Name: Cullen Christian
Height: 6'0"
Weight: 180 lbs.
High school: Penn Hills High School in Pittsburgh, PA
Position: Cornerback
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: N/A
Christian is one of the most important players in the incoming freshman class due to his a) position and b) skill. Michigan is dangerously thin at cornerback. Presumed starters Troy Woolfolk and J.T. Floyd have less than a full season of starts under their belts . . . combined. The other corners include cornerback-turned-wide-receiver-turned-cornerback James Rogers and redshirt freshman J.T. Turner. And I've never been a big fan of Floyd, so while I hope he does well, I'm also hoping that Christian can come in and challenge for playing time.
Christian is the most likely freshman corner to play this season, and his skills are plentiful (commitment post here). He has okay speed and good awareness. His tackling is suspect but will surely improve. One thing that has impressed me about the Rodriguez regime is the tackling in the secondary; Christian won't see the field if he's unwilling to hit. Regardless, J.T. Floyd reportedly took big strides in the spring, and I'm cautiously optimistic that Floyd will play well enough to stave off Christian, at least for a little while. Christian will be the better player in the long run, but he's only been on campus for a little over a month, whereas Floyd is a redshirt sophomore. Don't be surprised if Christian works his way into the lineup by late October, though.
Prediction for 2010: Backup cornerback, spot starter
Preliminary reviews on the freshman DBs via Rivals:
ReplyDeleteWoolfolk didn’t sound very optimistic that a rookie cornerback would make a big contribution this season, basing his opinion on less-than-stellar participation efforts from the freshmen, though there was one newcomer that did catch his eye.
“Marvin [Robinson] just has natural ball awareness,” Woolfolk said.