ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The Michigan football offensive line has been banged up all season long, with Week 1 being the only game where the Wolverines put out their preferred starting five. But there's a chance that the maize and blue could get Andrew Sprague, the starting right tackle, back for the first time since Week 2.
On Monday, head coach Kyle Whittingham said that there's no update as of the morning, but at some point during the day, the team is hoping to get good news as far as Sprague is concerned.
"No update at this point in time, but we're expecting one later on today," Whittingham said. "So, we'll see. There was another evaluation, re-evaluation, I guess you could say, yesterday. And so, we'll get the results of that today. And if he's
good to go, then we'll get him into practice, see how he looks. It's been a long time since he's played. And go from there. And then, of course, if they say he's not ready yet, then that takes care of itself."
It's still not currently clear what's plagued Sprague in his inability to suit up for the Wolverines since the Oklahoma game. He's been listed as out in the midweek injury reports, but has been in attendance for games, albeit in street clothes.
If he's cleared, it's also unclear how quickly he'll be able to get up to speed, given that, as Whittingham said, he hasn't played since early September.
Whittingham also addressed Andrew Babalola, who himself is returning from injury. He says that the second-year former five-star is now healthy, but it's a scenario where he's still acclimating to the game itself.
"And then Babalola, slow progress," Whittingham said. "He's healthy, finally, as we talked about a couple weeks ago, he became more available. But he's still getting up to speed and not ready to crack the starting lineup just yet."
Michigan also missed both starting edge rushers against Rutgers, as both Dom Nichols and John Henry Daley went through pregame warmups, but didn't end up participating in the game. Whittingham says that both are expected back and will play against Michigan Stateon Saturday.
Kickoff is slated for 7:30 p.m. EST at The Big House, and the game will be broadcast on the streaming service, Peacock.
This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Kyle Whittingham updates Andrew Sprague injury ahead of Michigan State
