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Michigan's NFL draft decisions all seem to be in. Cornelius Johnson, Michael Barrett, and Kris Jenkins confirmed they're returning. So did Jim Harbaugh. Seems like a good day to check in on the state of the football roster. What is this? Folks who cover the USMNT drop lists like this projecting the 23 guys who end up on the next World Cup team. Brian appropriated it, dropped it for a few years, and then I stole it from him. Regarding the number of tickets: typically its’ 22 starters on offense and defense + 2 kickers + a Flex TE/Slot + nickel + extra DL. This year we have a K/P so I used the extra spot on a 6th OL. Previously: Spring 2022, Post-Bowl 2022. DEPARTURES IN ORDER OF SIGNIFICANCE 1. C Olu Oluwatimi (out of eligibility). Won Outland and Rimington Awards, centered Joe Moore-winning OL. 2. DE Mike Morris (NFL). Only DL who could get solid pass-rush. Great run defender. Badly hampered/missed after rolled ankle late vs Nebraska. 3. NT Mazi Smith (NFL). Stalwart nose, freakish athlete, ate doubles so his teammates could eat, had some contain issues. 4. WR Ronnie Bell (NFL). Leading WR, team leader, only so far down the list because M had lots behind him. 5. K Jake Moody (out of eligibility). One half of Pax Specialistica (2018-2022). Won Groza and came back for Year 5. 69/84 FGs, 148/148 on XPs. Kicked a 59-yarder in Fiesta that also broke the school record for career scoring. 6. P Brad Robbins (out of eligibility). Other half. Old-timey strongman mustache, perfect holder. Ludicrous hangtime until injury nerfed him. 7. CB DJ Turner (NFL) and 8. CB Gemon Green (NFL). Very good CBs. WRs they covered were rarely open, but caught more contesteds than they should have. 9. LT Ryan Hayes (NFL). Solid pass pro except against elites, great downfield agility, awesome down-blocker. 10. TE Luke Schoonmaker (NFL) and 11. TE Erick All (Iowa). Excellent blocky-catchies, would have been nice to keep one. 12. DE Eyabi Okie (Portal to ?) Vagabond former 5-star who leaves as he lived: lots of potential, doesn't know when it's time to stay in one place. 13. DE Taylor Upshaw (Colorado). Polar opposite of Okie: low-ranked build-a-DE/DT with a low ceiling. Responsible on edge, passing downs DT, no bend. 14. QB Cade McNamara (Iowa). B10-winning game manager who hated being called that. Fall practice hype said he'd taken next step, was tied with JJ. Tryout for his old job failed spectacularly, ankle injury shut him down. 15. WR Andrel Anthony (Oklahoma). Just 7 catches for 80 yards in 2022. We'll always have the 2021 MSU game. 16. TE Joel Honigford (out of eligibility). Blocking-only TE who specialized in scrum-pushing. 17-21. DT George Rooks (Boston College), TE Louis Hansen (UConn), DE Julius Welschof (?), LB Deuce Spurlock (Florida), QB Alan Bowman (OKSt). Playing time transfers. PACK YOUR BAGS You will see them on the field a lot, whether or not they’re technically getting the start. 1. RB Blake Corum (Jr/Sr) [Last time: 2] As foretold by Fred Jackson, the one true Mike Hart But Fast has come, is coached by Mike Hart. Heisman candidate until an injury against Illinois basically ended his season. Gave up some top-end speed to become a complete back, still very fast. Sees everything, sets up everything, breaks everything. 2. QB JJ McCarthy (Jr/Jr) [Last time: 12-tie] Zen-master 5-star emphatically defeated legacy starter Cade McNamara and had a sophomore year that bordered on stardom and frustrated only because his legs were not a big enough part of the offense. Now advances to the Henson 2000/Henne 2006 phase of 5-star quarterbackdom. 3. RB Donovan Edwards (Jr/Jr) [Last time: 9] Assumed 1B role, then became primary for OSU/B10 CG/Playoff despite having a broken hand for that portion of the season. Cut 75- and 85-yard swathes through the souls of OSU. Fixed vision/decision issues that previously annoyed in comparison to Corum. Receiving hampered by hand issue last year but is good enough to be a full-time WR, create McCaffreyian mismatches. 4. RG Zak Zinter (Jr/Sr) [Last time: 6] Mauler has been starting since he was a true freshman, arguably 2nd best player on last two Joe Moore Award-winning OLs. Great puller, great zone blocker, extremely good in pass pro, freakishly athletic for size (once reach-blocked a Georgia DT), good candidate to succeed Oluwatimi as Outland winner. 5. Nickel/CB Mike Sainristil (Sr/5th) [Last time: 19] Pictured: Play of the decade. Team captain who gave the in-game speech of the decade. Also a better nickel (to our grading) than Dax Hill was, though the role's a bit different. Could also play CB. Used to play slot receiver, then played like an All-American. More to go? Hard to say since he's limited by size. [After THE JUMP: Good players making jumps, very few unsettled spots.]
