Chris Evans To Be Reinstated In January, Josh Ross Will Likely Redshirt
In February, it was announced that senior running back Chris Evans was not with the Michigan Wolverines football team for the 2019 season. At that time, U-M Associate Athletic Director for Football Communications Dave Ablauf said, "Chris Evans is not a member of the football team at this time. Privacy laws prohibit us from commenting further."
Evans tweeted that it was an academic issue that would hold him out of football.
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In a Nov. 7 Tweet, Evans seemed to hint at the possibility of returning to the football field for U-M in 2020.
Today, head coach Jim Harbaugh confirmed that Evans is on track to be reinstated to the team in the school's winter term, starting in January.
"When he gets back in school, he will be able to participate fully in football again," Harbaugh said at Monday's press conference. "My understanding is that he had a productive, scheduled meeting to see if he would be reinstated back into school. My understanding is that he will be [back in school] for the winter term. We'll welcome him back to the football team."
When Evans returns for the 2020 season, he will be a fifth-year senior. He has made an impact in the backfield since his first game as a Wolverine, where he had 8 rushes for 112 yards and 2 touchdowns in the 2016 season opener against Hawaii.
Evans has rushed for 1,722 yards and 14 touchdowns on 344 carries in his career at U-M. He has also 40 receptions for 392 yards and 2 touchdowns. Evans was an All-Big Ten honoree (honorable mention, coaches) in 2017 when he generated a total of 842 all-purpose yards (685 rushing yards) and 7 touchdowns as a sophomore.
Josh Ross Is Back From Injury, Will Likely Redshirt
Junior middle linebacker Josh Ross has not seen game action since suffering an ankle injury in the Sept. 21 game against Wisconsin. According to Harbaugh, Ross is back healthy after U-M's bye week and heading into the matchup with MSU this weekend.
Ross has played in three games so far, and would retain his redshirt if he only plays in one game the rest of the season.
"He's back. He's prepared and ready to play," Harbaugh said Monday. "Our plan with Josh is to play [him] in one more game. He hasn't redshirted so far and with the time he has already missed, hopefully we'll have the luxury of him playing in only one more game and then being able to get him an extra year. That would give him two more after this year.
"[He will play] when we feel like he's most needed — if one of the two inside backers [Cam McGrone and Jordan Glasgow] would not be able to start or finish a game. We're preparing him for when we need him the most. We're trying to make that one game the game that we would play him in."
Ross played against Middle Tennessee State, Army and Wisconsin this season. He notched a career-high 9 tackles in the win over Army. He was an All-Big Ten selection (honorable mention, coaches and media) in 2018.
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