The 2025 CFB season is almost here, but the fight for top talent is still heating up. Sherrone Moore’s Michigan has its eyes set on returning to national championship glory, and it all begins on the recruiting trail. Although Moore, who stepped in for Jim Harbaugh last season, guided the Maize and Blue to an 8-5 finish, highlighted by a stunning road upset over OSU to close the regular season. But now, with bold moves in recruiting and the transfer portal, Michigan could be charging back into the title hunt. And why not? The Wolverines just turned heads with a surprise last-minute transfer portal pickup.
On Friday, Michigan made it official. Ivy League linebacker Rocco Milia is heading to Ann Arbor. The Columbia transfer brings brains and brawn, fresh off an eight-start senior season with 49 tackles and four TFLs. Although over four years with the Lions, he racked up 18 starts and plenty of experience. Now, the hard-hitting veteran is ready to bring his smarts, grit, and playmaking to Michigan.
BREAKING: Columbia transfer LB Rocco Milia has signed with Michigan, @PeteNakos_ reports
Milia totaled 49 tackles last season.
Read: https://t.co/8UvXdoSrhS pic.twitter.com/djtbHHtWyY
— Transfer Portal (@TransferPortal_) August 8, 2025
Rocco Milia is no stranger to Michigan football. As a Birmingham Brother Rice standout, he was a Mr. Michigan Football candidate. On top of that, he was an AP Class 3-4 First Team All-State pick. And in high school, he did it all: safety, wide receiver, and even punt returner. He made it look easy. Now the versatile playmaker is coming home for one final season. But is the fifth-year senior stepping into a stacked room?
Yup, at 6-foot-2 and 225 pounds, Rocco Milia steps into an LB room that’s already loaded. Michigan returns starters Jaishawn Barham and Ernest Hausmann, adds Georgia transfer Troy Bowles, and still has Cole Sullivan and Jimmy Rolder in the mix. So, it’s a deep, talented group, and now even deeper. Following that, the Wolverines love to rotate their LBs, keeping the defense fresh and dangerous, and Milia’s arrival only strengthens that formula.
Milia preserved his redshirt in 2021, seeing action in just 2 games as a freshman. Then in 2023, he broke out as a redshirt sophomore, racking up 54 tackles. So, he’s not just experienced, he’s a proven playmaker who knows how to make an impact. But Milia isn’t the only transfer addition for Michigan.
Michigan’s latest haul from the transfer portal
Michigan made a serious splash in the transfer portal this offseason. Well, the Wolverines landed 18 newcomers, a haul that ranked No. 10 in the nation per the On3 Team Transfer Portal Index. And leading the charge is former Alabama RB Justice Haynes. The No. 43 overall player in the country, according to On3, and a name built for headlines. But the program isn’t getting left behind on the high school recruiting trail either.
Remember, Michigan’s crown jewel didn’t come from the portal, it came from the high school ranks. The Wolverines landed Bryce Underwood, the nation’s top-rated recruit from Belleville, and he’s already turning heads. Now locked in a battle for the starting QB job, the freshman phenom is generating plenty of buzz in Ann Arbor as training camp heats up. Sherrone Moore made it clear, the race for QB1 is wide open.
Right now, Bryce Underwood, Mikey Keene, and Jake Garcia are all in the mix, and no one has pulled ahead. “Before anyone asks, it’s an open competition,” Moore told On3. “There is no starter. When they ‘have the team,’ we’ll know we have our starter.” So, until then, the battle under center rages on until a winner is declared.
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