CHAMPAIGN, Ill. − While the bye week certainly helped the Wolverines get closer to healthy, they still remain short of full strength.
Michigan football will be without at least nine players for its Week 8 matchup at Illinois (3:30 p.m., CBS) which includes defensive tackle Rayshaun Benny and nickelback Ja’Den McBurrows who has officially been ruled out for the season.
Three more players, including starting left tackle Myles Hinton, are considered questionable according to the pregame availability report programs are required to provide to the Big Ten Conference.
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The good news is edge Derrick Moore has been taken off the report entirely, implying he should play. The junior missed the last contest vs. Washington and was said to be working his way back in practice all week. The bad news is of course Benny, the senior defensive tackle who has been an important depth piece behind Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant on the interior of the defensive line.
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Benny broke his foot in last year’s Rose Bowl, then missed the national championship, but has been solid this year after returning from injury with 21 tackles including 1½ sacks in six games. It is unclear if this has anything to do with the same injury. Meanwhile, sophomore defensive lineman Enow Etta has also been ruled out.
Michigan’s secondary could see the return of Aamir Hall (questionable), but will again be without Jaden Mangham, McBurrows and captain Rod Moore (ACL). Running back and return man Jordan Marshall remains out, while linebacker Jimmy Rolder is questionable.
Hinton, the Wolverines’ starting blindside protector, missed the game against Washington with an undisclosed injury and was replaced by senior Jeff Persi. Though it wasn’t a total disaster, U-M’s line is at its best when Hinton is on the left side.
Dom Giudice was taken off the report, so the center should be available to play, however earlier in the week head coach Sherrone Moore implied the staff was impressed by what Greg Crippen did with his opportunity at the position in Seattle and he is expected to get the start on Saturday.
There was certainly a buzz in the air in Champaign pre-game, with a big game atmosphere on hand for the first time in quite a while. Saturday’s matchup between No. 22 Michigan (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten) and No. 21 Illinois (5-1, 2-1 Big Ten) marks the Illini’s first home contest between ranked foes since 2000.
Furthermore, it is also the 100 year anniversary of the first game in Memorial Stadium − Saturday has been dubbed the ‘rededication’ − which just so happened to be against the Wolverines on Oct. 18, 1924; when the Illini defeated the Wolverines 39-14 behind six touchdowns and more than 400 yards from Red Grange, who would from then on become known as the Galloping Ghost.
In that contest, both U-M and Illinois came off a season the year prior where they claimed national championship (as did Cornell) after each went a perfect 8-0 in the season. This time, only U-M comes off of a national championship.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football injury update: Down key pieces vs Illinois
