Michigan's NFL-Bound Star Colston Loveland Chooses Loyalty Over Draft Protection

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — In an era when elite college football prospects increasingly opt out of games to protect their NFL futures, Michigan tight end Colston Loveland is taking a different path, even as the storied program weathers an unusually difficult season.

Although the specter of career-altering injury looms large in Ann Arbor, where Jake Butt's cautionary tale still resonates (the former Wolverines tight plummeted from projected first-round status to a fifth-round selection in the 2017 NFL draft after tearing his ACL in the Capital One Orange Bowl), Loveland, who has amassed 42 receptions for 528 yards and four touchdowns this season, views the choice through a lens of institutional loyalty.

"I mean, we're gonna play, as long as we're healthy and feel good, we're gonna play... Michigan's done so much for us — all of our boys, our brothers, our family, our coaches, they're all still coaching and playing. So why wouldn't we play? We got goals to reach as a team and individually as well. So as long as I'm healthy, yeah, I'm playing."

The Wolverines (5-5) are in the midst of their most challenging season in recent memory, yet potential first-round draft picks like Colston Loveland, Will Johnson, Mason Graham, and Kenneth Grant remain committed to seeing it through. Their decision stands in stark contrast to a growing trend where top prospects withdraw from not just bowl games, but College Football Playoff appearances and even regular season contests.