Multiple key Michigan players expected to opt out of Citrus Bowl vs. Texas, per report
Published:
Multiple important players for Michigan won’t be out there to help the Wolverines on New Year’s Eve when they face Texas in the Citrus Bowl in Orlando.
According to a report by CBS Sports on Sunday afternoon, defensive end Derrick Moore, linebacker Jaishawn Barham and offensive guard Giovanni El-Hadi are expected to opt out of the bowl game matching 9-3 teams who narrowly missed the College Football Playoff.
El-Hadi is a key cog along Michigan’s offensive line, and so the Wolverines will take a hit in the trenches on offense as well as on defense with the absence of Moore. The senior edge rusher had 30 tackles, 19 of them solo, with a whopping 10 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and 1 fumble recovery this fall.
Meanwhile, Barham’s opt-out will be another key loss as the Wolverines try to get to 10 victories in the 3 p.m. ET kickoff on ABC. The senior had 32 tackles this season, 21 of them solo, with 4 sacks, 1 forced fumble and 4 pass deflections.
El-Hadi is also a senior, and the standout trio opting out are all out of eligibility after this season and are choosing not to risk being injured in a non-Playoff bowl game, with their football futures in mind.
Michigan will take aim at Texas without them, as the Wolverines try to finish strong under interim head coach Biff Poggi, who is taking over for fired head coach Sherrone Moore.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
