Name: Roman Wilson
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 185 lbs.
High school: Honolulu (HI) St. Louis
Position: Wide receiver
Class: Junior
Jersey number: #14
Last year: I ranked Wilson #31 and said he would be a backup wide receiver (LINK). He caught 25 passes for 420 yards and 2 touchdowns, with 3 carries for 59 yards, in five starts.
TTB Rating: 78
Wilson had a bit of a breakout season in 2021. He was one of four receivers to tie for the team lead with 3 touchdown catches, and he had some huge plays. He caught 2 touchdowns in a tight win over Penn State, he led the team in receiving against Ohio State, and he caught a 75-yard touchdown pass from Donovan Edwards in the Big Ten Championship game. His reported 4.37 speed as a recruit started to show itself as a threat to other teams, and he established himself as a dangerous downfield threat.
I have heard some fans and analysts peg Wilson as their guess for Michigan's leading receiver in 2022, but I can't get there. Maybe he can do it in 2023, but Ronnie Bell returns from injury this year and Cornelius Johnson is the 6'3" prototype who led the squad in 2021. Wilson is a key component of the passing attack, as he can take the top off the defense. But there's only one ball and there are only so many receiving positions, so some tough decisions are going to need to be made by the coaches and the quarterback(s) on where the ball ends up going. I would expect Wilson to be Michigan's #3 wideout, but he'll have some big plays along the way.
Prediction: Part-time starting wide receiver; 30 catches for 450 yards and 4 touchdowns
Sorry Roman, but interesting news this morning about Eyabi Anoma coming in.
ReplyDeleteI'm guessing/hoping that our new president made a call over to admissions, since Anoma has seemingly been getting his butt kicked by "old algebra" after having been "dismissed" from Alabama football over team rules, attitude and academics. He's a Poggi kid, so maybe.
I'll take him.
Maybe they think he gets the Ojabo snaps.
Ok, back to Roman. Fast! Better yet, football fast.
Upon further review, maybe the Hutchinson snaps, as he's up to 6'6" 270 lb.
DeleteWhen I first saw the report, and that he'd been to 3 schools already, it seemed something bad was up. But i do belueve in second chances .Maybe he wants to straighten his life up
DeleteAgree with Thunder here. Wilson has all the potential to be our most dynamic ... a kid Indiana, Purdont or Minnesota would lean on ...
ReplyDeleteBut we've got so many other options. Another concern is Cade. He's taking the sure thing, not the big shot down field (unless WIIIDE open)
On Eyabi Anoma, I'll wait for Thunder's Wolverine post ... but yeah, reason for hope & concern at once
ReplyDeleteI have Wilson over Johnson. When I think prototype WR, I think first of speed - Wilson's is elite. Perhaps that's why he was better against the most important and challenging part of the schedule. The last 5 games (GA, IW, OSU, MD, PSU) saw Wilson produce 235 yards and 3 TDs to Johnson's 171 yards and 0 TDs.
ReplyDeleteI think Wilson is a younger and more talented player who has turned the corner. Once the passing game opened up with Cade getting more comfortable, Wilson emerged.
It's true that there are only so many balls to go around, but I think with Bell stepping back in as the go-to target, Wilson will step-up as the top big-play threat complement. Johnson is a quality college player, an all around receiver, and a proven senior. He has earned respect but the bar is going to be raised this year and he doesn't have any elite attributes that will get the NFL excited. He's listed as 39th in Walter Camp draft rankings and described as a "big bodied possession receiver".
Again, Johnson is a good player but Wilson has the elite speed that makes him the kind of player that OSU and Alabama recruit. I don't know if he'll be more productive than Johnson but if the Michigan offense is going to be elite I think they'll need to more often make use of Wilson's speed to generate big plays. If Johnson is still the top target on the year I doubt Michigan has reached that ceiling. Bell I think is fairly clearly the #1 but Wilson might be the most important WR on the team. Speed kills. Michigan needs to use it, and I think the close of last season shows they will try.
I think you are correct on Wilson's potential v what we have in Johnson, but two things leave Johnson ahead: Jim Harbaugh's offense uses the bigger, "possession" type more regularly; and we haven't seen much in terms of slants & crossers from Wilson that are seen of speedsters across the country
DeleteDoes Harbaugh's offense prefer bigger possession receivers? Not in 2020, nor in 2019, nor 2017. Johnson was the leader in a window between when Bell got hurt and Wilson emerged, while a shaky QB got his footing. Grant Perry led the team in receiving the same number of seasons as Nico Collins did. At Stanford his leading receivers where not especially big either (Doug Baldwin was 5'10) and he allowed Richard Sherman to move to CB anyway.
DeleteI don't think Harbaugh cares much if his receivers (and RBs for that matter) are short tall skinny or fat - but he does care if they are tough and reliable. Besides, if he wants big slow targets he's got a stable of TEs for that. If anything Harbaugh has dramatically increased recruiting for smaller slot receivers - more similar to the Rodriguez era than the Hoke or Carr days.
I'll agree that Wilson hasn't shown the full package of WR skills yet, but he was a sophomore last year and had a mid/late season breakout. Seems like the potential might be on the verge of being realized to me. We'l see though - there's no denying the Johnson has been ahead of Wilson the last 2 years and things could stay that way.
The key thing is who pairs best with Bell and All - who are locks IMO to be the top options.