A much-needed bye week for the Michigan football program gave the team a chance to rest and recover ahead of what still looks like a gauntlet of a schedule. During the time off, the Wolverines got the chance to continue working on their game while also working back to full strength, as the team has been hampered a bit by injuries.
On Monday, head coach Kyle Whittingham took the podium for his weekly press conference and provided updates on injuries affecting the offensive line.
Andrew Sprague started
the first two games of Michigan’s season at right tackle, but has missed each of the last three games after being a late scratch from the lineup before the UTEP game. Unfortunately for Sprague, things don’t appear to be trending in the right direction for him, and he could continue to be out for an extended period of time.
“It’s way out there if he comes back,” Whittingham said of Sprague and his injury.
It’s unclear what specifically Sprague is dealing with, but if he’s unable to return to the lineup at all, it’ll be a big blow to the offensive line since it’ll be missing one of its more experienced players as it continues to try and improve. In Sprague’s place, Blake Frazier and Evan Link have been getting most of the snaps at the tackle spots, while freshman Marky Walbridge has been getting some reps as well.
On the other side of the coin, Michigan did get some positive news as it potentially relates to replacing Sprague’s production with sophomore Andrew Babalola returning to the practice this week.
Babalola had an outside chance to start as a true freshman last season before a knee injury derailed his season during fall camp. Things were trending in the right direction for him once again over the offseason, but two setbacks in his recovery have left him unable to play for the last month, according to Whittingham. Now that he’s back, he might finally get his chance to shine for an offensive line that needs all the help it can get.
“Hopefully, knock on wood, if we can keep (Babalola) on the field, then he’ll definitely have a chance to help us,” Whittingham said. “He’ll start practicing (Monday). We’ll gradually ramp him up throughout the week and see if he’s ready to contribute this Saturday.”
Fans will still likely be holding their breath until Babalola is actually on the field for the Wolverines in a game, but it’s encouraging that the team could be in position to get back one of its high-potential players ahead of what will be a critical matchup with Penn State this weekend.
