Wolverine Digest

REPORT: Michigan Football starter to return, switch positions

Chris Breiler

Michigan Football helmet at the Rose Bowl (2024)
Michigan Football helmet at the Rose Bowl (2024) / Christopher Breiler
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According to a report from 247 Sports, Michigan's Jaishawn Barham is expected to return for his senior season and is working on a position change from linebacker to edge rusher.

At 6-3, 248 pounds, Barham has the size, speed, and athleticism to really make an impact as an edge rusher for the Wolverines in 2025. Heading into the 2024 season, offensive line coach Grant Newsome offered high praise for Barham, calling him the most physically gifted second-level player he's seen in his time at Michigan.

"I'm excited to see him rush somebody else," said Newsome. "He's unbelievable. I can confidently say he's probably the most physically-gifted second level player we've had here in my time. Probably the closest was Devin, but he's bigger than Devin by a good bit. I don't want to overstate it, but he's really, really good. He's unbelievable. Which has been an awesome challenge for our guys."

Although Michigan is losing veteran edge rusher Josaiah Stewart after this season, the Wolverines are expected to return experiened edge rushers in Derrick Moore and TJ Guy. But with Barham potentially in the mix, the Wolverines could continue to rotate at that position without having any drop-off in production.

Here's a closer look at Barham's noteworthy accomplishments in 2024, along with some of his career highlights prior to arriving in Ann Arbor.

Junior (2024)

  • Shared Defensive Player of the Game honors for his performance against Arkansas State
  • Made his U-M debut and first career start against Fresno State (Aug. 31) and contributed two tackles and a quarterback hurry
  • Started in the middle against Texas (Sept. 7) and contributed five solo tackles
  • Tied for the team lead with seven tackles against Arkansas State (Sept. 14)
  • Made four stops against USC (Sept. 21)
  • Made six tackles including one for loss against Minnesota (Sept. 28)
  • Delivered six tackles at Washington (Oct. 5)
  • Led the team with seven tackles including a half-TFL and two pass breakups at Illinois (Oct. 19)
  • Made nine stops against Michigan State (Oct. 26)
  • Credited with seven tackles against Oregon (Nov. 2)
  • Led the team with six tackles and posted two TFL at Indiana (Nov. 9) including his first sack as a Wolverine
  • Assisted on one tackle against Northwestern (Nov. 23)
  • Credited with five stops at Ohio State (Nov. 30)


PRIOR TO MICHIGAN

  • Earned two varsity letters (2022, ‘23) at Maryland
  • Appeared in 23 games with 23 starts at linebacker
  • Named a 2022 Freshman All-American (first team) by the College Football News; midseason honoree by The Athletic
  • Semifinalist, 2022 Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award
  • Two-time All-Big Ten (honorable mention, media, 2022; coaches, 2023)
  • Big Ten Freshman of the Week (Oct. 10, 2022)

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Chris Breiler
CHRIS BREILER

Christopher Breiler launched Winged Helmet Media and began covering the Michigan Football program in an unofficial capacity in 2017. He then joined Wolverine Digest as part of the FanNation network in 2021 as a contributing writer, where he served as both a writer and a photographer on game days. In 2024, he took over as the Managing Editor for Michigan Wolverines On SI. His love for Michigan Football brought him into the industry, and his passion for being a content creator has led to some amazing experiences along the way.

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