With Sherrone Moore, Grant Newsome, and Juan Castillo all gone, Michigan is starting to take a hit along the offensive line.
Since Kyle Whittingham took over and started bringing over his staff, the Wolverines have lost four offensive linemen to the transfer portal — the latest being redshirt freshman Jake Guarnera.
Guarnera entered the portal on Saturday morning with a ‘do not contact’ tag — like fellow redshirt freshman Andrew Sprague, who entered on Friday night.
Guarnera, who came to Michigan in the class of 2024, redshirted his freshman season but played a lot of football this year. Guarnera became the Wolverines’ starting right guard in Week 3 against Central Michigan and never looked back. Widely regarded as Michigan’s future starting center, Guarnera was a versatile player who could play all over the line.
In 2025, Guarnera allowed 11 pressures and two sacks. According to Pro Football Focus, the Florida prospect had a 68.0 run-blocking grade and a 66.4 pass-blocking grade. He allowed the third-most pressures on the team. Andrew Sprague led the team this season with 19 pressures allowed while starting at right tackle for the Wolverines.
Michigan’s offensive line outlook
Four of the five starting offensive linemen are now gone. The Wolverines lost both Giovanni El-Hadi and Greg Crippen to graduation and both Andrew Sprague and Jake Guarnera have entered the transfer portal. The sixth lineman, at the Citrus Bowl, was Kaden Strayhorn, who came in and played when Crippen went down, also entered the portal.
Michigan OL Jake Guarnera has entered the transfer portal with a do-not-contact tag, @On3sports has learned. https://t.co/SRR1qacz5o
— Pete Nakos (@PeteNakos) January 3, 2026
The Wolverines’ O-line depth has taken a major hit. But as of now, Michigan has guys who have played football such as Blake Frazier, Nate Efobi, Evan Link, Brady Norton, and Lawrence Hattar. The Wolverines love their former five-star signees like Andrew Babalola and Ty Haywood.
There is no question that Kyle Whittingham will look at the portal in hopes of supplementing losses, but Michigan has recruited the position well in recent years, and has some depth built up.
