Michigan football has often promised that incoming freshman wide receivers are set to be big contributors, but it’s rarely come to fruition. However, for former four-star Andrew Marsh, he didn’t just participate; he led all pass catchers for the Wolverines in his first year of college football.
The maize and blue have long had issues presenting dominant receivers, but they may have just found one. Despite not being a factor both early and in the final two games of the season, Marsh led the whole group, reeling in 45 catches for 651 yards and four touchdowns in 2025. Now he’s expected to be the focal point in the pass game, but with JJ Buchanan coming in from Utah, Jaime Ffrench from Texas, and freshmen such as Salesi Moa and Travis Johnson expected to play factors, the pressure will likely be off him on a play-to-play basis.
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Given what was seen in year one, Fox Sports’ Michael Cohen has high hopes for Marsh, putting him on his list of 10 breakout candidates across college football heading into the 2026 season.
Here’s what Cohen said about Marsh:
Unfathomable levels of hype and hysteria surrounding five-star quarterback Bryce Underwood rendered him arguably the most scrutinized freshman in college football last season. Few of Underwood’s classmates, if any, were tasked with shouldering such astronomical responsibilities in exchange for such life-altering dollar amounts. Both the donor fundraising apparatus and football program had been reconfigured or recentered around Underwood, whose landscape-altering flip from LSU to Michigan now represents the high-water mark of an otherwise unsightly tenure under former coach Sherrone Moore, an integral figure in the quarterback’s recruitment.
But when the dust finally settled last December, following lopsided losses to then-No. 1 Ohio State and then-No. 13 Texas, sandwiched by Moore’s firing, another freshman on Michigan’s roster had outperformed Underwood.
Wide receiver Andrew Marsh, a four-star prospect and the No. 117 overall recruit, turned in an exceptional rookie campaign despite a passing offense that ranked 107th nationally. He finished second in the country for receiving yards among true freshmen, trailing only Malachi Toney of Miami. His final tallies of 12 receptions for 189 yards in a comeback win over Northwestern established new single-game program records by a first-year player. If he and Underwood both adapt quickly to new offensive coordinator Jason Beck, then Marsh should have a chance to become Michigan’s first 1,000-yard receiver since Jeremy Gallon in 2013.
The issue, as noted, was that Marsh was a nonfactor in the first several games of the season last year, which is understandable for a true freshman. He didn’t see any significant time until the fifth game of the season, when he supplanted Channing Goodwin as the starter opposite Semaj Morgan and Donaven McCulley. He wasn’t targeted in the final regular season game against Ohio State, and was essentially a nonfactor in the bowl game against Texas.
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So if the Wolverines deploy him early and often, as expected, he could have a big year. And given that the coaching staff is adamant about utilizing the talent at their disposal, there shouldn’t be any games where a healthy Marsh isn’t targeted at least once, if not several times.
This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Andrew Marsh poised for breakout Michigan season
