Former Michigan WR A.J. Henning commits to Northwestern
Michigan Wolverines football lost wide receiver A.J. Henning to the NCAA transfer portal after spring practices wrapped up, and he will stay in the Big Ten. Henning, a Chicago-area native who has two years of eligibility remaining, committed to Northwestern Thursday afternoon.
Under head man Pat Fitzgerald, Northwestern won the Big Ten West in 2020 but has won just four games in the two seasons since, including going 1-11 in 2022. The Wildcats ranked 128th nationally and last in the Big Ten last season with 13.8 points per game.
Henning was used sparingly on offense in 2022, mostly serving as a weapon on special teams. He returned 28 punts for 201 yards with 1 touchdown, which was 61 yards and came against UConn in September. His 7.2 yards per attempt ranked second in the Big Ten. He also brought back 11 of the Wolverines’ 20 kickoff returns, averaging 21.9 yards per try with a 31-yard long.
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The Michigan receiver totaled just 111 offensive snaps, which ranked 20th on the team and fifth among wide receivers. He carried 3 times for 9 yards and totaled 9 receptions for 60 yards. Fifty one of Henning’s 60 passing snaps came out of the slot.
The 5-foot-10, 185-pounder did a bit more on offense as a sophomore in 2021. He rushed 9 times for 162 yards and 2 touchdowns and caught 10 passes for 79 yards. All of those numbers are career highs.
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The highlight of Henning’s career, perhaps, was his 14-yard touchdown run against Ohio State in 2021, opening the scoring in the 42-27 beatdown at The Big House.
Henning joined the Michigan program in 2020, playing in all six games of the shortened campaign. He rushed 3 times for 15 yards and hauled in 6 grabs for 59 yards.
Henning was a four-star recruit in the 2020 class out of Frankfort (Ill.) Lincoln Way East. He was ranked the No. 98 overall player, No. 18 wide receiver and second-best player in Illinois, according to the On3 Industry Ranking.
Michigan has 10 scholarship wide receivers remaining on the roster. Graduate Cornelius Johnson and senior Roman Wilson are expected to lead the corps, but there are young players who could also emerge. Sophomore Tyler Morris, for one, began to get second-string slot receiver snaps at the end of last season, including in the Fiesta Bowl.
