caden kolesar

9/9/2023 – Michigan 35, UNLV 7 – 2-0

I thought about copying and pasting last week's column and seeing if anyone noticed. It would have various references to ECU instead of UNLV, but acronyms are acronyms and maybe it would slide by. The accounting of JJ McCarthy's incompletions would be off by one and factually inaccurate, sure. I was banking on the nuclear glow coming off of McCarthy's arm obliterating all detail and leaving nothing but a crater of Buddhism (but fun!). I could have gotten away with it, I'm sure.

The pattern of this game was the pattern of the other game: big long Michigan drives on which some disappointing run plays are washed away in a torrent of third and medium conversions. JJ McCarthy's eyes glow white and he starts levitating. The opposition can do nothing on the interior and cannot pass protect and is only able to eke out a first down or two. Michigan irritatingly turns it over on downs due to over-reliance on a dive play. They lose the shutout when the backups to the backups get in. The final score doesn't reflect the statistical bombing that has just occurred.

Same, game, same column. It could work. I could scurry off and sip a mai tai or something. Wave to Dan Aykroyd, who is on a boat. Sort of thing.

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But no. No, I shall not do that. I shall stand and deliver because there is another thing that is more or less JJ McCarthy-level that should be addressed, and that is what is happening on the interior of Michigan's defensive line. You may have caught this from John Duerr on Twitter:

UNLV is going for it on 4th & 5.

Mason Graham breaks out his superman cape.

This is next level stuff from a 20 year old sophomore in college. pic.twitter.com/00hDOiDWwt

— Due# (@JDue51) September 10, 2023

What the cropping somewhat obscures is that right next to Mason Graham, Kris Jenkins was doing the exact same thing to the tackle. Jenkins is not a 20-year-old sophomore but he does play for Michigan at this moment, so we've got that going for us. Meanwhile Kenneth Grant is rumbling around stunts like he's not 340 pounds, then impacting people like he is.

[Bryan Fuller]

This is a long way away from converting Ben Mason and Jess Speight to DT and then playing them. The turnaround here is incredible; I remember a distinct sense of relief when Michigan was able to land George Rooks, a bonafide four-star defensive tackle. Rooks is now at Boston College because he would be the #6 DT on this roster, tops.

And there is no more important position on defense to have both depth and dudes. Georgia's recent run was built on talent everywhere, yes, but the most talent was at DT. When Michigan brought their Joe Moore award OL up against the Bulldogs they got shown what "generational talent" meant. There is nothing more dispiriting than watching the middle of your offensive line get shredded, and nothing more bloodlust-inducing than watching the middle of their offensive line get shredded.

To be sure paragraph: to be sure, Michigan has to sustain this level of production against better opposition. But even this objection is fairly weak when we've already seen what Kris Jenkins and Mason Graham looked like against the Big Ten. In Jenkins's case that was 20 pounds ago; in Graham's case he was a true freshman. It is not at all unreasonable to project the big gap ups they've demonstrated this year into the season-ending gauntlet. Grant is more speculative, but only just. And the big issue we projected, conditioning, isn't that relevant when you are DT option #3 on a defense that immediately boots teams off the field.

Michigan might have three first-round picks at DT out of no top-100 guys. That's a confluence of luck, development, and scouting that doesn't come together very often, and it's got Michigan pointed towards the biggest goals.

AWARDS

Known Friends and Trusted Agents Of The Week

the same [Barron]

you're the man now, dog

#1 JJ McCarthy. While I did not copy and paste last week's column I absolutely could have. 22/25 a week after 26/30 is crazy cuckoo banana nuts, as were a healthy subset of McCarthy's throws in this game. Drop eight? Don't care, eat this dig. Lift the coverage? Here is Donovan Edwards. Single coverage? Catch and run to Roman Wilson. Also, Jay Harbaugh took his head coaching opportunity to run the guy twice. Elite. LFG.

#2(T) Kris Jenkins, Mason Graham, and Kenneth Grant. Naturally. 14 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and 4.5 TFLs between the three in limited snaps. See above about the rest. 4 points each.

#3(T) Braiden McGregor and Derrick Moore. 2.5 TFLs and a sack between them, with both guys playing excellent run defense while providing organic pass rush.

Honorable mention: Roman Wilson and Cornelius Johnson both had good days catching the ball but got slid down here because of blocking issues. Tyler Morris emerged into that chain mover he was projected to be and had what's likely to be a +2 block. Jaylen Harrell cleaned up a couple of blitzes for sacks; Mike Barrett's blitzes created one of those and he was otherwise solid. Blake Corum did average 5.3 YPC despite getting a bunch of wedges.

KFaTAotW Standings.

(points: #1: 8, #2: 5, #3: 3, HMs one each. Ties result in somewhat arbitrary assignments.)

