With the season right around the corner, hopes are high for Michigan fans entering the first year of the Kyle Whittingham era, and the team is filled with talent. One area that fans should be especially excited about is the secondary; thanks to a ton of veteran skill, this is expected to be one of Michigan’s strengths.
There is also a good amount of young talent at those positions, and one player to watch is sophomore cornerback Shamari Earls.
The story so far
Earls was a Top 100 recruit in the 2025 recruiting class,
so he received attention from elite programs all over the country. He attended Thomas Dale High School in Chester, Virginia, and after originally being committed to South Carolina, and then Georgia, he announced his commitment to Michigan on Nov. 1, 2024.
As a true freshman, Earls didn’t see a lot of playing time, but he did still find his way into six different games. He made his college debut against Central Michigan, and he also played against Nebraska, Wisconsin, Washington, Michigan State and Texas. He did not record any stats during any of those games, but he was still in the game at some important moments. A lot of those games were close until the end, and being able to get on the field in those matchups as a freshman was a great experience for him moving forward.
Outlook for 2026
Because of the veteran talent in Michigan’s secondary heading into the season, Earls is still set to be a backup. The Wolverines are loaded at safety and cornerback with Zeke Berry, Chris Bracy, Rod Moore, Jyaire Hill and Smith Snowden expected to be the starters. All those players are upperclassmen who come in with an abundance of experience and impressive stats.
While Earls isn’t going to be a starter to begin the season, his role should still be bigger than last year. He should be rotating into the game a lot more compared to the 2025 season. According to Whittingham during a press conference earlier this week, Earls has been standing out a lot more lately in fall camp, saying that Earls is “really right up there, too, with (the starters) and really a guy that’s played good football through five practices.”
Earls needs to focus on making the most out of his role this season, whatever that may look like, to get himself ready for even more playing time in 2027. The Wolverines are set to lose a lot of guys in the secondary after this year, so Earls’ time to shine isn’t too far down the road.
