Penn State is set to face its toughest task to date this weekend as the team travels to Ann Arbor to take on the No.5 ranked Michigan Wolverines.
Coming off an idle week, the Nittany Lions are in solid shape in terms of health, having very few injury concerns through the first month of the season.
Meanwhile, the Wolverines come in with a few notable players that may be unavailable for this game but like James Franklin, Jim Harbaugh does not get into specifics with injury news.
Here is who could be in or out on Saturday.
Penn State
Penn State has managed to keep its roster quite healthy to start the season with minimal concerns as of right now.
Wide receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith did leave the game against Northwestern with what appeared to be a foot/ankle injury as he was later walking around in a boot.
James Franklin said on Tuesday that he is “hopeful” that Lambert-Smith can play this weekend but that it is too early to tell regardless of his injury policy.
Franklin did announce that defensive end Smith Vilbert will not be available this season as he had yet to dress in any of the Nittany Lions’ first five games.
Fellow defensive lineman Coziah Izzard is back though and made his season debut against Northwestern which may really help the D-Line depth later on for Manny Diaz’s group.
Michigan
Michigan’s injury situation could be considered a bit more complicated than Penn State’s at the moment at a number of key positions.
A handful of starters missed the Wolverine’s game at Indiana last weekend including some key contributors from last year’s win in Happy Valley.
On offense, tight end Erick All has been dealing with a back issue that has kept Michigan captain out for the last month.
But his backup, senior Luke Schoonmaker, has picked up the slack in his absence and has been one of Michigan’s best offensive weapons so far.
The quarterback room has had no shortage of injuries and drama as young J.J. McCarthy will be the one who attempts to lead the program to a top-10 win.
Veteran QB Cade McNamara went down with an injury in the Wolverine’s win against UConn last month and the heralded McCarthy has officially taken over as the full-time starter.
McNamara, as well as backup quarterback Alan Bowman, will likely be unavailable this weekend behind McCarthy so sophomore Davis Warren may be the option for the Wolverines in case of an injury to McCarthy.
In the receiver room, No. 2 wideout Roman Wilson did not travel to Bloomington last weekend with an undisclosed injury, but it is believed that he has a good chance to suit up and play this Saturday as it was not considered long term.
On the defensive side of the ball, Michigan may be without Nikhai Hill-Green who has been dealing with an injury that has sidelined him for the entire season so far.
Hill-Green was expected to be a starter at linebacker this season and it is still unknown when he will be returning.
The Wolverines have even been hit with special teams injuries as they are without their long snapper William Wagner and captain Caden Kolsar who are both done for the year with injuries as well.
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