Let's make one thing perfectly clear: Nobody in the state of Michigan is wishing away the summer that is just now beginning.

Yet as the warm months arrive, so too does the inevitability of fall and with that comes Michigan football. Much to the delight of those around Ann Arbor and throughout the country, the Wolverines are the defending national champions, and if U-M wants to repeat, a number of less-proven faces will need to make major contributions.

Of course, Team 145 consists of well-known All-Americans like Will Johnson and Mason Graham, as well as projected first-round selections like Colston Loveland and Kenneth Grant. But what about the less-known commodities who will make a huge impact by the time the season is all said and done?

In honor of the 10 Saturdays remaining before U-M kicks off against Fresno State under the lights in Ann Arbor on Aug. 31, here are Michigan's 10 likeliest breakout candidates — those who weren't among the top two or three performers in the position group last season — listed in alphabetical order.

LB Jaishawn Barham

Vitals: 6 feet 3, 248 pounds, junior.

Michigan only added two players in the early transfer portal window last winter, and the former Maryland linebacker is one who is expected to make an immediate impact. The linebacker from District Heights, Maryland (St. Frances) enters after starting the past two seasons at Maryland, where he played 23 games as an underclassman.

Barham was named a freshman All-American in 2022 by the College Football News and, last season took another step forward as an All-Big Ten honorable mention. Barham, a four-star prospect coming out of high school, finished last year with 37 tackles, three sacks and one interception, which came against J.J. McCarthy in the end zone late in the first half of Michigan's 31-24 win over the Terps.

There's plenty of room in U-M's linebacker corps for new faces, with former captain Michael Barrett and three-year starter Junior Colson departing for the NFL. Barham is a likely candidate to star in the role and an option as the "green dot" as the defensive player with the headset in his helmet to communicate with coaches as part of a rule change this season.

DT Rayshaun Benny

Vitals: 6-4, 296, senior.

If anything will hold Benny back this season from a breakout year, it figures to be how he recovers from a lower body injury sustained in the Rose Bowl vs. Alabama that kept him sidelined for the national title game.

Benny has long been expected to be a force in the middle of the defensive line, but has had to wait his turn behind a long line of NFL prospects in Mazi Smith, Kris Jenkins, Graham and Grant. Even with limited snaps last season, Benny was a force. The Oak Park standout played in 14 games and recorded 27 tackles with 5½ for loss, one sack, two pass breakups, and one forced fumble.

U-M is still expected to use its "rally group" concept this season with keeping bodies fresh and consistently rotating along the defensive line, but if he's able to play in full, Benny may make the biggest jump of anybody on the line.

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C Greg Crippen

Vitals: 6-4, 309, senior.

An old-school player, Greg Crippen has waited his turn to be the man on the interior of the offensive line and he's now the front-runner to be the team's starting center baring any setbacks. Crippen has been in the competition for years, only to lose close battles each time.

In 2022, Olusegun Oluwatimi (Virginia) transferred to U-M and all he did was become an All-American as he won both the Rimington Trophy and the Outland Award as he was named both the best center and top interior lineman in America. Last year, Michigan brought in another multi-year Power Five starter in Drake Nugent (Stanford) and he too won out on the starting job and has since signed as an un-drafted free agent with San Francisco.

Crippen, a 6-foot-4, 309-pound prospect from IMG Academy, has played in 15 games for Michigan, including nine last year. His main job over the summer and in fall camp will be to work on chemistry with what are sure to be a pair of new starting guards.

DT Enow Etta

Vitals: 6-5, 295, sophomore.

There's perhaps nobody on this list who has done less at the collegiate level however the way coaches and teammates have raved about the rising sophomore, it would almost be a surprise if he didn't turn heads this fall.

Etta, a four-star top-125 player in the nation in the Class of 2023, chose U-M directly over Michigan State, but also schools like Alabama, LSU, Oklahoma and Tennessee. Etta played in just three games last year (to preserve his redshirt), all of the non-conference games, and he recorded one tackle in his nine defensive snaps according to Pro Football Focus.

Etta was originally recruited as an edge, but the 6-foot-5 prospect has beefed up to 295 pounds to add depth to the interior of the line; something his teammates have already noticed.

“I think (his next step) started last year during the season toward the end of the season,” Graham said. “I know it wasn’t just me but everybody started seeing flashes of him, even when he’s on scout going against the one-on-one. So I feel like we all saw really good flashes towards the end of the year and kind of just carried the offseason.

"He’s gotten bigger, stronger. He’s doing some different stuff. So he’s kind of just everywhere right now. But I’ve seen really good things from him. Expect him to contribute this year.”

EDGE TJ Guy

Vitals: 6-4, 250, senior.

While the Free Press did not technically keep count, it feels safe to say TJ Guy was mentioned more than any other player on defense as someone who will take a step forward this season, and become a problem for opposing defenses.

Like many who've played on the line in Ann Arbor in recent years, Guy had to wait his turn. He has been on the roster behind players like Aidan Hutchinson, David Ojabo, Mike Morris, Jaylen Harrell and Braiden McGregor — all of whom are now in the NFL — but he appears very much in the mix on the outside, potentially as a starter if he can beat out junior Derrick Moore.

