Michigan kept two more pieces in place on Monday, with freshman center Marcus Moller and rising sophomore Ricky Liburd both signaling they’ll be back next season even after Dusty May’s departure.
Moller was the first to make it known he’s staying in Ann Arbor. The 7-foot-3 freshman from Denmark arrived as part of Michigan’s highly decorated 2026 recruiting class, and while he wasn’t ranked by the recruiting services, he still drew plenty of attention. SMU, Oklahoma State and Colorado State were among the programs that pursued him.
For Michigan, the appeal is pretty clear. Moller is the kind of big the Wolverines want: a player who can run the floor, protect the rim and clean the glass. He’s likely a year or two away from being fully developed, but his fit is obvious.
Liburd’s return may not jump off the page to the casual fan, especially since he didn’t play a single second in 2025-26. But inside the program, he’s viewed as a future breakout candidate and a player the staff wanted back.
He’s expected to compete for the starting wing spot alongside Elliot Cadeau and Tre McKenney, and Michigan sees him as a classic three-and-D piece who can make winning plays in a bunch of different ways.
"I feel like I'm just like an athletic wing, like a three-and-D, I could shoot," Liburd said back in May. "I can play defense, but I feel like my niche is like my defense and I do the intangibles. Like, I make the energy plays or if we need to stop, I'll go get that stop.
"If we need to rebound, I'll go get that rebound, you know, take a charge and maybe even setting a good screen just to get somebody else open. Like, I'm just all part of like impacting the game as like, as much as I can."
With Moller and Liburd locked in, Michigan still has three more major decisions to wait on from L.J. Cason, Oscar Goodman and Quinn Costello.
Cason tore his ACL late in the season, but under the new 5-for-5 NCAA rule, he could be back on the floor late in 2027 and give Michigan a late boost. Goodman is the one who could help right away and is projected to play a significant role in 2026-27, just like Liburd.
Costello, meanwhile, arrives as a top-40 prospect and a player who can line up at either the 4 or the 5 next season. With Michigan’s frontcourt depth not exactly overflowing, his decision would be a major one for the Wolverines.
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