ANN ARBOR, Mich. — In the past decade, it’s become much more commonplace that star players who are expected to be high-end NFL draft picks will shut down their season to avoid injury and start the preparation process for the professional ranks.
What once used to be limited to meaningless bowl games has seen players opt out of even College Football Playoff appearances and it’s increasingly inching into the regular season.
With Michigan football struggling in 2024, sitting at 5-5, why wouldn’t players like Colston Loveland, Will Johnson, Mason Graham, and Kenneth Grant risk injury? They could just as easily protect themselves and ensure that the millions they stand to make from being likely first-round draft picks will end up in their bank accounts. But that’s not how Loveland sees it.
As long as he physically can do so this year, he’s going to strap on the winged helmet and give it a go.
“I mean, we’re gonna play, as long as we’re healthy and feel good, we’re gonna play,” Loveland said. “Michigan’s done so much for us — all of our boys, our brothers, our family, our coaches, they’re all still coaching and playing. So why wouldn’t we play? We got goals to reach as a team and individually as well. So as long as I’m healthy, yeah, I’m playing.”
Of course, there are cautionary tales, and one coming from a legendary former Michigan tight end who sustained an ACL injury in a bowl game.
It was the 2016 Capital One Orange Bowl, and after telling the world he would play in his final possible appearance in a Michigan uniform, tight end Jake Butt sustained a knee injury that knocked him from the first round of the 2017 NFL draft all the way to the fifth.
Regardless, Loveland is going to chance it, and it appears as if that’s the mindset of his fellow junior class who will all likely depart for the NFL following the season.
“I could see both sides, maybe if you had an injury or something,” Loveland said. “But I feel like, for me and a lot of the guys here, if you’re healthy and you can go out there and play — we love the game of football. We’ve been blessed by God to be able to play this game. (Our) families just sacrifice so much. So why wouldn’t we play? It’s kind of where my head’s at.”
Of the aforementioned players, only Will Johnson hasn’t appeared in recent games. Dealing with an undisclosed lower-body injury, Johnson left in the first half of the Illinois game in Week 8 and hasn’t been seen since. However, head coach Sherrone Moore has stated that Johnson is attempting to get back and will likely play in another game this season.
Loveland did note that his mentality to play did not necessarily mean he’d suit up for a bowl game, should Michigan make one.