The Michigan football team is losing another player.
Tuesday night, receiver Drake Harris announced his intentions to pursue a final year of eligibility elsewhere. A few hours later, The Michigan Insider’s Sam Webb reported that offensive tackle JaRaymond Hall will also leave the program — though Hall clarified in a statement Monday that he remained a current member of the team.
“I would like to thank everyone for the support,” Hall wrote in a statement on Twitter, “but I have made no decision on my future.
“… My coaches and I have been in constant communication and we share an understanding about my future that I feel comfortable with.”
For Harris, a disappointing career has finally reached its end. The redshirt junior arrived in Ann Arbor as a highly-touted recruit and a key member of Brady Hoke’s final recruiting class. Widely considered one of the nation’s top recruits and one of the state of Michigan’s most decorated athletes, Harris recorded 91 catches for 2,015 yards his junior year of high school to lead Grand Rapids Christian to the Division 3 state championship, setting a state record in the title game with 243 receiving yards. He was also a high-level basketball recruit once committed to Michigan State in both sports before switching to the Wolverines.
Harris, though, struggled with injuries in the following years — and struggled to establish himself among his fellow receivers at Michigan. Before this season, he announced a position switch to cornerback. That move appeared to be short-lived, however, as Harris eventually began suiting up at receiver once again. He recorded his only catch of the season in last Saturday’s 31-20 loss to Ohio State. In his four-year career, Harris tallied 9 catches for 60 yards.
As a graduate transfer, Harris will be eligible to play immediately.
“My journey has had many bumps in the road and the cards I have been dealt were not particularly ideal. However, the end is far from near,” Harris wrote on Instagram. “ … Without further notice, I will be continuing my football career elsewhere for my 5th year season. I will forever cherish my memories in the Big House and I will never forget the lessons and qualities that made me a Michigan man.”
The writing may have been on the wall for Harris when numerous younger receivers such as Tarik Black, Donovan Peoples-Jones, Kekoa Crawford, Nico Collins and Eddie McDoom moved ahead of him on the depth chart. Hall’s rumored transfer, though, may come as more of a surprise.
Another native of Michigan, Hall spent the past season redshirting as a freshman. He enrolled early and went through spring practices with the team and figured to be in the conversation at offensive tackle in the coming years. A former four-star recruit, Hall would have been the second member of Michigan’s freshman class to leave the team, joining former defensive end Corey Malone-Hatcher, who medically retired in July.