Bad NFL. This Instagram post says Green is declaring for the draft: View this post on Instagram A post shared by King green (@kvng.green__) Green came a very long way in five seasons at Michigan; staying with receivers was never a problem, but he had to work very hard on his ball skills when the pass arrived. His rare combination of size, speed, and athleticism should see him test well and land in a good spot. A lot of NFL teams run base Cover-1 switch defenses, and you'd be hard pressed to find someone better prepared for that than a Don Brown cornerback who spent the last two years running Michigan's complicated, Ravens-esque coverages. Michigan had hoped to get back one of its starting corners to pair with Will Johnson next year. Instead they're going to have to find one from what they have on campus or hit the portal. OPTION 1: ELEVATE A CORNERBACK The next guys on the depth chart last year were walk-on Keshaun Harris and Gemon's twin German, but neither's played any significant snaps. Jalen Perry, who was backup at nickel, has, but not since 2020 MSU. In younger options, Ja'Den McBurrows lost 2021 and 2022 to injury; the program has hinted he's another DJ Turner. RS freshmen Kody Jones and Myles Pollard, and true freshmen Jyaire Hill and Cam Calhoun will get their shots, though I need to warn you, not for the last time this offseason, that Michigan's complicated coverages were hard enough to pick up that it took most polished freshman of all time Will Johnson most of the season to get it down, and Hill played free safety in high school. OPTION 2: MOVE SAINRISTIL TO CB, ELEVATE A SAFETEY This would almost certainly mean drawing RJ Moten back into the lineup and moving Rod Moore to nickel (lifting Moten or Paige when they go 4-3 or 5-2). This is probably the default option. Moten was reportedly practicing with the linebackers, but that was after they moved Mullings to RB; Michigan's LB situation is about to get a lot more depth. They also redshirted three excellent safety prospects in Zeke Berry, Damani Dent, and Keon Sabb, all of whom seem more likely to challenge for playing time than the cornerback options I listed. OPTION 3: PORTAL! Plug & play portal options are slim since the first wave of stay/leave decisions has come and gone. Top CBs in the transfer market like Fentrell Cypress (UVa->FSU), Duce Chestnut (Cuse->LSU), Tony Grimes (UNC->A&M), Marquis Groves-Killebrew (A&M->L'ville), and Storm Duck (UNC->PSU) have already found homes. A few plausible names remaining: Iowa Jr/5th Terry Roberts. Backup CB who started a few games in 2022 but has lost a lot of time the last two years to injury. Originally from Erie; PSU was recruiting him but just got Duck. LSU freshman Jaelyn Davis-Robinson. Track star Brian Kelly was recruiting under the radar to Notre Dame and followed him to LSU, played in 3 games but preserved his redshirt. ECU Jr/Sr Juan Powell. Played safety & cornerback. Left his team at halftime of the bowl game. There is no content after the jump.
