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| Mason Cole might not be blocking many edge rushers this season |
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Based on recent developments and leaks, I'll toss out some of the recent rumblings from practice, which you can feel free to dissect/discuss.
Quarterback: Different sources will say different things. I don't really have much to add to that, except it seems like Shane Morris is mentioned most often as looking the best.
Running back: Ty Isaac had questions about his toughness coming out of high school, but he has played through some things this spring; however, he has been suffering from hand and hamstring injuries, so he is limited. Derrick Green has also been injured, and Drake Johnson is coming off that ACL tear. The one constant has been De'Veon Smith, who has been earning praise for his vision and attitude. It's not really a secret that Smith can have a sullen disposition at times.
Fullback: With Sione Houma out due to injury, it's still Joe Kerridge, Brady Pallante, and Chase Winovich getting reps at this spot.
Hit the jump for the rest of the positions.
Wide receiver: The hype about Drake Harris persists. He's listed at 6'4", 174 lbs. but there are reports that say he's actually 185 now. That's still not very big, but either way, I think the only thing that will keep him off the field this fall is the nagging injuries. He might not start, but I think he will play. Otherwise, there has not been much buzz about the receivers.
Tight end: Jake Butt has been looking pretty darn good, and Ian Bunting has shown promise as a pass receiving tight end. Henry Poggi has flipped from defensive end to tight end in an attempt to boost the numbers. I have not heard many positive things about A.J. Williams, who is a senior and still struggles to block people. Khalid Hill is still out recovering from his own ACL injury.
Offensive line: The lineup at a recent practice was (left to right) Logan Tuley-Tillman, Erik Magnuson, Mason Cole, Kyle Kalis, and Ben Braden. Cole - who was the starting left tackle last year - projected to the interior offensive line coming out of high school, so while I expected him to be a guard in college, center still fits him, in my opinion. That is if he can handle snapping, the calls, etc. It hurt that fifth year senior Jack Miller called it quits, and it hurt even more when Graham Glasgow prolonged his idiocy streak and disobeyed his probation. I have not heard good things about Patrick Kugler or Blake Bars, who were #3 and #4 at center, respectively, coming into the spring.
Defensive line: It sounds as if Michigan is going to be running more of a 3-4 look this year. I have heard positive things about Chris Wormley at strongside end, and Greg Mattison says the nose tackles have stood out. With Poggi playing offense for now, that makes Michigan pretty thin on the defensive line. They have a lot of tackle types and not much in the way of ends, at least until a couple freshmen arrive this summer.
Linebacker: The four starting linebackers in the 3-4 look have reportedly been Mario Ojemudia (who has an undisclosed injury), Desmond Morgan, Joe Bolden, and James Ross. Royce Jenkins-Stone has been filling in for Ojemudia, and Lawrence Marshall has also made a positive impression. The backups on the inside are Ben Gedeon and Mike McCray. McCray and Allen Gant were both shown in video from yesterday wearing yellow non-contact jerseys, so their status is questionable.
Cornerback: The cornerback jobs are Jourdan Lewis's and Blake Countess's to lose. Nobody's challenging them, and the depth is thin, anyway. Channing Stribling is the next option, but I haven't heard any buzz about him really pushing for playing time.
Safety: Michigan is running a bunch of guys out there at safety. The buzz about Jabrill Peppers is non-stop; he's playing free safety and moving down into the slot in nickel situations. Jarrod Wilson is bound to start at strong safety. Dymonte Thomas has also been dealing with an injury, but he seemed to have been doing better and rotating in for nickel packages. Delano Hill also may have turned a corner, and he looks pretty good athletically in the limited film I've seen; that has always been the book on him, that he's a very good athlete who struggled to put it all together.
I'm really liking the idea of Mason Cole at Center. I would like it even better if we were hearing about David Dawson in the hunt for someone's job, I don't even care who.
ReplyDeletePositive Roany is hoping that "not hearing good things" is not the same thing as "hearing bad things" about Kugler and Bars. While Mason Cole's ascendency has been very impressive by any standard, Kugler is very young still, and we are going to need him to be good.
I wish Chris Fox could get healthy.
I like Cole at center because of his abilities, but it will be frustrating if we're counting on a true sophomore position-changer to be our starting center this season.
DeleteUnfortunately, "not hearing good things" means "hearing bad things." Of course, it's still early.
Harbaugh might want to get a grand transfer or two, I think. I know he is likely to get a grad transfer CB, which is going to be a good thing. I think one for C makes sense as well. I think Cole might be a better fit at guard.
DeletePoggi to TE, I wasn't expecting to read that.
ReplyDeleteWhen Wheatley gets here in the fall, I think they might have the bodies/numbers to move Poggi back to SDE or DT.
DeleteIt's not too surprising. Alabama wanted Poggi to play H-back for them. I guess the thing that's more surprising to me is that he isn't bigger by now. He looked smaller last year and this spring than he did in high school.
DeleteInteresting that most of the rumblings you are hearing have Shane looking the best. Most of the reports I have been reading have Malzone and Speight ahead of Morris.
ReplyDeleteFrom what I've heard, the best thing about Malzone is his leadership/confidence. He's supposedly having issues with mechanics, needs to get stronger, and a little slow in his decision making. Those things aren't necessarily surprising for an early enrollee freshman.
DeleteI read that Morris is losing out at a number of places, too, but I guess we won't really know until the spring game.
DeleteShane Morris winning this job outright is the single best thing that could possibly happen to this team.
ReplyDeleteI don't know that I agree with that, partly because I care more about whether the QB is good and not necessarily who it is.
DeleteI think the key to the team at this point is improving the offensive line. We should have all five starters returning, but instead we only have four (at most) with Glasgow's status pending. We need to get the running game going, which would make it easier for whichever QB earns the starting nod.
My presumption here is that from this group, an outright winner at QB will be good.
DeleteSpring is around the corner and I am being led out by my optimism, my heart is soaring like an eagle, although not quite as high as it was soaring before receiving the above words on Kugler and Bars.