Impact defender Keon Sabb made his transfer official and became the best player available in a declining market for the 2024 cycle, which resulted in Michigan’s first significant transfer portal loss. The majority of the top prospects on the transfer portal have already enrolled at new schools as the spring semester drop-add dates for college football have passed.
Sabb, though, is now one of the few high-impact options available, and more might be added after another coaching change this week, with Shawn Elliott leaving Georgia State to join South Carolina’s Shane Beamer’s staff.
This late in the offseason, there is not a single player in the top 50 rankings who has not made a commitment. Later in the spring, there will be an additional portal window. A number of players, including two from Washington after the Huskies hired former Arizona coach Jedd Fisch, have opted to withdraw after accessing the portal in recent days. Players frequently look in a different direction after a coaching change before meeting with the new staff to discuss fit.
On Friday, Sabb made his way onto the transfer portal, marking his first Wolverine casualty since Jim Harbaugh. The team had just won its first national championship in twenty-five years. Even with Rod Moore and Makari Paige, two experienced players, expected to return, Sabb—who finished the previous season with 28 tackles and two interceptions—was projected to start in the Michigan secondary in 2024. In Michigan’s national championship victory over Washington, Sabb led all defensive backs with six tackles. After Stephen Adegoke chose to stay with the Houston Texans this week despite Sherrone Moore’s advances, the Wolverines are currently looking for a defensive backs coach.
According to The Michigan Insider Lamar Morgan, the defensive coordinator for Louisiana, is “now on deck and the courtship process won’t take long,” according to Sam Webb of TheMichigan Insider. Keeping Sabb in Ann Arbor will be one of the first things the new secondary coach at Michigan has to deal with. Moore was elevated to head coach after Jim Harbaugh left for the NFL, and he has done a fantastic job of holding his team together before spring practice.
With the coaching change, Michigan players have a 30-day window to access the transfer portal. According to Hummer, Moore’s rise was expected. This season, his position as the next man up has been one of the worst kept secrets in college football. That’s fortunate as well, as sources told 247Sports that Moore’s presence was a major factor in the decision to keep Michigan’s roster largely intact with little attrition, at least for the duration of this window.
