27 tickets

27 Tickets To Team 134: Signing Day Edition Comment Count

Brian

What is this? Folks who cover the USMNT drop lists like this projecting the 23 guys who end up on the next World Cup team. I have appropriated it. Regarding the number of tickets: 22 starters on offense and defense + 2 kickers + nickelback + FLEX TE  + fullback.

THIS IS THE Signing Day Update. Certain recruits are added, NFL departures (or returns) are accounted for, and bowl performances are taken into account. Next update is after spring practice.

PACK YOUR BAGS

ncf_u_lewan01jr_300[1] 1. T Taylor Lewan, Sr* [Last time: NR]

Jake Long wannabe took second-to-last step to full clone by forgoing sure first-round status in this year's draft to return for senior year. Upside: shut off Clowney in bowl game, gives Michigan second returning starter, was All-American last year. Downside: has reportedly sold his twosie.

bilde[1]2. OLB Jake Ryan, Jr* [Last time: 1]

The Barbarian is Michigan's best defensive player and a lock for preseason first-team All Big Ten. Can change direction in a flash; consistently shocks opponents with his explosive acceleration.

hi-res-154849918_display_image[1]3. T Michael Schofield, Sr* [Last time: 2]

Schofield came into his own midway through last year. Getting some NFL draft buzz now; shut down a talented SoCar bookend in the bowl. Could move to guard if necessary; idealls remains outside.

Brendan-Gibbons_photo_medium[1]4. K Brendan Gibbons, Sr* [Last time: 4]

Groza semifinalist and hair enthusiast has turned his career around after early struggles. Hit 52-yarder last year en route to record accuracy for Michigan kicker. Likes brunettes and Keystone Light.

funchess[1]5. FLEX Devin Funchess, So [Last time: 5]

Should break out for real after a year to bulk up and work on his routes. Frequently targeted a year ago without effect, will need some outside threats to develop to truly annihilate defenses.

snoop-pearson[1]6. WR Jeremy Gallon, Sr* [Last time: 6]

Former Rodriguez slot-dot is Michigan's leading receiver and should be again. Still a somewhat awkward fit as an outside receiver; a threat on end-arounds and screens. Punt return job may be up for grabs.

bilde[1]7. QB Devin Gardner, Jr.* [Last time: 12]

Late-season rankings slide of Shane Morris and solid bowl performance move Gardner from very likely to be Michigan's starter to a holy lock. No true freshman is supplanting him.

Thomas Gordon abs[1] 8. S Thomas Gordon, Jr* [Last time: 7]

Safety attached to notorious six-pack has been a steady performer and a major contributor to Michigan's extreme lack of big plays allowed in the Mattison era.

quinton_display_image[1]9. NT Quinton Washington, Sr* [Last time: 8]

Season surprise emerged into upper-echelon Big Ten nose tackle out of nowhere. Has the physical ability to be an NFL player. Requires your head, sorry, nothing personal.

raymon-taylor-pick-thumb-646x429-122643[1]10. CB Raymon Taylor, Jr [Last time: 9]

Filled in admirably for Countess. Avery won't pass him, and it's doubtful any freshman will. Still needs to tighten up his zone coverage but has excellent size and athleticism for the position. Likely to move to boundary corner.

UNLESS SOMETHING STRANGE HAPPENS

Kyle_Kalis_Action-thumb-590x499-83764[1]11. G Kyle Kalis, Fr* [Last time: 10]

Most college-ready OL out of the Midwest in years probably could have—probably should have—started last year. If he does not ascend to starting job will have been beaten out by a classmate, freshman, or walk-on. Not happening; cue Imperial March.

bilde[1]12. SLOT Drew Dileo, Sr [Last time: 14]

Sticky-fingered Louisiana gnome proved is mettle in 2012. If a pass is physically reachable by him, will be brought in. Feet will motor afterwards. Lacks top gear.

noodling1[1]13. TE AJ Williams, So [Last time: 15]

Converted OL Michigan's best bet at inline blocking TE sort; needs to work on his technique in a serious way. Could near 300 pounds after an offseason in the weight room. Fears no fish.

Courtney Avery Ohio State v Michigan dnILuUOocpnl[1]14. NICKEL Courtney Avery, Sr. [Last time: 16]

Pressed into service as a started his freshman year before settling into perpetual third-best-corner-on-rosterdom. Will see half of the defensive snaps, covering slots and the like.

hi-res-6696076_crop_650[1]15. ILB Desmond Morgan, Jr [Last time: 4]

Major drop from last time out; was overranked to begin with since Bolden is pushing from behind. Excellent frosh play in bowl game puts job under a bit more threat. Realistically it'll be hard to move out of the MLB spot.

Jack Miller[1]16. C Jack Miller, So* [Last time: 12]

Kugler buzz sees Miller slide a bit as his competition will come in far readier than most to start from day one. Still seems unlikely a guy with a labrum injury can find the strength as a freshman to displace him.

