USC back transferring to UM

Sophomore Ty Isaac had 236 yards, 2 TDs for Trojans in ’13

6/6/2014

ANN ARBOR — The University of Michigan football program will add to its stable of young running backs.

Ty Isaac announced Thursday that he will enroll at Michigan, where he will join the football team.

The transfer from Southern California announced his decision on his Twitter account; USC released the 6-foot-3, 225-pound tailback from his scholarship in May.

Isaac, a former five-star recruit from Joliet, Ill., ran for 236 yards and two touchdowns on 40 carries for the Trojans in 2013, his first season of college football.

He sought a transfer this spring to be closer to his family; reports have stated his mother is recovering from surgery.

Isaac is not immediately eligible to play at Michigan and would have to sit out a year, but told Rivals.com this week that he will seek a hardship waiver from the NCAA to play immediately.

The NCAA typically grants hardship waivers if a player transfers to a school within 100 miles of his hometown. Michigan’s Ann Arbor campus is more than 250 miles east of Joliet, Ill.

If the NCAA grants Isaac’s request for a hardship waiver, he would be eligible to play this season.

He would join Derrick Green and De’Veon Smith in UM’s offensive backfield, providing a boost in experience following the graduation of Fitzgerald Toussaint.

Green had 270 yards and two touchdowns on 83 carries last season, while Smith had 117 yards on 26 carries last season.

Both will be sophomores this season.

Michigan opens the 2015 season Aug. 30 against Appalachian State at Michigan Stadium.

Contact Rachel Lenzi at: rlenzi@theblade.com, 419-724-6510, or on Twitter @RLenziBlade.