Well, if one thing’s for sure, the depth chart is getting clearer and clearer.
Michigan football had two departures from the program via the NCAA transfer portal on Monday afternoon, with wide receiver AJ Henning‘s being somewhat unsurprising given his dwindling role, while safety RJ Moten leaving was a little more head-scratching given that he’s been a starter.
In the evening, there was an even more surprising departure, staying on the defense.
Precluded from playing in 2022 due to a nagging leg injury, linebacker Nikhai Hill-Green was finally cleared to play and partake in the annual spring game. The thought was that he would likely resume his role as a starter, though the competition is much deeper than it was in 2021. However, he’s leaving the program, according to MLive’s Aaron McMann.
Michigan LB Nikhai Hill-Green has entered the NCAA transfer portal, @MLive confirms. That's three today.
— Aaron McMann (@AaronMcMann) April 24, 2023
Hill-Green’s departure allows for a little more clarity in the linebacker room, as playing time will now be a three-way race between Junior Colson, Michael Barrett, and incoming transfer Ernest Hausmann.
“The return of Nikhai is huge,” defensive coordinator Jesse Minter said last week on the In the Trenches podcast. “I thought he progressed well this spring. I think not necessarily like to get healthy but just to regain all the way back to where he was and surpass where he was there, he knows he’s got a lot of work to do still. But the fact that he was able to make it through and get reps and kind of kind of provide the value that we know he provides — those four (Hill-Green, Barrett, Colson, and Hausmann), feel really good about.”
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