Transfer Impact: Trio Of Wolverines Enter The Portal

The transfer portal always seems to create interesting storylines.

Jim Harbaugh has done a phenomenal job at supplementing his roster via the transfer portal in recent years. Last year, it was Olu Oluwatimi who fit in perfectly and helped Michigan's offensive line win the Joe Moore Award for the second year in a row. This year, it looks like several players may have a significant role for the Wolverines, including several across the offensive line, at tight end and at the EDGE position.

Of course, if players can come into the program, they can also leave it. Today, three former Wolverines decided to try out the portal in an effort to find more playing time elsewhere.

AJ Henning

When Henning arrived in Ann Arbor, I had extremely high hopes for him. I don't know if it was because I watched him in person in high school and loved his speed and versatility or if it was because he seemed like a really hard worker hell bent on getting better and making an impact or if it was simply because he wore No. 3, which is my favorite jersey number. Whatever it was, it didn't play out like I thought.

Henning touched the ball just 40 times on offense during his three years in Ann Arbor and scored only four touchdowns, two of which came on returns (one punt and one kick). Despite being listed as a wide receiver, he never caught a touchdown pass. He finished his career with 25 catches for 198 yards. 

AJ Henning Needs To Play More

Replacing his production as a receiver obviously won't be very difficult, and guys like Roman Wilson and Cornelius Johnson are back and were already above him on the depth chart. Younger players like Darrius Clemons and Tyler Morris, and maybe even one-time walk-on Peyton O'Leary, should be able to eat up Henning's snaps with relative ease.

He did prove to be valuable as a punt returner, which will be something to monitor once the season gets closer. He fielded 57 punts over the last two season and made smart decisions back there with regularity. It'll be interesting to see who replaces him as there are plenty of intriguing candidates such as Morris and Wilson, along with versatile athletes like Amorion Walker and Donovan Edwards, as well as true freshmen Cole Cabana and Semaj Morgan.

Nikhai Hill-Green

After a pretty solid 2021 sophomore season where he played in all 14 games with six starts, Hill-Green did not see the field in 2022. He battled injuries all year and never found a path to playing time. He recorded 50 tackles in 2021 and looked to be trending up but the injuries derailed his potential.

Now, he's behind guys like Junior Colson, Mike Barrett, incoming transfer Ernest Hausmann and possibly rising sophomore Jimmy Rolder. Michigan is loaded at linebacker and an injury-plagued Hill-Green simply got passed over. 

RJ Moten

Christopher Breiler

Moten has played a lot of football while at Michigan. The junior started 15 games over the last two seasons and recorded 65 tackles during those two years. He also picked off two passes and became a leader in the back end of two very successful defenses.

50 Mile Bike Rides Fuel R.J. Moten's Offseason Workout Regimen

Last year, he played 426 snaps, which is significant, but fellow safeties Makari Paige and Rod Moore seemed to pass him by as the year progressed and they played 485 and 726 snaps, respectively. Throw in a charging group of young safeties in Zeke Berry, Keon Sabb and Damani Dent, along with highly-ranked incoming freshman Brandyn Hillman, and Moten's snaps were likely going to take a hit in 2023. 

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At the end of the day, Michigan is losing some key depth guys in these three, but none of them were penciled in as starters. Still, football is a game of injuries, availability and depth, so losing these three players is noteworthy. If some of the younger players listed above continue to develop, the Wolverines will be just fine over the course of the 2023 campaign and into the future.