Coming into the 2025 season, most observers on the outside looking in pinned the wide receiver room as a weakness of the Michigan Wolverines. While it’s still far too early to call them a strength, the emergence of true freshman Andrew Marsh has been astounding.
The former four-star prospect out of Katy, Texas has hauled in 37 catches for 565 yards and two touchdowns. He also took over punt return duties for a struggling Semaj Morgan in the middle of the Northwestern game.
Marsh’s teammates and coaches
have taken notice.
“It’s extremely impressive because I see him do that every day in practice,” wide receiver Donaven McCulley said this week. “Him translating that to the game is just amazing because he’s a young guy coming in, being a freshman, and being able to step up and just make plays like that when we really need it. That’s extremely important.”
McCulley went on to emphasize his mentorship role towards Marsh. He even went as far as calling Marsh his little brother.
Per the program, Marsh’s performance against Northwestern (12 catches, 189 yards) set a single-game receiving yards record for a true freshman at Michigan since at least 1979. Additionally, those 12 catches are the fifth-most in a single game in Michigan history, regardless of grade.
The offense has picked up 49 plays of 20 or more yards this season, and Marsh accounts for 14 of them. His explosiveness has paid dividends for the Wolverines and will continue to do so in the future.
Head coach Sherrone Moore was asked this week about what made Marsh stand out to him when he was a high school recruit, and it doesn’t sound like there was much he didn’t like about him as a prospect.
“I remember going to watch him at a high school game,” said Moore. “At the first play, he catches the post. The next play, he gets handed a reverse. The next play, he’s catching a slant, taking it. He’s going there, throwing his body in there and blocking. Just all around great player. He just continues to make plays and he’s going to be probably in here right after class watching the film again … he’s a special player for us.”
Marsh spoke about his record-breaking performance at Wrigley Field, attributing some of his preparedness to his high school career in Texas.
“I would say it definitely helped prepare me,” Marsh said. “Football in the south is a lot different really than everywhere else in my opinion. So just being able to experience that I feel like definitely helped me get here.”
The Michigan community has already embraced Marsh early on in his career. Following the game on Saturday, he spoke with former Michigan receivers Desmond Howard and Roy Roundtree, with Roundtree congratulating him on breaking his record.
Marsh also spoke about his accomplishments up to this point. He was asked if he’s surprised himself with his early success.
“I haven’t surprised myself,” he said. “But (I’ve) just kind of been able to prove myself. I feel like we have a lot that we have to prove as a team and me as well. I feel like we have a lot of work to do and really just being able to come out this weekend and show what we have to show.”
Marsh repeatedly expressed a team-first mentality, showing maturity beyond his years. The program will lean heavily on his maturity, talent and leadership moving forward in 2025 and beyond.
