Jake Guarnera gives a fiery defense of Andrew Sprague, who is out once again for Michigan

Michigan football fans can be frustrated about the injury status of Andrew Sprague. It's understandable, but don't say that Sprague has quit on the team.

Jake Guarnera has heard that narrative on social media. He pushed back on Wednesday, giving a fiery defense of his Michigan football teammate.

"I see all this stuff online like people saying all kinds of things. He's got stuff going on, and he can explain it if he wants to, but he's still with the team, still doing great and helping us out. He's never quit on us," The Michigan football center said on Wednesday.

Andrew Sprague "never quit" on Michigan football

Sprague hasn't played since the Oklahoma game. The 6-foot-8 offensive tackle was viewed as one of the up-and-comers on the roster after a solid sophomore season (then a redshirt freshman) starting at right tackle.

Sprauge was a top-150 overall recruit out of Missouri. He should have been a fixture on the offensive line this season, but has been out for unexplained reasons since Week 3. This week, Kyle Whittingham said that Sprague was going to return anytime soon.

The offensive tackle was also ruled out, officially, for the Penn State game with the release of the initial injury report.

That doesn't mean Sprague has quit on the team. Whittingham hasn't said exactly what the issue is. He probably can't. It's clearly soimething health-related. Whittingham mentioned the doctors think they have it figured out, but it wasn't an on-field injury.

Certainly, Sprague would be out there if he could. It's good to see Guarnera come to his defense. For one, that shows that the team still has a culture. The players care about each other. They have each other's backs.

Two, it just needed to be said. People have been running rampant with rumors online. Sprague is a promising player. It sounds like he will be back in a few weeks; if not, that will be disappointing, but that doesn't mean there is anything that can be done about it.

Having Sprague back would certainly improve the offensive line. It might even allow Evan Link to move inside if Blake Frazier moved over to left tackle. Yet, Andrew Babalola is listed as questionable for Saturday's game.

He practiced last week and this week. It seems like things are finally trending in the right direction for the former five-star recruit. That would help, too, and maybe take some of the focus away from Sprague, who surely wants to be playing as much as Michigan football fans want him to play.

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