Name: Nathan Efobi
Height: 6’3″
Weight: 312 lbs.
High school: Cumming (GA) South Forsyth
Position: Offensive guard
Class: Redshirt sophomore
Jersey number: #55
Last year: I ranked Efobi #74 and said he would be a backup offensive guard (LINK). He played in six games.
TTB Rating: 68
Last year I mentioned that Efobi would have to battle with Connor Jones, Dominick Giudice, and Raheem Anderson II for a backup role on Michigan's offensive line. He battled, and . . . well, I can't say he won the battle.
But he may have won the war.
Giudice and Anderson have since transferred, and Connor Jones appears to be an afterthought in the pecking order. Meanwhile, Efobi is battling for a starting right guard spot in fall camp, and the general takeaway seems to be that he's the favorite to start.
Efobi is up to a listed 312 lbs. after being listed at 285 in last season's countdown, so he's put on a good amount of weight. I don't know what to expect from him other than the murmurs coming out of Schembechler Hall, but his starting role does seem to be the most tenuous. While there's also a battle at left tackle between Evan Link, Blake Frazier, and Andrew Babalola, there seems to be the belief that Link could start at right guard if he loses the left tackle battle, and there's also the presence of Ferris State transfer Lawrence Hattar, a Division II All-American. So I have Efobi as the lowest ranked starter in the countdown, but there's some positive buzz for him.
Prediction: Starting right guard
Efobi is the guy I expected to win the job, but agree there's options behind him. Here's to three solid years from him
ReplyDeleteGo Blue
Of all the guys that haven't been able to break through around here, Raheem Anderson is the surprise to me. He went from "moving people around" to the transfer portal in what felt like a blink of the eye to me. I had the guy for a three year starter and probable center.
ReplyDeleteAgree Roanman. And then to see him end up at a G5 school was another eyebrow raiser
DeleteNot that he's the be-all-end-all, but Sam Webb was extremely confident in Anderson. I remember the vibe that I got from him is that he thought Anderson might be a guy who would basically start for his entire career (after redshirting) and be captain-type material.
DeleteYep. weird one. Would love to get Sam's unfiltered take.
DeleteSidenote: How many "behind the scenes" stories does Sam have tucked away. I hope he's keeping notes and maybe one day he does a "back in the day" podcast where he can share some of the rumors he heard (but can't or doesn't want to report). Would be niche to Michigan fans, but great fun.
Yep I do hope he grabs hold of the starting spot. Junior season is just about the right time for him to be emerging.
ReplyDeleteBut...yeah. You do kind of wonder if he's a bit of a placeholder. The Schembechler Hall rumors haven't been too reliable during the early stages of the Sherrone era. The fact that Efobi wasn't really in the convo with so many guys struggling last year is a tough thing to overcome. Guys can make a leap, yes, but this would be a big one.
I come into it with an open mind (why not I guess) but I'm also inclined to think that the best case scenario here might be someone else emerging at LT and Link sliding inside to this spot. Efobi could still be an all conference starter and an NFL player but one would think he might be best served with a year of backup duty under his belt before emerging into a starting role. Michigan may not have that luxury though...may the best 5 win.