Kristian Mateus (#70) blocks Jake Ryan a couple spring games ago
Name: Kristian Mateus Height: 6'7" Weight: 306 lbs. High school: Ada (MI) Forest Hills Central Position: Offensive tackle Class: Redshirt junior Jersey number: #70 Last year: I did not rank Mateus. He played in three games as a backup offensive tackle.
Mateus is one of those walk-on guys who has taken a few years to develop, and he finally seems to be rounding into serviceable form. After not seeing the field in 2010 or 2011, he played in three games as a redshirt sophomore, including games against Big Ten opponents Illinois and Iowa. While both of those games were blowouts, that's still a pretty decent achievement for a walk-on who's been sitting behind a likely first round pick (Taylor Lewan) for the past few years.
Lewan is still here, and so is right tackle Michael Schofield, so Mateus probably isn't in danger of competing for a starting job this fall. He is, however, a seasoned backup with good size. He probably does not have the athleticism, leverage, or strength to be a viable long-term option, but the backup tackles are still young and undersized, so Mateus might be able to help in a pinch.
Name: Jordan Paskorz Height: 6'3" Weight: 251 lbs. High school: Gibsonia (PA) Hampton Position: Tight end Class: Redshirt junior Jersey number: #94 Last year:I ranked Paskorz #75 and said he would be a bench player. He played in one game on special teams.
I swear on Bo Schembechler's grave that this is just a coincidence, but this is the third consecutive year I have ranked Paskorz at #75. Weird, eh? Anyway, Paskorz was recruited as an outside linebacker, but moved to tight end in spring of 2012. There he remains. After not sniffing the field for his first two years on campus, he finally got some special teams action against UMass last year . . . only to be relegated to the bench for the rest of the season.
After seeing Paskorz in spring games for the past couple years, I think it's fairly safe to say that he's just not a Michigan-caliber athlete. The Wolverines are low on tight ends with size now that Mike Kwiatkowski graduated, so Paskorz could earn a role as a third tight end in short yardage or possibly an injury replacement if A.J. Williams gets hurt. However, he's probably not a long-term solution at the position, and I would not be surprised if he departs after the 2013 season.
Prediction: Tiny bits of playing time as a backup tight end
Orlando (FL) Timber Creek running back Jacques Patrick
With school ending at various times around the country, visits won't really be limited to being on the weekends. These are a few players who have visited in the last couple days or will visit in the next week.
Kalen Ballage - RB - Peyton (CO) Falcon: I wrote up a scouting report on Ballage last week. UPDATE: Ballage canceled his visit due to the wildfires taking place in Colorado.
Dre Brown - RB - DeKalb (IL) DeKalb: Brown is a 5'11", 190 lb. prospect for 2015 with offers from Illinois and Northern Illinois. As a sophomore in 2012, he had 108 carries for 759 yards and 9 touchdowns. He also plays cornerback for his high school, which may be his position when he reaches college.
Jalen Brown - WR - Phoenix (AZ) Mountain Pointe: The 6'2", 170 lb. wideout has offers from Arizona, Arizona State, Michigan, Michigan State, Northwestern, Ohio State, Oregon, and numerous others. He was named Gatorade's Player of the Year in Arizona after a junior season in which he had 67 catches for 1,235 yards and 18 touchdowns, to go along with his 26 tackles, 5 interceptions (1 of which was returned for a touchdown), and 1 fumble recovery. Michigan is looking for a slot receiver to complement the two bigger receivers (Drake Harris, Maurice Ways) who are already committed.
Jashon Cornell - DE - St. Paul (MN) Cretin Derham Hall: Cornell is a 6'4", 230 lb. weakside end prospect with offers from Florida, Michigan, Notre Dame, Ohio State, USC, and lots of others. According to 247 Sports, he's a 4-star, the #2 outside linebacker, and the #18 overall prospect for 2015.
Noah Furbush - LB - Kenton (OH) Kenton: Furbush is a 6'4", 240 lb. prospect with offers from Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, Northwestern, Purdue, and Tennessee, among others. As a junior in 2012, he had 115 tackles and 1 forced fumble. He is unranked by ESPN, Rivals, and Scout, but he's a 3-star and the #52 OLB to 247 Sports. This is his second visit to Michigan. Personally, I think Furbush looks more like a future weakside end, but he's being recruited as a SAM linebacker.
Jamarco Jones - OG - Chicago (IL) De La Salle: Jones is a 6'5", 290 lb. prospect who has narrowed things down to Michigan, Michigan State, and Ohio State. According to 247's Composite ranking, he's a 4-star, the #4 offensive tackle, and the #49 overall player for 2014. Most projections have him going to Ohio State, but there are some rumblings that Michigan is making a late push. He has set an announcement date for June 27.
Jeff Jones - RB - Minneapolis (MN) Washburn: Jones is a 6'0", 194 lb. prospect with offers from Kentucky, Iowa, Iowa State, Michigan State, and Wisconsin, among others; he has been committed to Minnesota since March, but is considering other options. According to 247's Composite ranking, he's a 4-star, the #9 running back, and the #144 overall prospect. As a junior in 2012, he had 110 carries for 1,002 yards and 9 touchdowns.
