Michigan’s McGuffie to transfer

By Bart Doan  |   Wednesday, November 19, 2008  |  Comments( 3 )

College Football
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Confirmed from reliable sources, Michigan freshman running back Sam McGuffie will not be playing against Ohio State this weekend and will transfer to another university. McGuffie will be home this weekend in Cypress, Texas, with family to attend a funeral, but lack of playing time that has seen McGuffie lose substantial carries in recent weeks apparently soured Michigan's opening day starter as of late. McGuffie has seen sparing carries since originally being shaken up after a hard hit in a loss against Toledo.

McGuffie, tabbed as the answer to replace teparted four-year starter Mike Hart, started against Utah and to this point has led the Wolverines in carries with 118 and yards with 535. However, what began as a promising career in maize and blue started to take a downhill turn against Penn State on Oct. 18, one week after being knocked out against the Rockets. For the first time this season, McGuffie did not open the game as the starter, giving way to what Rich Rodriguez called a "healthier" Brandon Minor. Since then, Minor has assumed the role of the starter until being hurt against Minnesota two weeks ago. Last week, McGuffie pulled himself out of action against Northwestern right before game time, which eventually saw seldom used junior Carlos Brown turn in his best effort of the season. Michigan's second option since McGuffie went down, fellow freshman Michael Shaw, has been seeing increased carries of late despite a nagging groin injury.

McGuffie's watershed day as a Wolverine came in Week 3 against Notre Dame; that day, he rumbled 25 times for 131 yards and caught four passes for 47 yards and a touchdown.

McGuffie's popularity first came from YouTube videos highlighting his unbelievable athleticism, jumping over defenders his senior year. He nearly de-committed from Michigan after Lloyd Carr retired but made a last-minute decision to stick with the Wolverines after seriously mulling over offers from Texas A&M and California. There is no word on a timetable for an announcement, but it is expected sometime after the season-ending Ohio State game. It is unknown at this point what schools he will be interested in, though both California and Texas A&M would likely be willing to listen.
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About Bart Doan

Bart has been with Realfootball365.com for about six months and thoroughly enjoys writing for the site. He has been featured for his writings on college football in The Sporting News, The Indianapolis Star, Sports Illustrated, and on CBS Sportsline.com. When he's not drowning himself in the...
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