FAIRLY SAFE BET

x2_e56dbd9[1]17. CB Blake Countess, So* [Last time: 17]

With Courtney Avery seemingly comfortable in the slot, Countess is likely to reclaim the field corner job he locked down midway through his freshman season… as long as he isn't hampered by lingering effects of his injury.

Ld4vH[1]18. S Jarrod Wilson, So [Last time: 18]

Early enrollee groomed as the Kovacs heir apparent as soon as he arrived, playing in certain nickel and dime packages as a freshman. Has not appeared on The Price Is Right, that's 'shopped, rookie. Marvin Robinson may challenge.

bilde[2]19. ILB James Ross, So [Last time: 19]

The only thing keeping Ross so low is classmate Joe Bolden; the two freshmen split snaps with veterans and played well. Ross seemed more instinctive and gets the nod here; had a great day against Northwestern and just needs 20 pounds to be a quality option.

IN A BATTLE

DerrickGreenUMhatTimesDispatch_original_crop_exact[1] 20. RB Derrick Green, Fr [Last time: NR]

Yep: making the switch here, as Fitzgerald Toussaint now has to deal with not only DeVeon Smith but a 220 pound slab of muscle coming in with as much hype as it is possible to garner.  Tailback is an immediate-impact spot.

brennen-beyer-minnesota[1]21. WDE Brennen Beyer, Jr. [Last time: 22]

Beyer has nosed ahead of Frank Clark and Mario Ojemudia since he's a better run defender. Recruiting sites liked him best, too. Likely to split time with the other two contenders here even if given the green light as a starter.

bilde[2]22. G Chris Bryant, So* [Last time: 23]

Mountain-sized guard missed 2012 with a broken leg; will return for spring practice. Has to fend off freshmen and walk-ons, mostly. The non-Kalis guard spot will see a lot of intrigue.

hi-res-6590476_display_image[1]23. SDE Keith Heitzman, So* [Last time: 24]

Started to rack up meaningful snaps late in the year; will have to fend off challenges from Tom Strobel and possibly Chris Wormley and Jibreel Black, if he's not at three-tech. Injury-enforced retirement of Nate Brink means he's at least going to reprise his role this year.

black-osu_thumb[1]24. DT Jibreel Black, Sr. [Last time: 25]

Nominally in line to replace Will Campbell at starting three-tech but will be pushed hard by trio of redshirt freshmen, and may move out to SDE. May not have the size to start at his current position.

freetownsfinest-thumb-300x224-101756[1]25. WR Amarah Darboh, So. [Last time: 26]

Someone large and leapy will have to pick up where Gardner and Roundtree(?) left off. Darboh did nothing as a freshman but seems likely to move in front of Jerald Robinson and others to claim the other spot outside.

Joe Kerridge in action during Michigan's annual Spring Football Game at Michigan Stadium, Saturday, April 15th. 26. FB Joe Kerridge, So* [Last Time: NR]

Stephen Hopkins' departure makes Kerridge the leader at fullback when face-smashing is called for; the additions of Khalid Hill and Wyatt Shallman may move Kerridge to the bench for periods of time when Borges wants pass-catchers at the spot. Houma?

968_parker-matt-wile_t352[2]27. P Matt Wile, Jr [Last Time: NR]

Bowl suspension has Will Hagerup on thin ice, thin enough that it seems 50/50 he returns, at best. If Hagerup is out the door, Michigan won't miss much of a beat with Wile, who averaged 48 yards a kick in the bowl game. Picture may be slightly old.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

PUSHING FROM BEHIND

QB Shane Morris—hopefully he redshirts.
RB Fitzgerald Toussaint—worst. year. ever.
RB DeVeon Smith—most likely to fit what coaches want at RB spot
RB Dennis Norfleet—MOVE HIM BACK MOVE HIM BACK 
OL Erik Magnuson—third option at tackle.
OL Ben Braden—rumor is they may give him a shot at guard with Lewan back.
C Blake Bars—if Miller is just too too small.
C Patrick Kugler—the chosen center, but labrum injury hampers.
WR Jehu Chesson—should be ready to go after redshirt in search of bulk.
DE Tom Strobel—oversized end coming off redshirt, should be quality run defender.
NT Ondre Pipkins—get thee to the technique hut, son.
DE/DT Chris Wormley—has the size, has the hype, has the ACL recovery process.
WDE Frank Clark—rotated with Beyer last year.
WDE Mario Ojemudia—seemingly the best bet for an impact pass rusher at the spot.
MLB Joe Bolden—needs weight, but coming off meaningful freshman PT.
SLB Cam Gordon—spots Ryan.
CB Terry Richardson—weight weight weight weight weight
CB Jourdan Lewis—will a Cass corner ever meet the hype?
S Marvin Robinson—not sure if he'll ever be reliable enough to play.
S Josh Furman—ditto

Comments

funkywolve

November 27th, 2012 at 4:10 PM ^

there's a lot of experience coming back especially on the defensive side of the ball.  The offense will be interesting because of the almost entirely new online (especially if Lewan leaves) but Gardner's performance the last 4 games mitagates that a little for me. 

