Colston Loveland is one of Michigan’s best overall players this season and a key to the offensive attack. Unfortunately, he continues to trend toward missing The Game against Ohio State, according to reports.

ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported the latest Friday night, and he cited “increasing pessimism” that Loveland will be available on Saturday. He missed the second half against Northwestern and has been a limited participant in practice all week.

Michigan is already a massive underdog on the road in this year’s rivalry game, and the defense is expected to be shorthanded once again. Will Johnson is not expected to play vs. Ohio State with an injury that has kept the star cornerback sidelined since the Illinois game.

Missing Loveland would be just another blow to a bruised Wolverine team but possibly the biggest of all. Loveland leads the team with 582 receiving yards and 5 receiving touchdowns while no other player has reached 250 receiving yards this season.

Even with Loveland in the lineup, Michigan has averaged just 140.1 passing yards per game. Without Loveland available, it would put the Wolverines in an even bigger hole offensively against the top defensive unit in terms of total offense for the Buckeyes.