Former Michigan quarterback Colin Hurley is on the move again, and this time the path back to the field is opening up.
Hurley, who left the Wolverines in late March, now intends to enter the transfer portal, according to On3’s Pete Nakos. He remains enrolled at Michigan and is still taking classes, but his departure from the football program was tied to a medical retirement after a concussion. Now, he’s ready to return.
“Colin has worked hard on his health and is excited to come back to the sport he loves,” Hurley’s agent Brian Davis told On3. “Colin has two years of eligibility left and can’t wait to play again.”
Michigan brought in Hurley and Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi from Colorado State after the portal opened, with both quarterbacks expected to compete for the backup role behind Bryce Underwood. Fowler-Nicolosi is still in Ann Arbor, but Hurley’s time with the team ended before spring really got going.
Hurley arrived at Michigan after two seasons at LSU. He reclassified from the 2025 class into the 2024 cycle and became the youngest quarterback ever to enroll at LSU at 16. He redshirted in 2024 and did not play in 2025.
A former four-star recruit, Hurley chose LSU with offers from Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Ohio State and Penn State, among others. He was rated the No. 357 prospect and the No. 25 quarterback in the Composite.
At the time he committed, Hurley was operating in a spread offense in high school and was seen as a fit for Jason Beck’s system. That pairing never really materialized, though, and Beck was recently fired after nine games.
Hurley had been expected to spend a couple of seasons behind Underwood before pushing for the starting job once Underwood moved on, but that plan never came together.
What happens next for Michigan at quarterback is still unsettled. Much depends on Kyle Whittingham’s future at the end of the season, and there is growing belief he could be one-and-done at Michigan. The Wolverines need one more win to become bowl eligible, though that won’t come easily with three ranked teams still left on the schedule.
Underwood’s own future looks uncertain after he was benched for Tommy Carr. Carr has shown both highs and lows, and it’s still unclear whether he’s the long-term answer. Michigan does have four-star commit Kamden Lopati, but he was close with Jason Beck and visited Utah this past weekend.
With so much still unresolved, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Michigan goes shopping in the portal in January for another quarterback, especially if Whittingham is no longer there.
In Other News...
Tom Izzo Had Quite A Message For Duke After This Loss
Michigan States preseason win over Duke gave Tom Izzo plenty to talk about afterward, and he made sure to frame it as more than just a good October result. The Spartans beat the Blue Devils 79-73, and Izzo came away impressed with Duke while also acknowledging what his own team had done to earn the victory.
Izzo also couldnt resist tying the moment back to the bigger campus mood in East Lansing, pointing to Michigan States recent football win over Michigan and stressing how much that meant. The basketball result mattered, but in Izzos view, it was part of a stretch that had already given the Spartans plenty to feel good about. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Just Showed The Response Fans Wanted After That Early Loss
The early stumble against No. 4 Connecticut could have lingered, but Michigans next outing against Marquette offered the sort of answer coaches usually hope for after a tough night. Since that Big Ten Tournament championship run, the Wolverines had been rolling, so the loss served as a useful reminder of how quickly the margin shrinks when the competition tightens up.
Mike Boynton Jr. struck a measured tone afterward, treating the setback as part of the process while pointing to the way Michigan bounced back. The shooting looked cleaner, the defense was sharper and players such as Quinn Costello and Moustapha Thiam showed clear improvement, the kind of response that can matter just as much as the result itself as the schedule keeps moving. [Read more 🡒]
Michigans Offensive Reset Faces Its First Real Test At Oregon
Michigan football heads into a tricky stretch with a familiar kind of pressure hanging over the program: fix the offense without blowing up everything else. After the loss to Michigan State, the Wolverines moved on from Jason Beck and turned the play-calling over to Jim Harding on an interim basis, a sign that the staff felt something had to change. The timing is awkward, too, because Oregon is coming off its own offensive shake-up and has already shown signs of life since making a similar move.
For Michigan, the challenge is less about reinventing the whole operation than finding enough clarity to help an offense that has struggled all season while leaning on a defense that has stayed strong. The expectation is for adjustments, not a full scheme overhaul, which leaves plenty riding on how quickly the new setup can settle in. Oregon is the first real test of whether those changes can translate on the field, and it arrives with little margin for error. [Read more 🡒]