Michigan should have a couple of key pieces back on the field when it wraps up non-conference play against UTEP this weekend.
Offensive lineman Evan Link and edge rusher Carter Meadows were both sidelined against Oklahoma, but head coach Kyle Whittingham said both “should be good to go” for the matchup with the Miners.
Jordan Marshall is also expected to be available, even if he hasn’t quite looked fully himself through the first two games. He has 76 rushing yards and one touchdown so far, and Whittingham said Marshall has “some things that are bugging him, but nothing that would keep him from playing.” Marshall was seen limping a bit against the Sooners, though the expectation is that he’ll be ready moving forward.
Link’s return would be a welcome one for Michigan’s line. He opened the season at left guard, then missed last week with an undisclosed injury.
He was still in uniform against Oklahoma, which points to the issue being relatively minor. Whittingham said earlier this week that Link “should be good to go this week, barring anything unforeseen.”
Link has started 19 games in his career.
Meadows, a true freshman edge rusher, is also trending in the right direction. He missed the first two games of the season but returned to practice last week and could make his collegiate debut Saturday. Even if he does suit up, he likely won’t carry a heavy workload right away, with his injury recovery and the depth Michigan has on the edge.
Hogan Hansen remains the question mark. For the third straight week, he’s listed as questionable while working back from an injury. The 6-foot-6, 240-pound tight end has had a hard time staying on the field, appearing in just 14 of 28 career games, and his return is still uncertain heading into the weekend.
The toughest update belongs to Andrew Babalola. He was getting closer to debuting, but Whittingham said Monday that he “had a setback,” and that the 6-foot-6, 305-pounder “will not be available in the near future, unfortunately.” The former five-star recruit tore his ACL in 2025, and for now, a return doesn’t appear to be close.
In Other News...
Michigan Win Now Comes With An Official Controversy
Michigans latest win has taken on an awkward afterlife, with the NCAAs FBS oversight committee concluding that Western Michigan should have been credited with the victory because the officiating crew did not properly follow instant replay protocols. Even so, the result on the field will stay put in the record book, leaving Michigan with a win that now comes with a formal asterisk of sorts, even if not an official one.
The committee said it does not have the authority to overturn the game, but it also acknowledged the outcome would have been different had the replay procedures been handled correctly. For Michigan, that means the discussion around this game is no longer about how it was won, but whether the final outcome can be separated from a clear officiating failure that changed the way the finish is being viewed. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Hail Mary Controversy Now Has An NCAA Admission
The final minutes of Michigans win over Western Michigan have taken on a life of their own, and now the NCAA has officially weighed in on the controversy. The FBS Oversight Committee acknowledged that instant replay protocols were not followed correctly on the decisive sequence, a rare admission that the game was handled improperly in a way that affected the outcome. Still, the ruling stops short of rewriting the record, because NCAA bylaws do not allow the result to be changed after the fact.
For Michigan, that means the victory remains on the books even as the debate around the final play lingers. The Mid-American Conference had pushed for Western Michigan to be recognized as the winner for ranking purposes, but there will be no official switch in the standings or the history books. Whats left is an awkward ending for everyone involved, with the governing body confirming the mistake while also making clear that the score, however controversial, is not going anywhere. [Read more 🡒]
Michigans Defense Is Raising A Bigger Jay Hill Question
Through two games, Michigans defense has looked faster, cleaner and far more organized than many expected under new defensive coordinator Jay Hill. The unit has allowed only one touchdown, and the early returns have been especially encouraging in the places Michigan needed them most, with the linebackers and secondary both showing noticeable improvement while key opposing offenses have been kept in check.
That kind of start has done more than quiet any skepticism about the scheme itself. It has also put a brighter spotlight on Hill, whose impact has drawn praise from respected coaches such as Brent Venables and Kyle Whittingham, and it leaves Michigan in an interesting place as the season moves forward: if the defense keeps rising, the bigger question may not be whether Hill can stabilize the group, but how quickly his influence can reshape what this unit is capable of becoming. [Read more 🡒]