football players with the most to gain during fall camp

With a wave of players leaving the Michigan football program to go to the NFL, it’s time for others to step up. These five Wolverines have the most to gain during fall camp:

With fall camp underway for the Michigan football team, it’s time to begin focusing on a new crop of potential stars within the program. Of course stars such as Will Johnson, Mason Graham, and Donovan Edwards are still around for 2024, but Sherrone Moore and company will need a whole host of other players to step up around them in order to compete for another national championship.

Today we’ll be examining a group of players who could dramatically rise during fall camp. They could be household names by the end of the season.

WR Fredrick Moore

With Roman Wilson and Cornelius Johnson both off to the NFL, the wide receiver room at Michigan is looking a bit sparse. Tyler Morris looks to lead the group with Semaj Morgan occupying the slot. That leaves the other outside receiver spot up for grabs. Based on chatter from spring ball as well as his spring game performance, Moore looks like the leader in the clubhouse to grab that slot.

As a true freshman last season, Moore appeared in 13 games while playing predominantly special teams. However, he did haul in four passes in mop-up duty. This spring, Moore looked notably confident and caught a deep bomb in the spring game. The 6-foot-1 receiver out of St. Louis may not be a huge body, but he’s got more size than most of the rest of the receiver room at Michigan. A starting spot is his for the taking if he capitalizes during fall practice.

TE Marlin Klein

Under Jim Harbaugh, Michigan utilized two tight end sets extensively. I don’t expect that to change under Sherrone Moore. Colston Loveland is an established star but the second tight end spot is up for grabs. In steps Marlin Klein.

A redshirt sophomore originally from Germany, Klein is a physical specimen at the tight end position. Colston Loveland has gone as far as proclaiming Klein as both the fastest and the strongest tight end on Michigan’s roster. Steve Casula likened Klein to Luke Schoonmaker. Not a bad comparison as Schoonmaker is having a nice NFL career so far.

Klein was relatively new to the game of football but has been improving by leaps and bounds. Standing at 6-foot-6 and 247 pounds, he appears physically ready for a Big Ten football season. Now he’ll need to produce.

C Greg Crippen

The position battle at center between Greg Crippen and Raheem Anderson figures to be a fascinating one. Both have waited their turn in line behind Andrew Vastardis, Olu Oluwatimi, and Drake Nugent, the latter two being transfers that stepped in line in front of them. Now not being recruited over, it’s either Crippen or Anderson’s time to shine.

At this stage, early signs have pointed to Crippen leading the battle. A 6-foot-4, redshirt junior from IMG Academy in Florda, Crippen played in nine games last year, all of which at center. IMG is one of the rare high school teams that allows players well suited for the center position to actually play center. Most high schools shuffle their best offensive linemen to tackle.

All this to say that Crippen has loads more experience at center than most. He’s been waiting in the wings for years but has stuck it out in Ann Arbor. The opportunity has finally arrived for him.

Edge/OLB TJ Guy

Our very own Jacob Singer wrote an excellent piece back in the spring highlighting TJ Guy as a potential breakout player in 2024. Since then, the buzz surrounding him has continued unabated. The hype train has only sped up if anything.

A redshirt junior out of Mansfield, Massachusetts, Guy appeared in 11 games last season. He contributed 10 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, and one sack. Had it not been for Michigan’s ludicrous defensive line depth last season, he almost assuredly would have been a regular contributor. With the depth chart moderately reduced this season, look for Guy to be a breakout performer with added opportunities.

DB Ja’Den McBurrows

“Ja’Den McBurrows, stay tuned.” Those were the words of one Mike Sainristil following Michigan’s dismantling of Michigan State in 2023. After being involved in the tunnel incident against the Spartans in 2022, McBurrows came full circle with an interception against said Spartans one year later.

Looking forward to the 2024 season, McBurrows has the opportunity to play a pivotal role in a wide-open secondary. Will Johnson has one outside corner spot locked down and Makari Paige will roam the field as a safety, but every other position is up for grabs. McBurrows was a somewhat highly touted recruit who worked through some unfortunate injuries early in his career. Now healthy, he has an opportunity to break through during fall camp.