2011 Countdown: #32 Quinton Washington

Quinton Washington

Name: Quinton Washington
Height: 6'4"
Weight: 315 lbs.
High school: Timberland High School in St. Stephen, SC
Position: Defensive tackle
Class: Redshirt sophomore
Jersey number: #76
Last year: I ranked Washington #61 and said he would be a backup guard.  He played a variety of positions - offensive line on special teams, goal line fullback, and offensive guard - before flipping to defensive tackle prior to the Penn State game.  He had 2 tackles.

Washington has been one of those guys that Michigan fans keep waiting to see blow up.  He was highly recruited out of high school and just kind of a mauling offensive lineman, not particularly athletic, but someone you wouldn't want to line up across from on 4th-and-inches.  Well, it just so happens that Michigan had a stockpile of guards just ahead of him named Stephen Schilling, Patrick Omameh, and Ricky Barnum, so the pathway to playing time was blocked.  When Michigan sorely needed capable bodies on the defensive line last season, the coaches decided to take a guy buried on the depth chart and see if they could turn him into a player.

The results were mixed.  I could tell early on that Washington understands leverage better than William Campbell (whom the coaches moved from DT to OG at the same time), but what Washington has in brute strength is somewhat negated by his lack of foot speed.  While Campbell is long-limbed and somewhat quick, Washington is kind of squat and immobile.  It's going to be difficult for opposing interior linemen to root out Washington, but as for penetrating into the backfield or chasing plays down, I just don't see him being able to do that.  Still, he'll be a valuable backup because the Wolverines lack big bodies and desperately need a nose tackle to spell starter Mike Martin.

Prediction: Backup nose tackle; 15 tackles