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Previously: Last year’s profiles. S Damani Dent, S/Nk Zeke Berry, S/HSP Keon Sabb, CB Myles Pollard, CB/Nk Kody Jones, CB Will Johnson, LB Deuce Spurlock, LB Jimmy Rolder, DE/LB Micah Pollard, DE Derrick Moore, DT Mason Graham, DT Kenneth Grant, DT Cam Goode, T Andrew Gentry, T/G Connor Jones, G Alessandro Lorenzetti, C Olu Oluwatimi, TE Marlin Klein, TE Colston Loveland, WR Amorion Walker, WR Tyler Morris, WR Darrius Clemons. Columbia, SC – 5'11"/190 [courtesy of SCISA Athletics] 247: 5'11/190 3.68* 3*, 87, NR overall #56 RB, #9 SC Rivals: 5'10/188 3.72* 3*, 5.6, NR overall #38 RB, #8 SC ESPN: 5'10/180 3.59* 3*, 77, #364 SE #60 RB, #11 SC On3: 5'10/180 3.62* 3*, 87, NR overall #45 RB, #13 SC Composite: 3.69* 3*, 0.8685, #798 ovr #63 RB, #9 SC Other Suitors Mizzou, SC, L'ville, Minn YMRMFSPA Karan Higdon Previously On MGoBlog Hello by me. Notes Full name Capers Stokes Jr. Twitter. Film: Senior Highlights: Hudl. Finding a guy to jump in this class when Blake Corum has at least another year of college and Donovan Edwards has at least two was going to be a challenge. But like linebacker, Michigan this cycle seemed to be constantly chasing other teams for their top targets despite adding Mike Hart to the staff in time to be part of that whole cycle. Hart had some of his own ideas, and one of them was this kid born to play for the South Carolina Gamecocks. He grew up around the program, went to high school with the coaches' kids, and then his own HC was hired as the new staff's TE coach. Never one to stop trying despite appearances, Hart wiggled into Stokes's recruitment in time to hold off a Mizzou commitment, then churned away until Stokes pledged to the Blue in June. That still meant surviving the new South Carolina staff's late charge to hold onto the hometowner. But it was too late. Not only did Stokes use last fall to Michigan-brain himself as deeply as my 15-year-old nephew. He also transformed himself into an entirely different recruit. When people talked about 15-year-old Stokes, it was his freshman track times and wondering aloud how fast the 40 will be at his next camp. By Early Signing Day, people were speaking excitedly about his one-cut acceleration, calling him a "bruiser" and praising his want-to. His signing press conference went viral. He's not 5'6". But this 3-star put up 1,000-yard seasons against low competition, flew under the radar despite a local school coming after him late, and—oh you get it, Mike Hart made him into Mike Hart. [After THE JUMP: One cut and go]
Previously: Last year’s profiles. S Damani Dent, S/Nk Zeke Berry, S/HSP Keon Sabb, CB Myles Pollard, CB/Nk Kody Jones, CB Will Johnson, LB Deuce Spurlock, LB Jimmy Rolder, DE/LB Micah Pollard, DE Derrick Moore, DT Mason Graham, DT Kenneth Grant, DT Cam Goode, T Andrew Gentry, T/G Connor Jones, G Alessandro Lorenzetti, C Olu Oluwatimi, TE Marlin Klein, TE Colston Loveland, WR Amorion Walker. Bolingbrook, Ill. – 6'0"/175 [via Instagram] 247: 6'0/175 4.42* 4*, 94, #104 overall #18 WR, #4 IL Rivals: 6'0/175 4.34* 4*, 5.9, #155 overall #25 WR, #5 IL ESPN: 6'0/170 4.27* 4*, 82, #19 MW, #180 ovr #24 WR, #5 IL On3: 6'0/175 3.99* 4*, 91, NR overall #45 WR, #9 IL Composite: 4.46* 4*, 0.9462, #133 ovr #22 WR, #4 IL Other Suitors ND, UF, Mizz, MN, PSU YMRMFSPA Ronnie Bell or Golden Tate or maybe Roy Roundtree Previously On MGoBlog Hello by me. Notes AA Bowl (invite). IG. Twitter. Early Enrollee. Film: 7v7 and Junior Highlights: Hudl. 7v7. One of the things we track with recruiting, especially with players who get ranked early, is where the rankings move from there. There's always gravity downward as the cycle reveals more guys worthy of high rankings, but previous rankings tend to be sticky. That means going up usually means they didn't go up far enough, and vice versa, while stagnant slippage is taken to mean no change unless the total slip takes a guy from top-50 to well out of it. When that happens, either they overrated a guy early and don't want to say so, or else the guy got injured, and therefore had no chance to defend his rank. Thus was the case of Tyler Morris, en route to five-stardom, or near enough, through a sophomore campaign of 1700 total yards of offense and 24 touchdowns plus a full winter of camp obliteration. Then his 7v7 and summer camp tours were canceled by the pandemic. His junior season was delayed until the following spring, by which point his quarterback, JJ McCarthy, had bolted to IMG. That suppressed Nazareth's passing attack and forced them to use Morris in