16: JJ McCarthy (#1 ECU, #1 UNLV)
6: Kenneth Grant (T3 ECU, T2 UNLV)
5: Mason Graham (HM ECU, T2 UNLV), Kris Jenkins (HM ECU, T2 UNLV), Roman Wilson (T2 ECU, HM UNLV), Cornelius Johnson (T2 ECU, HM UNLV)
2: Ernest Hausmann (T3 ECU), Mike Sainristil (T3 ECU), Josh Wallace (T3 ECU), Blake Corum (HM ECU, HM UNLV), Braiden McGregor(T3 UNLV), Derrick Moore (T3 UNLV)
1: Tommy Doman (HM ECU), Donovan Edwards (HM ECU), Tyler Morris (HM UNLV), Jaylen Harrell (HM UNLV), Mike Barrett (HM UNLV)

Who's Got It Better Than Us(?) Of The Week

McCarthy hits Wilson with a strike that turns into a 47-yard touchdown just as the broadcast is talking about the reason McCarthy has 47 on his hand.

Honorable mention: Derrick Moore gets a pure edge rush sack; McCarthy does just about anything; play above where Graham and Jenkins simultaneously teleport into the backfield; Myles Hinton obliterates a guy.

MARCUS HALL EPIC DOUBLE BIRD OF THE WEEK.

Fourth and two wedge is stuffed.

Honorable mention: McCarthy gets up a little gimpy after a QB draw ends with a helmet to his thigh; Colston Loveland jet sweep gets crushed as Johnson whiffs a block; Tommy Doman puts a kickoff out of bounds?

Previously: Podcast 15.0A, 15.0B, 15.0C. The Story. Quarterback. Running Back. Wide Receiver. Tight End. Interior OL. Defensive Interior. Edge. Linebacker. Cornerback. 

Depth Chart

Safety	Yr.	Also Safety	Yr.
Makari Paige	Jr.*	Rod Moore	Jr.
Quinten Johnson	Jr.*	Keon Sabb	Fr.*
Zeke Berry	Fr.*	Caden Kolesar	Sr.*

Michigan lost RJ Moten in the offseason on a post-spring transfer to Florida that was entirely performance/playing-time related but otherwise rolls over the same depth chart from last season. Moten began 2022 as the #2 safety and logged considerable regular season snaps but by the end of last season was virtually unplayable at safety, so there is complete continuity from the Fiesta Bowl division of snaps. Caden Kolesar is back healthy after playing in just five games and the blue chip true freshmen safeties from last year are no longer true freshmen (but are still blue chip). 

 

SAFETY: Pax Safetifica

RATING: 4.5 

[Patrick Barron]

Last August in the final season preview podcast, your author was asked to name his "dude" for the defense, the player you are irrationally excited about. I chose ROD MOORE, predicting a terrific season for him that would see Moore seamlessly help replace the departed Brad Hawkins and rise to be one of the best defensive players on the team. At the time it seemed a bit bold and the other panelists on said podcast were audibly startled. My logic was two-fold: Moore was getting immense fall camp hype describing the rising sophomore like a 5th year veteran and Moore had, as a 3* true freshman, started at safety and done perfectly fine against an Ohio State receiving group that has a legitimate claim to being the best of all time. That doesn't happen often and typically indicates a player destined for super-stardom. 

In a victory for my takes, my willingness to put the thumb on the scale for Rod Moore was right on the money: 

Game	Plus	Minus	Tot	Notes
Colorado St.	6	0	6	Pick was a gimme, made his presence felt in run game
Hawaii	3	0	3	True sophomore plays like a senior. Also tracking star
UConn	4.5	0.5	4	Not tested in coverage, shoots into running game
Maryland	5	-6	-1	Soph Gm 4 is a weird time to have your first freshman game
Iowa	5.5	4	1.5	Missed a funnel, missed some tackles, still a rocket
Indiana	4	4	0	Got the hang of screen-hunting eventually
PSU	1	6.5	-5.5	A second late on 3rd and longs, -3 for the Clifford run
MSU	11	0	11	OH DERE YOU ARE PETER PAN
Rutgers	0	1	-1	Was he blitzing? Otherwise not used
Nebraska	3.5	0	3.5	Star watch is back on
Illinois	5.5	5	0.5	They got him with that screen
OSU	10	5	5	Ha ha they didn't want you
Purdue	7.5	2	5.5	Very very close to the star.
TCU	5.5	2.5	3	Impact safety
TOTAL	71	36.5	34.5	You get a star, good sir

The chronology of Moore's season was a terrific start pushing him on the brink of star status, an October lull that may have been injury-related, followed by an end-of-season rampage beginning with a historic performance against MSU. He never did get a star on the diagram, but after his showing against TCU, he will begin the 2023 season with one. Well earned. 

[AFTER THE JUMP: some clips]

9/17/2022 – Michigan 59, UConn 0 – 3-0

After the opener someone complained in the comments that this bit above the fold was a utilitarian bit of text that didn't tell anyone how to feel. This is a completely fair criticism and also the work of an utter lunatic. It puts the emotional prose on the internet or it gets the hose again, sort of thing.

