Report on Alabama football injuries and opt-outs in the Rose Bowl vs Michigan

Fans of Alabama, your wait is almost over.

The Rose Bowl is only a day away, in the words of young orphan Annie, and Michigan is still a slight favorite according to DraftKings Sportsbook. Let’s take a look at who will and will not be participating in the game.

First, there are the transfers.

We are in a different era of college football when it comes to bowl games, as postseason games have rendered most of them meaningless in the views of many, as Nick Saban has frequently warned. To make matters worse, NIL and the transfer portal work together to entice players searching for brighter pastures to opt out in the hopes of enrolling at their next school before the second semester begins.

In certain circumstances, teams are so depleted that the action becomes downright obnoxious. We witnessed this in the Cotton as Ohio State was without a slew of opt outs, including starter quarterback Kyle McCord, who is transferring, and superstar wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., who was content to avoid injury while watching his team be held to three points by Missouri. Florida State carried an even more opt-out-ravaged roster to the Orange Bowl against Georgia.

Because Alabama and Michigan are in the College Football Playoff, those who opt out are limited to those who have elected to explore other options in college football. Here’s a list compiled by the nice people at College Football Network, who keep track of these things.

Alabama

• Isaiah Hastings, DL (transfer portal)
• Ja’Corey Brooks, WR (transfer portal)
• Tyler Buchner, QB (transfer portal)
• Thaiu Jones-Bell, WR (transfer portal)
• Anquin Barnes, DL (transfer portal)

Michigan

• CJ Stokes, RB (transfer portal)
• Leon Franklin, RB (transfer portal)

With the significant exception of Michigan starting right tackle Zak Zinter, who suffered a fractured leg against Ohio State, both teams should play pretty healthy. That ailment has been mentioned numerous times as a source of concern for the Wolverines, especially in pass protection against Alabama’s elite edge talent.

Michigan quarterback JJ McCarthy was hampered by an ankle ailment in the final four games of the season, but he insists he is 100 percent ready for the Rose Bowl. Drake Nugent, the starting center, missed a few bowl practices to rehab an ankle injury he suffered against the Buckeyes and played through in the Big Ten Championship Game, but he believes he will be near perfect as well. He’ll need to be, or Michigan’s offensive line will struggle even more.

On the Alabama side, the only notable injury has been starting RB Jase McClellan, who missed the SEC Championship Game due to a foot ailment. All indications are that he will be ready to go at this point.

Fans of the game usually want to see elite teams play at full strength, and Alabama and Michigan are very close to doing so coming into the Rose Bowl. It should be a good time.