other ways, in addition to safety. It was on defense, at the very end of his Spring 2021 campaign, that Morris tore his ACL, canceling another summer of camps and his entire senior season. The rankers didn't wait around, but nor did they forget. Morris was the 2nd-highest recruit in Michigan's class when he committed, and remained so until Moore, Sabb, Clemons, and Berry joined near Singing Day. But that wasn't the expectation. We were bracing for a charge up the ranks, followed by a clash between academics not seen since Newton vs. Leibniz. Except both Michigan and Notre Dame knew they needed to wrap this up before an OSU or A&M or Bama decided they couldn't leave a top-25 talent to some cathelopistemiad that's going to waste good football hours on scholarly pursuits. Instead, Morris's last year in high school would be spent healing, rehabbing, and watching the finds from lost seasons slip ahead of him. On3 moved him *up,* but only to still come out well below the other three. What should have been a triumphant announcement, perhaps coming down to the wire, literally limped in on crutches. That's unfortunate because if you could design the ideal Harbaugh wide receiver recruit from scratch, you'd probably get Tyler Morris. And Michigan certainly acted like it the entire cycle, from Gattis seizing on JJ McCarthy's favorite target with as much zeal as the rest of the program seized on McCarthy himself, to acting like A&M might be lurking around the corner any minute right up to Signing Day. As far as they were concerned, what Devin Bush Jr. was to "solving your problems with aggression," Morris was to Gattis's plans for #SpeedinSpace. Gattis is gone, but his philosophy remains deeply embedded in the offense. While fans like me still covet the long-limbed jump-ballers who wear #1 or #4, the program has spent the last three seasons gearing its passing game around athletes who will lose any cornerback who doesn't have inside help, and make fools out of the help. The trick to these guys, who tend to lead their teams in targets (but not TDs) is the hardest thing to scout, a natural understanding of routes and how to take advantage of space inside the coverage bubble. And yet all we have since 2019 is some 7v7 tape and a condensed junior year in the spring of 2021, half of that on defense. So, [After THE JUMP: Claims that cannot be tested, assertions immune to disproof are veridically worthless, whatever value the may have in inspiring us or in exciting our sense of wonder.]
Previously: Last year’s profiles. S Damani Dent, S/Nk Zeke Berry, S/HSP Keon Sabb, CB Myles Pollard, CB/Nk Kody Jones, CB Will Johnson, LB Deuce Spurlock, LB Jimmy Rolder, DE/LB Micah Pollard, DE Derrick Moore, DT Mason Graham, DT Kenneth Grant, DT Cam Goode, T Andrew Gentry, T/G Connor Jones, G Alessandro Lorenzetti, C Olu Oluwatimi, TE Marlin Klein, TE Colston Loveland, WR Amorion Walker, WR Tyler Morris. Portland, Ore. – 6'3"/205 [Patrick Barron] 247: 6'3/205 4.27* 4*, 93, #182 overall #32 WR, #1 OR Rivals: 6'4/210 4.47* 4*, 5.9, #93 overall #17 WR, #1 OR ESPN: 6'3/195 4.34* 4*, 82, #22 West, #182 ovr #25 WR, #1 OR On3: 6'3/205 4.68* 4*, 96, #76 overall #13 WR, #1 OR Composite: 4.42* 4*, 0.9422, #144 ovr #24 WR, #1 OR Other Suitors Aub, YTM, Oregon, PSU YMRMFSPA Braylon Edwards Previously On MGoBlog Hello by Alex Drain. Notes AA Bowl. WR MVP of NPCIS. Film: Senior Highlights: Hudl. Half of Jr year in Utah. The recruiting momentum of beating Ohio State, winning the Big Ten, and making the playoffs could not have been halted better. One morning we all woke to find Harbaugh so interested in the NFL he was willing to ride with Kirk Cousins over Cade and JJ McCarthy. Josh Gattis was so stunned he slipped out the side door to Coral Gables. Harbaugh returned, the receiver room got future Michigan head coach Ron Bellamy in consolation, and they gave the fans a televised, competitive spring game. But a lot of Michigan fans were, and remain livid about the whole affair. "What," they asked, "do we get for 2021 now?" The question is a fair one, but there is an answer. Unsubtle as only Jim Harbaugh trying to be subtle can be, Michigan put a circle on their answer, then spent the whole spring game trying to shoving it in your face. Not everyone was buying it, and not everyone was aware of the plan—looking at you, DJ Turner and Jalen Perry. Desperate to get the message across, Harbaugh dispatched his best hype man and the shortest, slowest, whitest cornerback on the roster, then took a selfie. This. This was the reward. [After THE JUMP: I go there.]
