The college football transfer portal is open for business.
Michigan football is adding not one, but two players from the portal, immediately, according to a report from Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports.
It was first reported by MLive that tight end Alex Bauman, who caught 18 passes for 166 yards last season for Miami, was enrolled at Michigan and received an injunction from a judge that ordered the NCAA to put his name in the portal.
Bauman was ruled immediately eligible for the 2026 season. It was unclear if he was going to be added to the roster. That seemed likely, but the report from Zenitz confirmed it. The CBS report also dropped another nugget: Michigan will be adding former Boise State cornerback Jeremiah Earby.
What the additions could mean for Michigan football
Earby is 6-foot-2 and he was second-team All-Mountain West last season after intercepting four passes. Playing for Boise State last season, he finished with 60 tackles, seven tackles for loss and 13 pass breakups.
Earby began his career at Cal, where he started 10 games in two seasons and earned Freshman All-American honors. He's got seven career interceptions, 38 career starts, 107 tackles, and 33 pass breakups.
Cornerback doesn't feel like a huge need, but you can never have enough talented players, especially in the secondary. Honestly, it would be the cherry on top if he added some sort of proven return ability, but he doesn't have any punt or kickoff returns in his career. He did recover a fumble and return it for a touchdown with the Golden Bears, though. That was in the same season in which he broke up 11 passes as a true freshman.
It might be something that puts the rest of the cornerback room on notice. Tyler Stockton, the safeties coach, certainly knows Earby well after being the co-defensive coordinator for Boise State last season.
That certainly played a role here, although there doesn't seem to be a Michigan tie to Bauman. Yet, the former Miami/Tulane tight end has 81 career receptions for 776 yards and 14 touchdowns. He didn't grade out well as a run blocker at Tulane, but did get some kudos for being a quality pass blocker last season.
It will be fascinating to see if either player will get a chance to play Saturday or if they have been practicing with the team. It seems like the team knew this was on the horizon, and I doubt either player would join the roster without some sort of assurance that they can see the field or at least have the opportunity.
It just feels sort of desperate. Or maybe Whittingham is sending a message. You do have to wonder what the current players feel about two mid-season additions, especially since neither will be here after this season. This is about the short term only.
Either way, Michigan fans have to hope it works, whatever the plan is.
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