Previously: Last year's profiles. S Quinten Johnson, S Daxton Hill, CB DJ Turner II, CB Jalen Perry, LB Joey Velazquez, LB Anthony Solomon, LB Charles Thomas, DE David Ojabo, DE Gabe Newburg, DE Mike Morris, DT Chris Hinton, DT Mazi Smith, OL Jack Stewart.

Akron, OH – 6'3", 310
[Isaiah Hole]		24/7	4*, #179 overall #9 OG, #6 OH
		Rivals	4*, #199 overall #10 G, #5 OH
		ESPN	4*, #182 overall #5 G, #4 OH
		Composite	4*, #174 overall #10 OG, #5 OH
		Other Suitors	ND, OSU
		YMRMFSPA	Graham Glasgow
Previously On MGoBlog	Hello post from Ace. Future Blue Originals from Adam and Dave.
Notes	Deactivated twitter, was previously "@steamboat_70"
Film
Senior year:

Nolan Rumler is this kind of prospect: Steve Lorenz put in a crystal ball for Rumler to Michigan four years ago. Rumler had barely started his sophomore year of high school and it was obvious that 1) Michigan was going to offer this guy a scholarship to play football and 2) he was going to take it. A couple of years later the foregone conclusion was official, and two years after that here we are.

Rumler's rankings have to be taken in this context. He had a significant drop over the course of his recruitment, much of it the steady drip-drip-drip of guys getting discovered and shot up the list. Rumler, meanwhile, felt like a finished product from the drop. And it was the drop. Rumler has the maximum amount of possible high school experience: he started on down one of his freshman year and never came off the field for a team that won four straight state championships in Ohio Division II. He started 58(!) high school games. Watch him squat 500 pounds 4x times as a high school sophomore:

SQUAT DAY! @steamboat_70 with 500 lbs. X 4 reps! #BEASTMODE #CHAMPIONSHIPWORKETHIC pic.twitter.com/bCUsHOJd2z

— HOBAN STRENGTH (@Hoban_Strength) May 19, 2017

What.

He was a foregone conclusion from the beginning of his recruitment, off the board early, and emphatically not a tackle. All of that is ratings quicksand. And, fair enough. Rumler isn't coming off the draft board in the first round three years from now. But he's the kind of OL that makes people forget he's an OL, that most weaselly of positions to project. I feel like the guy watching a horror movie screaming "don't go in that shed full of meat hooks!" at Steve Lorenz:

"Rumler is maybe the most 'sure thing' prospect in Michigan's class, regardless of position."

Don't go in the shed!

"Highest floor in the class, no doubt. Offensive line projections can be kind of a crapshoot, but I think he's a multi-year starter."

Patrick Kugler's in the shed, Steve.

[After THE JUMP: reasons Steve went in the shed]

But, I mean… he's not wrong. 24/7 Ohio analyst Bill Greene wrote Rumler up what must be a record-for-this-post-format nine times, and says "I've probably cut up film on Nolan Rumler as much as any player" he's covered in 15 years doing this stuff. Greene is also in the shed:

… does not miss assignments, is technically sound, and plays the game with a nasty disposition….very strong, especially in his lower body, and plays with great leverage…. extremely physical, and plays with a lot of intensity. …highly intelligent … basically zero concerns

Also:

…the easiest prospect to evaluate in the state of Ohio, because he gives the same performance game after game … great strength, uses his hands well, has a great punch, and stays balanced. And he does this on every play. While not the most athletic lineman in the junior class in America, he might be the most consistent. He plays extremely hard and is ultra-aggressive.

Also:

…so advanced, it's hard to believe he still has another year of high school remaining. … technically sound, with great feet and great hands.

Greene continued on in six other posts that took turns highlighting his "physical and dominant" nature or the fact he's a "highly intelligent player" who could play center, etc. And then he further be-sheds himself by asserting "there's no bust factor with Nolan Rumler."

This take was more or less replicated by anyone who cared to offer one. Adam got in the weeds a little bit more than most:

…excellent run blocker with remarkably consistent hand placement and the best grip strength I’ve seen yet from a high schooler; if Rumler gets his hands on a defender, he gets one under a shoulder pad and doesn’t let go until he chooses. He’s quick off the snap but can get upright too quickly, though he doesn’t lose reps at this level because he’s so much stronger than everyone else. Rumler is very physical in the run game and finishes through the whistle.

His pass protection footwork showed some areas for improvement, particularly on his kick step. He did display lateral quickness …  road-grading guard. He has the strength, hand technique, and tenacity to excel as a Division I guard, and his size—6’4”, around 300 pounds—is ideal.

Nick Baumgardner also noticed that when Rumler latches on to you, you're gonna have a bad time:

… plays low to the ground … when he gets his hands inside a defender and uses natural leverage to his advantage, it's over. … it can often get embarrassing for the defender….not tall, he doesn't have very long arms, but his natural pad level gives him an edge. His feet are always in a power position, giving him good balance. …plenty of "he blocked the guy off the screen" clips … incredibly strong up top…   football savvy and he has sound technique. … Rumler isn't the athlete Ruiz [is] …  built like a bowling ball. He'll have to continue to work on his agility and hand quickness.