Previously: Last year’s profiles. S Damani Dent, S/Nk Zeke Berry, S/HSP Keon Sabb, CB Myles Pollard, CB/Nk Kody Jones, CB Will Johnson, LB Deuce Spurlock, LB Jimmy Rolder, DE/LB Micah Pollard, DE Derrick Moore, DT Mason Graham, DT Kenneth Grant, DT Cam Goode, T Andrew Gentry, T/G Connor Jones, G Alessandro Lorenzetti, C Olu Oluwatimi, TE Marlin Klein, TE Colston Loveland, WR Amorion Walker. Bolingbrook, Ill. – 6'0"/175 [via Instagram] 247: 6'0/175 4.42* 4*, 94, #104 overall #18 WR, #4 IL Rivals: 6'0/175 4.34* 4*, 5.9, #155 overall #25 WR, #5 IL ESPN: 6'0/170 4.27* 4*, 82, #19 MW, #180 ovr #24 WR, #5 IL On3: 6'0/175 3.99* 4*, 91, NR overall #45 WR, #9 IL Composite: 4.46* 4*, 0.9462, #133 ovr #22 WR, #4 IL Other Suitors ND, UF, Mizz, MN, PSU YMRMFSPA Ronnie Bell or Golden Tate or maybe Roy Roundtree Previously On MGoBlog Hello by me. Notes AA Bowl (invite). IG. Twitter. Early Enrollee. Film: 7v7 and Junior Highlights: Hudl. 7v7. One of the things we track with recruiting, especially with players who get ranked early, is where the rankings move from there. There's always gravity downward as the cycle reveals more guys worthy of high rankings, but previous rankings tend to be sticky. That means going up usually means they didn't go up far enough, and vice versa, while stagnant slippage is taken to mean no change unless the total slip takes a guy from top-50 to well out of it. When that happens, either they overrated a guy early and don't want to say so, or else the guy got injured, and therefore had no chance to defend his rank. Thus was the case of Tyler Morris, en route to five-stardom, or near enough, through a sophomore campaign of 1700 total yards of offense and 24 touchdowns plus a full winter of camp obliteration. Then his 7v7 and summer camp tours were canceled by the pandemic. His junior season was delayed until the following spring, by which point his quarterback, JJ McCarthy, had bolted to IMG. That suppressed Nazareth's passing attack and forced them to use Morris in other ways, in addition to safety. It was on defense, at the very end of his Spring 2021 campaign, that Morris tore his ACL, canceling another summer of camps and his entire senior season. The rankers didn't wait around, but nor did they forget. Morris was the 2nd-highest recruit in Michigan's class when he committed, and remained so until Moore, Sabb, Clemons, and Berry joined near Singing Day. But that wasn't the expectation. We were bracing for a charge up the ranks, followed by a clash between academics not seen since Newton vs. Leibniz. Except both Michigan and Notre Dame knew they needed to wrap this up before an OSU or A&M or Bama decided they couldn't leave a top-25 talent to some cathelopistemiad that's going to waste good football hours on scholarly pursuits. Instead, Morris's last year in high school would be spent healing, rehabbing, and watching the finds from lost seasons slip ahead of him. On3 moved him *up,* but only to still come out well below the other three. What should have been a triumphant announcement, perhaps coming down to the wire, literally limped in on crutches. That's unfortunate because if you could design the ideal Harbaugh wide receiver recruit from scratch, you'd probably get Tyler Morris. And Michigan certainly acted like it the entire cycle, from Gattis seizing on JJ McCarthy's favorite target with as much zeal as the rest of the program seized on McCarthy himself, to acting like A&M might be lurking around the corner any minute right up to Signing Day. As far as they were concerned, what Devin Bush Jr. was to "solving your problems with aggression," Morris was to Gattis's plans for #SpeedinSpace. Gattis is gone, but his philosophy remains deeply embedded in the offense. While fans like me still covet the long-limbed jump-ballers who wear #1 or #4, the program has spent the last three seasons gearing its passing game around athletes who will lose any cornerback who doesn't have inside help, and make fools out of the help. The trick to these guys, who tend to lead their teams in targets (but not TDs) is the hardest thing to scout, a natural understanding of routes and how to take advantage of space inside the coverage bubble. And yet all we have since 2019 is some 7v7 tape and a condensed junior year in the spring of 2021, half of that on defense. So, [After THE JUMP: Claims that cannot be tested, assertions immune to disproof are veridically worthless, whatever value the may have in inspiring us or in exciting our sense of wonder.]