Stanley Norman - WR - Culver City (CA) Culver City: Norman is a 5'11", 170 lb. prospect with offers from UCLA, Utah, and a few others. To 247 Sports he's a 4-star, the #15 wide receiver, and the #157 player overall for 2015.
Jacques Patrick - RB - Orlando (FL) Timber Creek: Patrick is a 6'1", 213 lb. back with offers from Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Miami, Michigan, Ohio State, and USC, along with many others. The class of 2015 prospect claims a 4.6 forty and had 231 carries for 2,032 yards and 29 touchdowns as a sophomore in 2012. Patrick is making a swing through the midwest to see Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, and Ohio State, and his cousin Terel Patrick coaches at Detroit (MI) King - which sent Dennis Norfleet to Michigan recently.
Frank Ragnow - OT - Chanhassen (MN) Chanhassen:Ragnow is a 6'6", 271 lb. prospect with offers from Arkansas, Cal, Florida State, Minnesota, Nebraska, and several others. According to 247's Composite ranking, he's a 3-star, the #41 offensive tackle, and the #527 overall player.
Reno Rosene - OT - Thousand Oaks (CA) Oaks Christian: Rosene is a 6'7", 310 lb. prospect for 2015 with an offer from Notre Dame. According to 247 Sports, he's a 4-star, the #14 OT, and the #164 player overall for his class.
Name: Erik Magnuson Height: 6'6" Weight: 286 lbs. High school: Carlsbad (CA) La Costa Canyon Position: Offensive tackle Class: Redshirt freshman Jersey number: #78 Last year:I ranked Magnuson #70 and said he would redshirt. He redshirted.
Magnuson came into last year with significant hype, with some even suggesting that he might play as a backup since the depth was so thin. Part of the reason that didn't happen was that the offensive line stayed pretty healthy, and another - perhaps more significant - part is that he wasn't very good in practice, according to reports. He was thin and young, and he was not a great run blocker coming out of high school; frustration on his end reportedly was evident.
Now he's a year older and more mature, and he's still in the same place on the depth chart. The two incumbent tackles (Taylor Lewan, Michael Schofield) return, and there are a couple adequate walk-ons still remaining (Erik Gunderson, Kristian Mateus). Furthermore, it seems a couple other players have surpassed Magnuson on the "Best Overall" chart, so if there are any injuries to tackles, I would expect to see someone like Ben Braden bump out to tackle before seeing Magnuson on the field. I still think he has considerable upside, but it might be another year or two before he really comes on.
Allen Gant looked a bit like a linebacker in high school
As you may have heard by now, redshirt freshman strong safety Allen Gant is moving to SAM linebacker. Gant was still playing safety in the spring game, so this is obviously a recent change.
Starter Jake Ryan was lost for at least half the season with an ACL injury he suffered in the spring. Michigan has already moved junior defensive end Brennen Beyer, who played SAM as a freshman in 2011, back to the position. Beyer started at the "new" position in the spring game over fifth year senior Cam Gordon. The only freshman slated to possibly play the SAM position is Mike McCray II, who may be a little small, too.
I have always thought Gant was a little too stiff to be a long-term answer at safety, so the move to linebacker makes a little bit of sense. However, he's currently listed at 6'2" and 203 lbs., so even if he adds 5-10 lbs. this summer, he'll still be too light to be a viable option to replace Ryan anytime this year. Steve Brown held down a SAM-like position in 2009 at about 208 lbs., but Brown was a better athlete and playing in a different scheme.
For reasons unbeknownst to me, Beyer looks like the interim starter with Gordon a close second. Here's how things appear to shape up until Jake Ryan returns:
SAM: Brennen Beyer (Jr.), Cameron Gordon (5th), Allen Gant (RS Fr.), Mike McCray II (Fr.), Mark Lawson (RS Fr.)
As for what this move does to the safety position, I don't think it changes much. Fifth year senior Thomas Gordon is the likely starter at strong safety this year, and the heir apparent at the position is freshman Dymonte Thomas, who will quite possibly start at slot corner this fall. I also thought that Gant's classmate Jeremy Clark looked like a better safety option, so Clark may be the next man in at SS this fall. Redshirt junior Josh Furman also may be a backup option there, and incoming freshman Delano Hill will likely end up as a safety before all is said and done (Hill was told he would get a shot to play corner first). Here's what the strong safety position looks like, more or less:
SS: Thomas Gordon (5th), Jeremy Clark (RS Fr.), Josh Furman (RS Jr.), Delano Hill (Fr.)
Name: Blake Bars Height: 6'5" Weight: 284 lbs. High school: Nashville (TN) Montgomery Bell Position: Offensive guard Class: Redshirt freshman Jersey number: #62 Last year:I ranked Bars #87 and said he would redshirt. He redshirted.
Bars came in last year as my choice for freshman most likely to redshirt, and he did not disappoint. Of course, all the offensive linemen redshirted, so it was a fairly easy choice. We didn't hear much buzz about Bars coming out of practices, and his play in the spring game was less than stellar. Then again, at 6'5" and in the mid-280's, he's nowhere near the weight he needs to be to compete in the Big Ten.
Bars appears to be a third-stringer at best, behind a couple of his classmates and some walk-ons. Unless there are departures or injuries between now and the season, he might not see any game action once again. Michigan should be able to run out a second line without using him, and he should hopefully be able to at least get into the 290's for the 2014 season.
