Position Switches, Notable Weight Changes From Michigan's Roster Update

Michigan Wolverines football updated its roster ahead of the 2021 season, and we've provided some observation on some of the changes. Several players have shedded weight, while others have added some pounds to their frame. Others have transitioned from one position to another, and one Wolverine has switched his jersey number.

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Defensive back Sammy Faustin, who was set to begin his fourth year with the Wolverines, was left off the roster. Faustin will step away from football for the year due to medical reasons but remain on athletic aid.

• Redshirt junior Joel Honigford came into his Michigan career as an offensive lineman, and remained a member of the position group for his first four years on campus. Last year, he got some run as an extra blocker, and now he's made the permanent move to tight end. The fact that he was in the tight ends room was revealed in the spring, but now he's listed at the spot. On top of that, he's lost a whopping 48 pounds, going from 305 to 257.

• Redshirt freshman defensive tackle Mazi Smith has been the talk of the last few weeks, after earning tons of praise from head coach Jim Harbaugh and his teammates at Big Ten Media Days, and drawing more plaudits from defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald this week. Since the spring, he has gone from 305 pounds to 326, and has his body exactly where the coaches want it.

• Redshirt junior defensive tackle Jess Speight knows that the nose tackle in Macdonald's 3-4 defense will have to take up a lot of space, and has gained 20 points — going from 290 to 310 — since the spring as he attempts to carve out a role. The same goes for redshirt junior defensive tackle Donovan Jeter, who is up from 318 in the spring to 325 pounds now.

• Freshman interior offensive lineman Zak Zinter, who could potentially be Michigan's best offensive player according to coordinator Josh Gattis, impressed during his first year on campus in 2020 while playing at 334 pounds, but he's gotten even more chiseled ahead of the 2021 campaign, now checking in at 320 pounds.

• Redshirt freshman Gabe Newburg began his career as a defensive end, before bulking up from 251 pounds to 265 last season and sliding down to three-technique. Now, he's back down to 250 pounds and is listed as a defensive end.

• Freshman offensive tackle Giovanni El-Hadi enrolled early in January and came in at 318 pounds, but the in-state product has taken full advantage of the strength and conditioning and nutrition programs and is now down to 305 pounds.

• Freshman running back Donovan Edwards is another early enrollee who has bulked up since the spring. Back then, he was listed at 5-foot-11, 190 pounds, but now he's slotted in the roster at 6-0, 202 pounds.

• Redshirt freshman quarterback Cade McNamara is up seven pounds since the spring — going from 205 pounds to 212. His bulk comes on the heels of suffering a shoulder injury in his lone start of the 2020 campaign, the last contest of the season against Penn State.

• Redshirt sophomore linebacker Michael Barrett is listed at 227 pounds, the same weight he has resided at each of the last three seasons. While this may not seem significant, Barrett underwent a position change this offseason, transitioning from viper linebacker (safety hybrid) to inside linebacker. Despite his new position being one where he will take on bigger blockers, he has stayed at the same weight.

One new jersey number was revealed during the roster update process — freshman defensive back Andre Seldon has switched from No. 0, the digit he wore last season, to No. 36.

• Redshirt junior Jackson State graduate transfer wide receiver Daylen Baldwin, who will wear No. 85, is listed at 6-2, 219 pounds, after checking in at 6-3, 210 during JSU's spring season.

• Redshirt sophomore Texas Tech graduate transfer quarterback Alan Bowman will wear No. 15 – the same digits he donned as a Red Raider — and stands 6-4, 205 pounds. He was listed at 6-3, 215 last season in Lubbock.

• Seventh-year senior Oregon State graduate transfer defensive tackle Jordan Whittley, who will wear No. 93, has lost 10 pounds since last season, when he was listed at 6-1, 358 pounds (he's still 6-3 but weighs 348, according to Michigan's roster). He sat out in the spring due to health issues.

Michigan's freshman class is all on campus, and the program has provided official heights and weights for each player in the class, including updated information on the early enrollees.

• #1 WR Andrel Anthony — 6-2, 185 pounds

• #52 DE Kechaun Bennett — 6-4, 220 pounds

• #26 DT Rayshaun Benny — 6-5, 292 pounds

• #72 OL Tristan Bounds — 6-8, 282 pounds

• #25 LB Junior Colson — 6-2, 225 pounds

• #51 OL Greg Crippen — 6-4, 290 pounds

• #10 WR Cristian Dixon — 6-2, 197 pounds

• #19 K/P Tommy Doman — 6-5, 190 pounds

• #22 RB Tavierre Dunlap — 6-0, 222 pounds

• #7 RB Donovan Edwards — 6-0, 202 pounds

• #58 OL Giovanni El-Hadi — 6-5, 318 pounds

• #56 DT Dominick Giudice — 6-5, 275 pounds

• #42 DL TJ Guy — 6-5, 251 pounds

• #81 TE Louis Hansen — 6-6, 252 pounds

• #34 LB Jaydon Hood — 6-1, 212 pounds

• #92 DT Ike Iwunnah — 6-3, 306 pounds

• #1 CB Ja'Den McBurrows — 5-11, 197 pounds

• #9 QB J.J. McCarthy — 6-3, 197 pounds

• #27 LB Tyler McLaurin — 6-3, 237 pounds

• #19 S Rod Moore — 6-0, 173 pounds

• #54 DT George Rooks — 6-5, 270 pounds

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