ESPN ranks Michigan RB Jordan Marshall as top breakout star for 2025 with Justice Haynes

USA Today

2 days ago

Not only do you get better at football by playing football, but as former Michigan football head coach Jim Harbaugh had once noted, players make their biggest jumps from the first game to the second, and also from their first year to their second. And one projected starter (though he'll be splitting time) is about to get that big test in two different ways.
Redshirt freshman running back Jordan Marshall spent most of 2024 injured, and though he saw some early time on special teams and one carry against Ohio State, he didn't really get much time until the ReliaQuest Bowl against Alabama when he rushed for an impressive 100 yards. Now, he's expected to be a co-starter along with Crimson Tide transfer Justice Haynes, and Michigan fans are salivating at his potential after seeing what he did in the bowl game.
But the fans aren't alone. Even ESPN is getting into the mix.
Coming up with a list on Wednesday, ranking the top second-year breakout players in 2025 across college football, Marshall ended up being ranked second of the 11 players who made the cut, just behind projected OSU QB starter Julian Sayin.
2. Jordan Marshall, RB, Michigan
We got a taste of what Marshall brings to the table at the ReliaQuest Bowl. The No. 7 back in the 2024 ESPN 300, he went for 100 yards on 23 carries in the first and only start of his young career. The former Ohio Mr. Football will team up with Alabama transfer Justice Haynes in the Wolverines backfield. Early in preseason camp, it appears the reps will be shared, with Haynes as 1a and Marshall 1b. Marshall is elusive in tight quarters, fast in the open field and powerful on contact with a low center of gravity. He boasted the top verified shuttle (5-10-5) out of high school with 4.1 seconds, which would have been second among running backs at this year's NFL combine.
Of course, the Wolverines, looking to revamp their offense, will be hoping that the tandem of Marshall and Haynes gets the maize and blue back to the 2021-23 years where Hassan Haskins, Blake Corum, and Donovan Edwards thrived in the ground game. However, last year, despite some flashes, Edwards and Kalel Mullings failed to recapture the ground game dominance of the years past.
Of the second-year players on the Wolverines, Marshall is likely the highest profile, but right tackle Andrew Sprague and edge rusher Dominic Nichols could be equally as impactful, though the latter is expected to be more of a reserve, while the former will be a starter.