ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Last year, a promising freshman emerged on the defensive side of the ball in linebacker Jimmy Rolder.
The former Chicago (Ill.) Marist four-star chose the Wolverines over some other high-profile schools, including Florida, LSU, Ohio State, Wisconsin, and others, and it appeared to be a good choice as he ended up playing in all 14 of Michigan’s games, despite being just a first-year player. However, he has not yet seen game action this year.
With Ernest Hausmann transferring in from Nebraska, along with Michael Barrett returning for a sixth-year, the Wolverines have had an embarrassment of riches at the position, and it’s taken a big leap forward with Chris Partridge returning to the program.
Jim Harbaugh said on Monday that the plan this year for Rolder is to play him in four games and attain a redshirt, thus keeping him in Ann Arbor for an extra year, potentially.
“Jimmy, he did not redshirt last year,” Harbaugh said. “And so we have a year that we’re really attempting and pulling off — really to play Jimmy in the four games and get that year back for Jimmy. So a redshirt doesn’t have to be just in the freshman year.”
In 2022, Rolder had 14 tackles, with seven solo tackles to his name.