Whenever there is a coaching change, there is always talk about the players who could leave. Michigan football fans have been doing that plenty.
All eyes are on players like Bryce Underwood and Andrew Marsh. Yet, there is the flip side of the coin, too, which is adding players, something else Michigan can take advantage of.
Utah EDGE John Henry Daley plans to enter the transfer portal, his reps @ThisisESM tell @On3sports.
— Pete Nakos (@PeteNakos) December 30, 2025
The 6-foot-4, 255-pound EDGE posted 48 total tackles, 11.5 sacks and 2 forced fumbles in 2025. Will have two seasons of eligibility remaining and be fully recovered by the spring… pic.twitter.com/HKoBm9ikBF
One such opportunity jumped into the transfer portal on Tuesday as Utah EDGE John Henry Daley will be in the transfer portal, according to Pete Nakos of On3.com.
The defensive end led the Big 12 with 17.5 tackles for loss. He also had 11.5 sacks. The 6-foot-4, 255-pound defender, who immediately becomes one of the top players available in the portal, on the defensive side of the ball, could be coming to Michigan.
That's not just wishful thinking either.
Michigan could land elite defender in the transfer portal
Lewis Powell, who has spent the last nine seasons coaching EDGE for Utah, is expected to follow head coach Kyle Whittingham from Utah to Michigan. That hasn't been announced yet, but it's one of the moves expected.
Powell obviously recruited Henry Daley to Utah and has coached him for the past three seasons. Those relationships tend to matter a lot. Whittingham said he wasn't going to tamper with players, but if Powell is headed to Michigan, it would be clear that some players could follow along.
Just because there is that connection doesn't mean Henry Daley will come to Ann Arbor. Yet, with Michigan's NIL warchest and the ties to the new coaching staff, it feels like a possibility, even a realistic one.