The defense should be strong enough to keep UM in every game next year no matter how bad the offense struggles.

Joined: 10/08/2008

MGoPoints: 20232

ShockFX

November 27th, 2012 at 3:43 PM ^

S Marvin Robinson—not sure if he'll ever be reliable enough to play. 
S Josh Furman—ditto

 

If they are though, they have the athleticism to be very solid pieces. I could see one of them reprising the Brandon Harrison role on passing downs.

Joined: 07/16/2008

MGoPoints: 4073

MGlobules

November 27th, 2012 at 3:50 PM ^

put faces to the names of Michigan players; this is cool. A nice follow-up would be to have someone draw up mgoprofiles of interesting players, complete with some personal details, through the on and off-seasons. It means a lot to me when I connect with the players, as I have come to with Denard, Gibbons, and others. 

One other thing that would really help me--maybe other people--is if the players' numbers were referenced whenever there is video to illustrate plays in the UFRs. It sometimes takes my novice ass a good while to figure out who means what when I watch them. . . (I notice player numbers aren't in the depth charts at the top of the page.) Let me know if there's some expedient I could avail of that I'm missing. 

P.S. We get some solid o line play and a healthy hard-charging halfback, we are going to be really kickass next year. 

Joined: 11/17/2008

MGoPoints: 47664

AZBlue

November 27th, 2012 at 3:48 PM ^

With Dileo and Gallon both gone after next year, who is the heir-apparent at slot?  Hayes? Norfleet?  I am sure we can go big with slots - i.e. Chesson? - but have really come to love the ninja/jitterbug type in the slot role.

Joined: 09/14/2008

MGoPoints: 16806

ppoenicke

November 27th, 2012 at 4:23 PM ^

Nice to see parts of the sports blogsphere merging. Also good to see that we aren't have a conversation about Timmy Chandler and the complexities of non-Americans playing for the US. The analogue for Michigan football--wanting a coach who is a "Michigan man"--is just as hopeless and unproductive.  ((Althou(Alhjkhgjkhkhjk

Joined: 04/10/2009

MGoPoints: 26

joeismyname

November 27th, 2012 at 4:24 PM ^

after readuing this I can't be anything but excited for the future...it seems like depth is really being built.

Next year will be a crap shoot to finish better than this year's 8-4 as we will most likely have 4 new lineman starting, but they can't be much worse than the 3 interior guys we had this year, and they were recruited for MANBALL offense. I'm glad our early season schedule is a little softer and we get ND, Neb, and OSU at home....should be a solid season in 2013.

VERY excited about Devin's redishirt, it seems that 2014 may be a year to really watch out for UM in the championship picture with the 2013 recruiting class being redishirt freshman and true sophmores to add some serious depth.....hopefully a big receiver pans out to help Devin and getting Funchess open in the middle. Really not concerend about the defense for the forseeable future with Hoke, b/c even if Mattison does retire, I think Hoke will go out and get the best possible guy as we all know the guy loves defense....Michigan football has a bright future. GO BLUE.

Joined: 11/07/2011

MGoPoints: 1271

jdub55

November 27th, 2012 at 4:36 PM ^

I'm not sure what the coaches see in Beyer, he's played quite a bit the last two years and the only time I notice him he is doing something stupid and he very rarely makes any stand out plays. Hopefully Clark, Ojemudia or one of the other young guns can emerge to be an impact starter.

 

I think (hope) Lewan will come back too. The OSU game might have shown he still needs some development before he is a true quality NFL player. We also need Toussanint back physically and mentally. I'm not sure if his head was ever right this year. If the play wasn't there he just had nothing. Never made anyone miss or got something out of nothing like he did all the time last year.

Joined: 06/01/2012

MGoPoints: 179

UMaD

November 27th, 2012 at 6:41 PM ^

He might benefit from more development in terms of being ready-to-play as a rookie, but that isn't the primary objective of NFL teams nor is it the primary objective of the player.

From Lewan's perspective - he'll develop more with a year in the NFL and get paid an extra year to do it.  Even if he falls from a top 5 spot to a top 20 spot, he's still getting an extra year's worth of earnings - enough to offset whatever $ he loses via draft position.

From the NFL's team perspective - they're drafting primarily for potential either way.  Sure, they'd rather have an instant impact player but most teams assume there is going to be a learning curve and a marginal difference between a 4th year guy and a 5th year guy isn't going to sway things dramatically for most teams.

