Michigan Football The offense has struggled through three weeks of the season, but there have been some bright spots.
The emergence of Kalel Mullings as a top-tier running back has been a welcome development, while younger receivers are starting to find their form like Fredrick Moore or Kendrick Bell This could pay dividends as the season progresses.
But over the course of those three games, no position has been more important to the offense than tight ends.
A Swiss Army knife of offense, Michigan’s unit under Steve Casula not only utilized fullback Max Bredeson and the big bodies in the line in the running game, but also utilized its star junior infielder Colston Loveland as the focal point of the passing attack. He leads the team in receptions (19) and receiving yards (187) and is one of four players to have a receiving touchdown.
The problem this week: There’s no guarantee Loveland will play in Saturday’s Big Ten opener (3:30 p.m., CBS) against No. 12 USC (2-0), after coming off a Week 3 loss to Arkansas State. with an apparent upper-body injury in the third quarter.
Casula was evasive when asked about his pupil’s participation in training this week.
“Every player in our program who is not dealing with a season-ending injury or an upper-body or head injury is practicing every day,” he said. “That can look very different for a lot of players, whether they’re injured or not.”
PUBLIC DISPLAY OF TRUST: Why Michigan Football Team Publicly Announced Alex Orji as Starting QB
Whether UM or Loveland are transparent about its availability, there’s no denying its importance.
Speaking earlier this week, Head Coach Sherrone Moore The test results came back better than the program had initially feared, but it still appears too early to say anything definitive about Loveland’s status.
“We take it one minute at a time, one hour at a time, one day at a time,” Casula added. “Saturday at 3:30 is still a long way off. That’s just the way it goes. So I try to avoid predicting someone’s availability.”
If there’s a silver lining in Loveland’s absence — which can be hard to find when you consider the loss of the team’s best playmaker in some time — it’s that Marlin Klein has taken a big step forward when his number was called on Saturday.
The 6-foot-6, 250-pound sophomore caught three passes for 43 yards (which included a 33-yard reception, the longest of his career) to lead all UM wide receivers last week. He’s now third on the team with three receptions for 50 yards, just behind leading receiver Semaj Morgan (nine receptions, 56 yards).
“The last couple of years, I’ve always been ready and prepared like I was the starting tight end at the University of Michigan,” Klein said Tuesday night after practice. “I think I was prepared by our coaches and even Colston Loveland, when he came back, he told me, ‘Hey, you got this, whatever you need, I got this for you.’”
RAINER SABIN: Early QB change shakes confidence in Sherrone Moore’s Michigan football system
Tight ends were incredibly productive in the passing game, accounting for 53.6 percent of Michigan’s receiving yards (246 of 459), 47.1 percent of its receptions (24 of 51) and two of its four touchdowns. Even freshman tight end Hogan Hansen, playing in his first career game, caught a 9-yard touchdown pass from Alex Orji.
Loveland or Klein have now been Michigan’s leading receivers for three straight weeks.
Loveland (6-5, 245), projected by some as a first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, is reportedly preparing as if he will play Saturday.
Casula recounted a story that occurred earlier this week when he was leaving his office and Loveland approached him with a very keen observation from his film study about a USC trend in a specific area of the field.
“He’ll often say, ‘They play X, Y, Z in this area of the pitch, huh?’” Casula said. “And he’ll say, ‘Yeah, yeah, they do.’ So he’s on top of it, he’s sharp.”
Loveland’s intimate knowledge of the project is just one reason UM won’t officially comment on his playing status. His star status is another, of course.
The final aspect, as former head coach Jim Harbaugh said, is that players heal at different rates.
CENTRAL CYCLE: As Michigan football finds answers at running back, questions remain on offensive line
Even if Loveland is resting in practice or isn’t currently able to play Saturday, if something changes on game day, there are few players coaches have more confidence in being able to perform their week’s specific tasks with limited reps than their star.
“If there’s one guy we need to let play, it’s him,” Casula said. “He’s played a lot of football for us. His understanding of the attack, his recall, his retention in meetings … but at the same time, not to hurt him, not to hurt us in any way.
“To play tight end here, you have to be able to do all the different things that we ask them to do. Now, no matter what the game plan is, no matter what the game week is, it’s our responsibility as coaches to put our players in the best positions to succeed.”
Tony Garcia is the Michigan Wolverines Detroit Free Press reporter. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X @RealTonyGarcia.
Do “Hello Yes!” your favorite destination for Michigan Wolverines podcast, available wherever you listen to podcasts (Apple, Spotify).
This article was originally published on the Detroit Free Press: Michigan needs TE production against USC – with or without Colston Loveland
