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| Jared Wangler |
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 218 lbs.
High school: Warren (MI) De La Salle
Position: Linebacker
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: N/A
Last year: Wangler was a senior in high school.
Final TTB Rating: 59
Wangler committed to Michigan in August of 2013 after originally committing to the Penn State Nittany Lions. He was a relatively under-the-radar prospect until Penn State and LSU came along to offer him, and Michigan finally extended an offer to the Wolverine legacy (his father John is a former starting quarterback) after some other options at linebacker picked other schools. He sat on the offer for a couple days before flipping to the maize and blue. The youngest Wangler earned an invitation to the Under Armour All-American Game, though he missed the game itself due to a shoulder injury.
You can see above that I pegged Wangler as a 59 on my scale, which means I see him as a backup option. I think Michigan has recruited a lot of talent in recent classes, and Wangler is not quite up to par, in my opinion. However, you may note that in his commitment post, I wrote: "For him to fit at SAM, I think he would have to play in a 4-3 Over defense, where he could cover the tight end and play in the C gap." News came out this spring that Michigan plans to run more of an Over defense this fall, so perhaps that fits right in with where they picture Wangler helping. Regardless, I think Michigan is pretty well stocked with experienced linebackers for this fall (Cameron Gordon was the only loss to graduation), so Wangler can probably take at least a year to bulk up and mature as a player.
Prediction: Redshirt
Having stood next to him, I can say for a fact that 6'1 was an exaggeration, probably by a couple inches - not that it really matters for him to be successful at the college level.
ReplyDeleteWangler's a hard guy to form a solid opinion on. On the one hand he was a known commodity, is undersized, lowly ranked and lightly recruited. On the other hand, he has good bloodlines, LSU and PSU were interested, got an all-star invite, and he potentially fits as a hybrid linebacker that can play in space and cover the pass. I don't know what to think about him, but am intrigued. I agree he's pretty unlikely to contribute this season at linebacker, but he could play a role on special teams. Michigan may not want to use a scholarship-year developing a guy whose ceiling probably isn't as high as some other recruits.
I look forward to watching his career unfold. It's hard to resist hoping for another Kovacs-type.
Beefy Kovacs would be a prize indeed.
DeleteLets hope he takes more than a year to see the field, if not, that means we have some 'issues' with the more talented LB recruits that came before him (RJS comes to mind). My wish is he does not see the field until he is in his 4th year or a 5th year senior.
ReplyDeleteYou never know. These coaches like to rotate linebackers, and both Morgan and Ryan will be gone after this season. We can probably assume that guys like Gedeon and Bolden will step up into those roles, but the question becomes, who takes their spot at #2 on the depth chart? Wangler could be one of those guys, depending on how the other players progress.
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