In short -- Lewan is gone if he's thinking purely from a football perspective.  He may love college life though...

Joined: 07/02/2008

MGoPoints: 4960

Blue in Yarmouth

November 28th, 2012 at 1:55 PM ^

Last year the top five players virtually all signed 4 year 20+ million dollar contracts. The 20th selection sign a four year 8.2 million dollar contract. So each year of the four year contract Lewan would be losing 12 million dollars a year so that one year for him to develop in the NFL would cost him (assuming an extra year would land him in the top 5) 48 million dollars over that four year period. He would never make that back.

I guess what I am saying is your post doesn't make the financial sense you think it does.

 

Also, just so this is clear, from the 12th selection down all players signed for less that 10 million per year for 4 year contract so he would just have to fall from the top 5 to below 12th to make it a very poor financial decision.

 

Edit: I just reread my post and had to laugh. I guess a player leaving college early to make 8 million a year isn't reallly THAT BAD a financial decision. Just in comparison to what he could make if he stayed and was picked top 5. 

Joined: 02/18/2009

MGoPoints: 6527

Blue in Yarmouth

November 28th, 2012 at 5:18 PM ^

My mistake. That would mean over the course of the four year contract that Lewan would lose about 13.5 million dollars by leaving a year early if that choice moved him from the top 5 down toward 20. Not nearly as drastic as my original post, but still a significant drop. Thanks for the correction on that one.

So from the opposite perspective, he would make up the money he lost by staying another year in the first season of his contract if he was a top five pick the next year.

Joined: 02/18/2009

MGoPoints: 6527

BlueMan80

November 27th, 2012 at 6:56 PM ^

We gave Snappy Snipniewski a scholly after all. We need a running back worthy of "pack your bags" status. The world seemed so stable back when names like Woolfolk and Wheatley were on the roster and those guys were essential to the whole Manball strategy.

Joined: 01/21/2011

MGoPoints: 13097

maizenbluenc

November 28th, 2012 at 5:05 PM ^

1) We have how many returning RBs on scholarship for one open position - five? Somebody needs to start producing (and needs help from the OL doing it) for the number of scholarships allocated. This has been an ongoing problem really since Mike Hart left.

2) If the long snapper snaps the ball more quickly, and Hagerup gets the punt off just as fast, the receiving team has less time to react and set up to block, and the net punt numbers improve. Maybe that scholly for an out of state kid is worth something in the field position battle for the defense ...

Joined: 07/21/2009

MGoPoints: 10630

borninAnnArbor

November 27th, 2012 at 7:29 PM ^

You can’t be a Michigan fan without complaining about the current Michigan players and over valuing recruits and redshirts.  However, about half way through the season I would have liked to have seen some of these players, especially linemen be given a chance to play.  Football is a game of inches and one slightly better block might have been the difference between a 2 yard loss, and me having a good weekend.

 I want to believe that the coaches knew which linemen deserved to play, but I am not sure if they decided to ride out the season just to give some of the young guys more time.  I think that they know that with the newer higher rated guys, they have a better chance in the future, but it seemed like it came at the expense of this year. 

The difference between 8-4 and 11-2 is so very slight. 

Joined: 10/10/2012

MGoPoints: 3554

Blue in Yarmouth

November 28th, 2012 at 8:29 AM ^

but from what I see from Brady Hoke he loves his players and he certainly loves this university. I just can't see him not doing everything he possibly can (within the rules of the game) to win for this school and his seniors...I just can't see it.

I say that and it makes me feel pretty good because I was one of those jackasses that really didn't like the hire of BH when it happened (I got behind him as soon as it was announced, but the thought of hiring him wasn't one I relished). After a couple of years with him my opinion has changed 180 degrees and I couldn't be happier with our head coach. I think we have a class act in BH and I simply can't see him doing anything close to what you suggest in your post, but that might just be me.

Joined: 02/18/2009

MGoPoints: 6527

UofM626

November 27th, 2012 at 9:33 PM ^

PIPKINS sits on the bench and rots another year. Every time he was in the game the line got pressure and pushed back there O Line! Put his ass in the game!

Joined: 01/02/2012

MGoPoints: 3443

msom4202

November 28th, 2012 at 5:48 PM ^

I like Blake Countess and Raymon at corners. But I'm sorry Courtney Avery is downright TERRIBLE. First that clumsy touchdown he gave up the first play he got into the game vs Alabama. Then all year he gave up a lot of key 3rd down conversions in the slot when he even got a chance to touch the field. Sorry but I'd rather have Terry Richardson in there. I just hope we can land McQuay and if we do, put him in the slot because I seem his film and he throws receivers off the line. He's so physical at corner. He in all seriousness could start at nickel. Then move to the FS when Gordon leaves.

Joined: 10/15/2012

MGoPoints: 39