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| Dan Samuelson (image via AnnArbor.com) |
Height: 6'5"
Weight: 289 lbs.
High school: Plymouth (IN) Plymouth
Position: Offensive guard
Class: Redshirt sophomore
Jersey number: #74
Last year: I ranked Samuelson #77 and said he would be a backup offensive guard. He did not see any game action.
Samuelson was 282 lbs. last season and did not work his way into the rotation. Michigan also didn't have many chances to play the backups, anyway. In practices and such, he has consistently been essentially the last lineman into the rotation. Whether it's a function of size, talent, or the combination of the two, significant playing time does not appear to be looming.
Michigan has several returning starters on the offensive line this year, and there are some backups that seem to be far ahead of Samuelson. He has seen some reps at tackle, too, but either way he is only likely to see the field in blowout situations or if there are several injuries.
Prediction: Backup offensive guard
I remember thunder saying re: Samuelson that he might never make the starting line-up. I think Hoke's staff took a chance at getting him from Nebraska, and this might never work out at this point.
ReplyDeleteStill can't figure out why Hoke signed this guy. Sure could use that scholarship right about now.
ReplyDeleteMichigan was badly in need of OL at the time and there's a chance he could have turned out better than he has. Always better to have that scholarship filled than save it for the future. And who knows, maybe it will be available for the 2016 class.
DeleteNot sure why this guy was such a big deal to Hoke and Co. either. But of course, they didn't do much more with really highly rated recruits, either.
ReplyDeleteIn general, we just have way too many underweight guys on our O-line, for reasons that are still a mystery.
I understand why they signed Dan and he could be a player that contributes as a RS JR or SR. If not, as long as he can be a depth player in case something unexpected happens with a starter, he will be a useful player. I think the bigger question regarding Dan is why Hoke stopped recruiting a few other higher priority targets, like Pocic, only to decide later that he wanted another OL prospect. Maybe it was a reaction to how poorly the OL was panning out, but still, he should have foreseen that prospect.
ReplyDeleteCameron Hunt (frosh starter at Oregon) wanted to commit late in that cycle, but they chose Danielson instead. That ticked me off because I really liked Hunt. Going after LTT so hard when he was an obvious project was another thing that annoyed me. I give credit to Hoke for addressing the OL deficiencies in numbers. But I have a lot more confidence in harbaugh and drevno picking winners there.
DeleteHoke didn't address it in numbers. Michigan under Carr was barely better than 50% successful at turning recruits (most 4 star ones or high 3 stars at worst) into quality starters. Rodriguez was far better at it, but he had a system where size wasn't as important - which mean he could get people up to speed faster than a pro-style system. So - Hoke really failed to address the problem in '11 or '12 and that's why you saw the collapse in '13 and '14 as Rodriguez's guys started filtering out.
DeleteI really appreciate this ranking. Without being a jerk and saying guys are "bad" you fairly evaluate them and provide us with insight you have from our sources. Helps me understand who may be transferring or not getting renewed 5th years. It is is really hard as fan to tell the difference between Dawson and Samuelson, since we never see either of them much in games.
ReplyDeleteI've found myself cheering for Samuelson because of some remarks he made just after committing (to the effect of "I realize that there are some highly ranked guys in this class at my position. I don't mind the competition and hope that we can someday be a great offensive line."). I wish him the best regardless of how his football career progresses.
ReplyDeleteLike everyone else, I don't know if Samuelson will amount to be a starting caliber player or even be an asset as a backup. BUT, the impression of Samuelson from the outset (as a recruit) was that he was a high character kid that would take several years to develop, even moreso than your typical lineman. Nothings really changed. The ETA was always his 4 year (RS JR) season and he's now a year away from that.
ReplyDeleteLets see if he can develop to push for playing time with the new coaching staff. Nobody is EXPECTING it, but that doesn't mean we have to start calling for a young player to leave the team or question the value of his scholarship when Michigan needs every OL option it can get. Samuelson could end up being valuable in an Elliot Mealer/Courtney Morgan kind of way. Lets let Harbaugh and Drevno do their thing.