Reserve running back from Michigan logs into the NCAA transfer site
The Michigan football team finally had a player announce his decision to transfer after a week of waiting.
The Big Ten champion Wolverines’ reserve running back, Capers “CJ” Stokes, revealed on Monday that he intends to use the NCAA transfer portal. Stokes is a sophomore. Earlier in the day, Stokes’ admission was verified by a team representative.
Stokes is still eligible for three more years. Since the site reopened on Monday, December 4, he is the first Michigan player to access it.
Stokes did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but the move comes after he was barely utilized during the 2023 season. The 5-foot-10, 205-pound back appeared in just two games and was never a major part of the Michigan depth chart at running back, despite being considered for the No. 3 spot to start the season.
But it never transpired. Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards accounted for a bulk of Michigan’s carries this year, while senior Kalel Mullings emerged as the team’s third option at running back. Stokes turned four carries into eight yards in victories over East Carolina and Nevada, Las Vegas, the first two games on the schedule, and never played the rest of the way.
As a true freshman in 2022, Stokes rushed for 273 yards and a touchdown while appearing in 11 games in a reserve role.
With Corum expected to depart for the NFL draft and Edwards’ future unknown, Michigan finds itself in an intriguing spot at running back heading into 2024. Edwards could choose to return, while Mullings has another year of eligibility and junior Tavierre Dunlap, a junior, has two.
Then there’s the true freshmen, Benjamin Hall and Cole Cabana, though of highly and expected to be the future of the program. Both are on track to redshirt this season, giving each player a full four years remaining. Michigan is also expected to welcome a pair of running-back recruits this offseason: Four-star prospect Jordan Marshall of Cincinnati, Ohio, and three-star player Micah Kaapana of Las Vegas.
Former Columbia, South Carolina, three-star recruit Stokes is still able to opt out of the transfer portal and go back to Michigan. But his choice was probably influenced by a packed running back room.