I don't know what emotion to communicate here in the aftermath of a third straight beatdown of Baby Seal U. It was generally pleasant to be out and about in the stadium on a not-too-hot day, watching helpless oompa-loompas grasp fruitlessly at our valiant warrior-poets. All conclusions, thoughts, feelings, and idle thoughts are polluted by the quality of opposition, with a few limited exceptions. It was… fine. Any attempt at a grand conclusion is a stretch.

But, lo: it is demanded. So I will stretch.

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If there's anything to take from this game going forward it's that we might be on the verge of Denard, But Also Brady. Michigan dumped more wide receiver screens on UConn than they did for the entirety of the Josh Gattis "speed in space" era if you ignore that one Penn State game, and one in particular jumped out. It this one from just before the half:

I have to assume this is a bust since there's no reaction from the boundary corner when Bell goes in motion and then the LB to the field just tears at the QB. But!

I've seen this mania before. That is eight guys in the box or environs, two guys worried about the quarterback, and acres of open space where the ball is actually going. We saw it when Denard Robinson was at full power.

Denard-esque quarterbacks had a moment induced by the introduction of the zone read in college football but have receded to the background as defenses adjusted. These days you need to have both halves if you're going to make it work, and if you have to sacrifice one it's the legs. Very few quarterbacks have enough of both to see real defenses set themselves on fire like this. One of them happens to play for the Baltimore Ravens, where Matt Weiss came from. Another one hung out with Jim Harbaugh at Stanford.

I am heartened to see the easy yards taken, and the easy yards become easier because the opposition is overreacting to something else you put on tape. Michigan is iterating, and it puts something else to deal with on the opposition's platter weekly. I already pushed all my chips in last week about JJ McCarthy being another level of quarterback than any we've seen under Jim Harbaugh. This week I am pushing a smaller stack in on a different table about Michigan's ability to take advantage of the surfeit of weapons they've assembled. We approached a 50/50 split between run and pass on first down in this game, and as we go along here confidence in McCarthy should only grow.

Now, onto opponents who are at least flopping around as you try to whack them between the eyes.

AWARDS

Known Friends and Trusted Agents Of The Week

guess who's back [Patrick Barron]

you're the man now, dog

#1 Ronnie Bell. Eight targets, seven receptions, and the eighth was almost the catch of the year (decade?). In addition to that was a key component of Michigan's blizzard of WR screens. Is clearly the #1 receiver, which says something after a year layoff and re-emergence into a crowded WR room.

#2 JJ McCarthy. 15/18, 214 yards, one chunk run, opened up space for WR screens. Even grading on a UConn curve that's worthy of landing here.

#3 Kris Jenkins. Had one blowout suffered but racked up five tackles as a DT in limited snaps. Got off blocks and showed some explosion.

Honorable mention: Blake Corum did score five touchdowns, but almost all were one yard and this isn't fantasy football. This is KFaTAotW! AJ Henning had four catches and one notable punt return but coulda shoulda done better on his carry. Caden Kolesar took a punt off someone's foot. Junior Colson was everywhere on defense. Gemon Green had a PBU and was ruthless on opposition screens.

KFaTAotW Standings.

(points: #1: 8, #2: 5, #3: 3, HMs one each. Ties result in somewhat arbitrary assignments.)

13: JJ McCarthy (#1 Hawaii, #2 UConn)
11: Blake Corum (#2 CSU, #2 Hawaii, HM UConn)
10: Mazi Smith (#1 CSU, T3 Hawaii), Ronnie Bell (HM CSU, HM Hawaii, #1 UConn)
4: Junior Colson (#3 CSU, HM UConn)
3: Kris Jenkins (#3 UConn)
2: Mike Morris (T3 Hawaii), Kris Jenkins (T3 Hawaii), Roman Wilson (HM CSU, HM Hawaii)
1: Braiden McGregor (HM CSU), Eyabi Anoma (HM CSU), Derrick Moore (HM CSU), Jaylen Harrell (HM CSU), Rod Moore (HM CSU), Makari Paige (HM Hawaii), Rayshaun Benny (HM Hawaii), Mason Graham (HM Hawaii), Cornelius Johnson (HM Hawaii), Donovan Edwards (HM Hawaii), AJ Henning (HM UConn), Gemon Green (HM UConn), Caden Kolesar (HM UConn).

Who's Got It Better Than Us(?) Of The Week

AJ Henning goes Houdini.

It was coming. Now it is here. I think he's going to get another one this year.

Honorable mention: Various Blake Corum touchdowns. Caden Kolesar returns a punt to sender. McCarthy throws a rope to Luke Schoonmaker on the move.

?MARCUS HALL EPIC DOUBLE BIRD OF THE WEEK.

JJ McCarthy is tackled for loss on third and three, preventing Michigan from scoring touchdowns on all drives.

Honorable mention: Blizzard of TV timeouts at the beginning of the fourth quarter. Review does not overturn the Ronnie Bell non-catch on grounds of radness. Blocking goes AWOL on consecutive run plays.