Name: Josaiah Stewart
Height: 6’1″
Weight: 245 lbs.
High school: Everett (MA) Everett
Position: Defensive end
Class: Senior
Jersey number: #5
Last year: I ranked Stewart #23 and said he would be a backup defensive end with 25 tackles and 4 sacks (LINK). He made 38 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, 2 pass breakups, and 3 quarterback hurries.
TTB Rating: N/A
Michigan was very lucky to land Stewart in the transfer portal from Coastal Carolina last off-season. The Wolverines needed some juice at pass rusher, and they were able to find it. It's not often that players spurn a Michigan offer out of high school to become a Chanticleer, but Stewart was one who did it, so it makes sense that the Wolverines circled back to him after he had made a name for himself for Coastal. And it paid off with Stewart being a key piece of the national championship defense. After struggling a little bit against the run early in the season, he was able to steel himself, improved throughout the year, and was on the field for the game-sealing 4th down stop of Jalen Milroe in the Rose Bowl against Alabama.
This year Stewart will step into a bigger role now that Jaylen Harrell is playing for the Titans in the NFL. He has some quickness off the edge, but perhaps his best attribute is the power he possesses despite being undersized at just 6'1" and 245 pounds. His leverage advantage and toughness have been a pleasant surprise, and with another year of technique and strength work under his belt, I expect him to be even better in 2024 than he was in 2023.
Prediction: Starting outside linebacker; 40 tackles, 7 sacks
BEAST!
ReplyDeleteWe need to get more players like this in the portal from smaller schools. Scooping up stand out freshman and sophomore who hit a wall.
Fan fave, and for good reason. Won't need to blitz again bc our DL is elite and our LBs can move
ReplyDeleteYup, one of my faves, and one of many to outperform expectations in recent years. (Jaylen Harrell another)
ReplyDelete