Michigan football: New transfer forming elite duo with rising star sophomore

Over the long offseason, Jim Harbaugh hit the transfer portal to address a number of the Wolverines’ most pressing needs. With Erick All and Luke Schoonmaker leaving the program, Michigan football needed a new tight end to start next to rising sophomore star Colston Loveland, who has been turning heads nationally since his freshman debut last fall. Heading into the 2023 season, new transfer tight end AJ Barner, a veteran from Indiana, is forming one of the nation’s elite and most formidable offensive duos with Loveland.

Michigan football tight end duo could be one of the best in the nation

From receiving to blocking and more, Michigan football asks a lot of its tight ends — a trend that has largely remained the same throughout all eight of Jim Harbaugh’s seasons as head coach in Ann Arbor thus far. Heading into his 9th year at the helm, the emphasis on tight ends appears to be alive and well, with Colston Loveland and AJ Barner stepping into a huge role for the Maize and Blue offense this fall.

AJ Barner praises Colston Loveland, breaks down incredible TE room

This week, we’ve been able to meet with both Loveland and Barner, and from the sound of things, these two are about to form one of the nation’s most feared offensive duos — perhaps even rivaling what running backs Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards can do for the Wolverines.

“I think it’s great just having both of us here because we can push each other, and we’re each other’s biggest fan also at the same time,” AJ Barner said of sophomore tight end Colston Loveland on Friday afternoon at Schembechler Hall. “Just having two really good players, it’s been extremely helpful for me, and I think for him also. He’s just a really talented player, a really smart football player, and I think the way that coach (Grant) Newsome uses us when we’re on the field together and when we’re not (out there together) will be a great advantage for our offense. And the rest of the tight end room also, we have plenty of really, really good players that I’m really excited to play with.”

Loveland has high praise for Barner as well

Earlier this week, Colston Loveland had a lot of praise for AJ Barner as well.

“Obviously, a new offense for him, so I’ve kind of been helping him there, but he’s hooked on like that and got everything like that,” Loveland said when asked about new transfer tight end AJ Barner. “I think having an older guy like that who played a lot of games, he’s taught me a lot. Especially like fade balls and stuff like that. He’s really good at that aspect. In the run game, he also blocks really well. So we kind of bounce ideas off each other back and forth. Great addition to the room.”

The wide receiver room is still a question mark for Michigan football heading into the season, and with tight ends being an essential part of the Wolverines’ elite rushing attack, both Colston Loveland and AJ Barner will have a chance to establish themselves among the nation’s elite this year. With size, speed, experience, and more on their side, it appears that this elite Michigan football duo could quickly become one of the best in program history.

Thank you for reading Blue by Ninety. For more Michigan Athletics and Big Ten content from Blue by Ninety, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. You can also subscribe to our YouTube Channel. For feedback, questions, concerns, or to apply for a writing position, please email our Publisher at Cj@BluebyNinety.com. Also, be sure to check out our shop and our podcast, which is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and all other streaming platforms. It is because of your support that we have become one of the fastest-growing and most influential Michigan media outlets there is!