Guy has played 24 games including 17 on defense; last season he had 10 tackles, 1½ for loss and one sack.

“TJ Guy, I mean, he’s been a guy in this program for years now,” senior Josaiah Stewart said in the spring. “Just waiting his turn, just being in a full room throughout his time here. But now, I feel like this year, he will really shine and a lot of people will get to see that.”

TE Marlin Klein

Vitals: 6-6, 250, junior.

No longer is Klein just the kid from Germany, but an expected contributor to an offense that will welcome pass catchers at any position.

Last year, Loveland put together perhaps the best season for a U-M tight end since Jake Butt was named the 2016 John Mackey Award winner yet he was the one to call Klein both the fastest and strongest player in the position group.

Klein, who has appeared in 12 games in his career, has plenty of work to show he can play — he has one reception for 8 yards in two seasons — but at 6-6, 250, he was one of the team's top performers in March and April.

“Marlin has had an outstanding, exceptional spring," said new tight ends coach, Steve Casula. "I'm really proud of him for just kind of hanging in there and stacking day after day after day after day. Not that every day has been perfect but Marlin is incredibly gifted, he's serious about football, he trains hard (in the weight room).

"He goes about his business the right way each and every day, so I'm excited and fortunate to be his coach. Marlin Klein is really good and we're really excited about him.”

WR Semaj Morgan

Vitals: 5-10, 176, sophomore.

Perhaps the most proven player on this list, however Morgan was a young player who played limited snaps last season, and can be expected to take a sophomore leap.

The West Bloomfield product was electric in his first year in Ann Arbor, catching 22 passes for 204 yards and a pair of touchdowns, rushing the ball four times for 67 yards and a score, and contributing as a returner, highlighted by a Big Ten championship game-record 87-yard punt return.

Yet Morgan, a slot receiver, saw limited snaps: 127 on offense — 105 in the slot and 22 out wide — and 36 on special teams on kick (30) and punt return (6) for a total of 163 plays for the entire season, according to Pro Football Focus; fewer than 11 per game.

Morgan was statistically one of the most dynamic players with the ball in his hand and the expectation this year is he becomes a name known not just within the roster, but around the Big Ten.

WR Tyler Morris

Vitals: 5-11, 185, junior.

With the top two receivers leaving from last year's team, there will need to be multiple pass catchers to pick up the slack. There's a wide expectation Morris will be among the leaders to do so.

His position coach Ron Bellamy recently called him the "alpha" in the room, and now it's simply about putting a full year together. After catching three balls for 25 yards as a freshman, Morris hauled in 13 passes for 197 yards and his first career touchdown — one of the biggest of the season on a 38-yard crossing route vs. Alabama.

"He comes in with the most experience," Bellamy said on a recent episode of "Inside The Trenches." "He's the oldest, and he's a quiet leader. He doesn't say anything, but when he does, his voice is so loud. And the guys understand that.

"T-Mo wants the best for everyone, just the way he attacks the game, attacks the meetings, attacks practice."

Now, Morris figures to slot in alongside Morgan as the two starters, and with his ability to run, short, intermediate and deep routes, expect new offensive coordinator Kirk Campbell to diagram plays to get Morris the ball.

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RB Kalel Mullings

Vitals: 6-2, 239, graduate student.

There are a lot of players on this roster who have legitimate gripes about being buried behind years of NFL talent; Mullings might take the cake.

He bounced between linebacker and running back, and on offense was behind Blake Corum, the most decorated back in program history, and Donovan Edwards, who returns for a senior season.

Mullings has run 50 times across his U-M career for 253 yards (5.1 yards per carry) and four touchdowns. Last season was his busiest as short-yardage specialist, running 36 times for 222 yards and one score, but he never got his turn on the goal line. Corum set the program's single-season (27) and all-time (58) rushing touchdown record.

Don't be surprised if Mullings scores double digit touchdowns this season, and makes his way onto NFL draft boards (not necessarily as a running back, but as an athlete).

QB Alex Orji

Vitals: 6-3, 236, junior.

2024 rides most on whomever wins the starting quarterback battle — and at this point, that appears to be Orji.

A dual-threat, Orji has sat for two years and only been used in blowouts or, by the end of last season, in specific run-oriented packages.

He proved effective as an athlete in those moments — he has run 21 times for 123 yards and three touchdowns and completed his lone passing attempt for five yards — but must put it all together to win the job.

There's a good argument to be made Orji using his legs could be the key to unlocking a new dimension of U-M's offense.

Gone are the days of U-M trotting out the nation's most reliable ball carrier in Corum, who ran behind the country's top offensive line, which of course protected the Wolverines' first top-10 drafted quarterback of the modern era.

Michigan is breaking in an entirely new line and signal caller, which may make finding a rhythm more difficult. That is, unless Orji is effective running the ball, which could not only open up the passing game and complement Donovan Edwards, but also help the team maintain its identity, with a twist.

“The mentality has been for whatever it has been the last however many years,” said offensive line coach Grant Newsome. “We’re a physical, downhill operation.”

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: These 10 Michigan football players appear poised for 2024 breakout