ESPN:

Thickly built with good height and bulk and displays very good strength. … when stays low can generate good push and displays some finishing nastiness. Can bury defenders … be tough to shake when he gets locked on. … limited range .... punishing and highly productive player.

Brandon Brown:

…built like a tank and plays like one … lethal run blocker because of his strong lower half and low center of gravity  … enough athleticism, quickness and agility to get out in space … mean streak … relentless to and through the whistle … a bit sawed off and has short arms

OSU Rivals guy Mark Givler called him an "extremely safe bet" and a "plug and play guy"; Allen Trieu noted he was a "tough, strong player" who "figures to be an extremely reliable presence"; Josh Helmholdt asserted he had "very few weaknesses for a young lineman" and can "post up, reset, pull, and get to the second level under control"; later he said he's got a "really high floor" but had problems evaluating him because he was playing left tackle.

So here we are again, considering a slam-dunk OL. To be fair to the slam-dunk OLs out there, both Ben Bredeson and Cesar Ruiz are palpable hits. Our nervousness may be an artifact of Michigan's chaotic, disastrous OL coaching for much of the last… jeez, eight years.

Rumler was at the UA game, where he again proved he was Nolan Rumler. John Garcia:

“…interior guy, a wide body, a grinder … once he anchors, he’s been one of the best at sustaining it. I think he could improve laterally, but he is a wide guy already. … nasty cat. … dudes didn’t want to go against him.”

Rivals did generate a weird take about how he kept getting beaten "despite being one of the smaller offensive linemen" (he weighed in at 320!) by DL who "crossed his face and beat him to the outside," which is bad in a camp setting but less bad when there is a person next to you because you are a guard. The other bits:

…stout  against inside rushes and did a good job getting to the second level on run plays.

So… he's a guard. He started for his team in the game itself and did well.

…earned the start at right guard for Team Flash and put together the best performance among the Michigan signees during the actual game.

Shrug. Garcia's take on the same situation was an interesting contrast:

“… wide base, he is physical, and we got some of the nasty … guys started to say, ‘alright, let me go wide (on Rumler). So, he went wider than we’ve seen in the last few days. Laterally I thought he looked better than the other days. We know the power is there, we know the anchor is strong, but I thought he moved better laterally, and that’s probably the area he needs to improve in most.”

I am dubious that getting beat wide in one on one drills in a camp setting means anything for a future guard. Rumler's relatively short arms, repeatedly referenced above, are relevant, as they'll make locking that grip in more difficult in situations where he's executing a pass set instead of firing off on a run play.

This caused Rivals to dump Rumler down into the same area the other two sites already ranked him.

Why Graham Glasgow? Interior clubber who relies on his smarts and technique to overcome the fact he isn't a Mason Cole mobile unit. Glasgow's NFL.com draft eval:

…tough blocker that shows enough mobility … Adequate at sustaining blocks long enough for runners to hit the holes. Aggressive at the point of attack and looks to grind defenders off their spot with leg drive and upper body strength. Has the base anchor to stone a bull ­rush … Marginal athlete who plays with heavy feet. Below average at moving his feet and adjusting his path to block moving targets on the second level. … strength at the point of attack will appeal to power running teams, but his inconsistent connection percentage on second level blocks may worry some teams.

Note that this is an NFL context—in college Glasgow's mobility never stood out as a major issue. Neither was it an obvious plus.

Other comparisons anyone reading this post might actually like are very old and grandiose. I'm not invoking Steve Hutchinson, but the last time Michigan had some grinders at G who the NFL actually liked that was the era. More recent and less salutary: Kyle Kalis is another grinder of a guard in the same genre. Kalis was really, really frustrating because he'd run past guys he obviously needed to block on inside zone even as an upperclassman. When he got it right he plowed some dudes.

Guru Reliability: Exacting. Probably the most-scouted Midwest OL in this class.

Variance: Sigh: very low. I'm going in the shed.

Ceiling: High. Doesn't have the same sort of upside as Ruiz, but should be on NFL draft boards in the mid rounds if he stays healthy.

General Excitement Level: Very high. We talk about OL being lottery picks; Rumler feels like two.

Projection: In another context Rumler might dodge the "is OL, redshirt" sentence that leads off most of these sections. It is great and good that he doesn't, with Michigan returning all three interior starters and in possession of at least one and maybe multiple functional backups. This is particularly relevant for a guy like Rumler who is likely to be an extremely useful college player in year five.

Rumler will be in the mix next year when Onwenu and Bredeson graduate. If Ruiz returns he'd have to beat out two of Chuck Filiaga, Joel Honigford, and Stephen Spanellis; if Ruiz goes he's only got to get by one of the aforementioned upperclassmen. I'd say it's 50/50 in the former case and a likelihood in the second.

If Michigan's going to be an IZ/OZ team under Gattis I'd bet on Rumler sticking at guard and a more mobile interior guy getting the center job.