Name: Tyler Morris
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 185 lbs.
High school: La Grange Park (IL) Nazareth Academy
Position: Wide receiver
Class: Junior
Jersey number: #8
Last year: I ranked Morris #29 and said he would be a part-time starting wide receiver with 20 catches for 240 yards and 2 touchdowns (LINK). He caught 13 passes for 197 yards and 1 touchdown, and he returned 9 punts for 88 yards.
TTB Rating: 83
Morris was often on the field in 2023 but a lot of Michigan fans probably didn't notice him much. Would you believe he only played 26 fewer snaps (344) than Donovan Edwards (370)? Morris was #14 on the team in offensive snaps, ahead of Myles Hinton, Max Bredeson, and Semaj Morgan. But with Roman Wilson, Cornelius Johnson, and Colston Loveland eating up passing targets, Morris just kind of blended into the background.
And then in the Rose Bowl against Alabama, it all changed. With the game tied 7-7 in the second quarter, Morris got matched up on a linebacker in man coverage, ran a crossing route, caught a J.J. McCarthy pass, and housed it from 38 yards out to take a 13-7 lead. In a game that was tied 20-20 at the end of regulation, that was a huge play. A couple steps slower or a drop there, and maybe Michigan's storybook season ends differently.
Michigan’s Tyler Morris hit 20.8 mph on this 38-yard touchdown. #ReelSpeed pic.twitter.com/a2I1ezXcx6
— Reel Analytics (@RAanalytics) January 1, 2024
Morris could very well be Michigan's #1 receiver in 2024, and reports out of practice have been positive. But this is still a player who caught just 13 balls and didn't score a touchdown until the post-season. We have yet to see how he handles more targets or whether he can shake loose from opposing teams' #1 corners, if they choose to defend him in that way. A lot of comparisons have been made to Ronnie Bell, and it would be a good thing if he can approximate Bell.
Prediction: Starting wide receiver; 40 catches for 560 yards and 5 touchdowns
Very unnoticeable last year. The Rose Bowl TD was huge, and he moved FAST, but it's one play ... WR1 is a tall task, especially for a new QB
ReplyDeleteHow Morris (or any WR) progresses is a big part of our offense & team this year. I just don't think "Harball" is Harball without Jim MF Harbaugh. Campbell will want to pass
Thank you Thunder for pointing out the snapcounts! For casual fans he may have been invisible because he wasn't getting the ball a ton but the coaches played him a ton and he even started 3 games. He was out there a lot all season long.
ReplyDeleteHe was the WR3 and that's not too shabby considering both guys ahead of him were drafted and he was a legitimately young player. He's 20 years old now and he was 19 a year ago -- the same age as many freshman these days in the age of holding kids back for a year to gain an advantage or adding an extra/gap year of prep school to try to get college paid for. So, I think there's a lot of upside left for Morris as he enters his junior year at the same point that many others might be red-shirt freshman.
WR3 isn't the biggest job in the world in the TE-heavy Harbaugh offense, but Morris got the spotlight in the Rose Bowl. Awesome for him and for us and I just see it as obvious that he would ascend to the WR1 spot in this year. Even if Morgan saw his role surge in the second half of last year -- Morris is the more polished receiver, even if Morgan has more juice as a playmaker.
I'm inclined to take the over on Thunder's guess at production. I think Morris will be an upgrade relative to Cornelius Johnson as the steady hand while Morgan will be a downgrade relative to the speedy Roman Wilson. But all of that depends on the offense.
If we can be a top 25 offense again, I think Morris is WR1 and putting up well north of 600 yards and 40 catches. Even with Loveland being the top receiving threat. But if we struggle with inconsistent QBs and an OL that doesn't gel together....then our WR1 probably won't put up very impressive stats.