Michigan Wolverines suffer brutal blow from the transfer portal that will sting Michigan’s offense heading into the 2026 season
In a somewhat stunning move, star Michigan Wolverines running back Justice Haynes has elected to enter the transfer portal.
The Michigan Wolverines have had a busy week in the transfer portal, churning the roster to keep players in and push players they don’t feel like are fits out. They’ve done a good job so far, keeping key players like Bryce Underwood, Andrew Marsh, Jordan Marshall, and Jake Guarnera in the Maize & Blue for next season and beyond.
However, they took a hit on Friday, when their best player from the 2025 season elected to enter the transfer portal. Running back Justice Haynes elected to portal away instead of declaring for the 2026 NFL Draft.
Justice Haynes a tough loss to swallow for Michigan
In 2025, Haynes was the engine of the Wolverines’ offense. His natural athleticism and instincts as a rusher bailed out a lot of Michigan’s inconsistent blocking and sometimes puzzling play calling. His explosiveness would turn what should have been a three-yard gain into a 30-yard gain. Despite only playing in seven games, Haynes lead the team in breakaway yards and 50.5% of his total yards came on runs over 15+ yards.
Michigan will return Jordan Marshall, who stepped up to fill Haynes’s absence well, but there was a noticeable dip between the two. Marshall will return to spearhead a unit that has the No.1 running back recruit in this class in Savion Hiter, and just added former Oklahoma Sooners running back Taylor Tatum, the No. 1 running back in the 2024 class, out of the transfer portal.
New offensive coordinator Jason Beck has typically not featured more than one running back in his offense, preferring to pick up the slack with the quarterback run game in recent years. However, he’s also never had the stable of backs that Michigan will be able to offer this year.
Regardless, this is a big blow to the Wolverines in 2026. However, many in the building expected his departure, whether it was to the NFL or not, and there is likely a plan in place to help replace him. This could explain the gamble on taking in Taylor Tatum despite a rocky start to his career. I would still expect the Wolverines to explore adding at least one more rusher out of the transfer portal to help replace Haynes, Jasper Parker, Bryson Kuzdzal, and CJ Hester.
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