Previously: Quarterback, Running Back, Wide Receiver & Tight End, Offensive Line, Defensive Line

I'm bringing back this preview feature from before my time off; the exercise is to rank Michigan's opponents, as well as the Wolverines themselves, in each position group. This is particularly useful to do in a year when roster turnover and late-offseason changes (laaaaaaaaaaaaaate-offseason changes) are so prevalent; I'll do my best in these posts to highlight significant opt-outs, opt-ins, and the like.

Our long regional nightmare is over.

Tier I: You're Damn Right I'm Putting Another Michigan Picture Here

Josh Ross is back on the weak side, where he excelled in 2018 [Barron]

1. Michigan. Technically, Michigan replaces two of their three linebacker starters this year, but that's a bit misleading: Josh Ross returns from a year marred by injury, a move to middle linebacker that didn't take, and the emergence of Jordan Glasgow as a draftable weakside linebacker. He'll replace Glasgow at the WILL, where he started in 2018, tallying 61 tackles (five for loss) despite playing in a somewhat inexplicable platoon with Devin Gil—Ross was clearly the superior player. Back at his natural position, he could be an all-conference player.

The main attraction, of course, is MIKE Cam McGrone, who exploded onto the scene in his second year with impact and style reminiscent of Devin Bush. While McGrone can tighten up a few things, he was essentially a redshirt freshman last year, and he's already proven capable of swinging games by finishing plays in the backfield. If the defensive tackles can stand up to more double-teams—a big if, though one I'm cautiously optimistic about with Carlo Kemp moving to three-tech—then McGrone will be freed up even more, and he's got All-American potential if that happens.

There are a couple intriguing up-and-comers at VIPER, led by Michael Barrett, a former high school quarterback who's got the look of a versatile thumper; he may also be the primary long-term backup at either inside linebacker spot. If the defense needs more of a third safety, Anthony Solomon was praised as one of the best cover linebackers in his class, with the lack of a traditional positional projection holding back his rating—not a problem at Don Brown's hybrid spot. Ben VanSumeren is another former multi-position athlete who's received some offseason hype for his work at SAM, a position that could be of greater importance if DT is a worst-case scenario.

While there's not a ton of depth, I stress that less at linebacker than along the defensive line; there's far less rotation necessary at LB.

2. Ohio State. This wasn't a good unit in 2018. Freed of Greg Schiano's coaching in 2019, however, they were much better, and while WILL Malik Harrison is a major loss to the NFL, most everyone else is back. From my HTTV preview:

The linebacker level is the relative weakness on this defense. You already know the catch: they’re still plenty good and extremely talented. Redshirt senior Tuf Borland is being pushed by former top-50 recruit Teradja Mitchell in the middle; five-star senior Baron Browning gets to play the majority of snaps at his natural WILL position; senior Pete Werner displayed an impressive all-around game at their hybrid SAM position last year.

Browning*, a dangerous pass-rusher when playing on the edge instead of inside, and Mitchell are the two players who could take this unit from good to great. There's a healthy amount of depth. Michigan edges the Buckeyes out because McGrone looked like the best of the bench even though he got less help from his tackles.

*also the subject of one of the funnier high school highlights in recent memory

[Hit THE JUMP for the rest of the rankings.]

Tier II: Just Missing The Superstar

I refuse to remember or look up how this happened [Barron]

3. Wisconsin. If you want to move Wisconsin up a tier because they're a linebacker factory, I won't begrudge you. From HTTV again:

The always stellar linebacker corps loses its two best players. On the inside, Chris Orr (78 tackles, 14 TFLs, 11.5 sacks, five PBUs, two forced fumbles) made an impact that went beyond his impressive statistics; when he left the Big Ten title game with a concussion, Wisconsin led 14-0; Ohio State finished on a 34-7 run. On the edge, Zack Baun led the team with 19.5 TFLs and 12.5 sacks on his way to getting drafted in the third round.

But it’s Wisconsin. Junior ILB Jack Sanborn led the team in tackles and posted nine TFLs. Senior OLB Noah Burks had seven stops behind the line himself. Neither is considered a star but the same could be said of Orr and Baun entering last season. Others should emerge; sophomore Leo Chanal looked like the next do-everything inside linebacker in his debut year.

Even by Wisconsin standards, Orr and Baun were special linebackers. Sanborn could get there; so could Chanal. I'm not going to bet against Badger linebackers, I'll just say that it'll be difficult to replace last year's impeccable play.

4. Penn State. The Nittany Lions were supposed to be #1 here. Then All-American WILL and this year's defensive dark horse Heisman candidate Micah Parsons opted out of the season and stayed opted out. Two other quality starters, Jan Johnson and Cam Brown, are also gone. Jesse Luketa steps into Parsons' spot, and while he looked solid as a reserve last year, he doesn't bring nearly the same level of star power, particularly as a pass-rusher.

There's still a lot of talent, though. SLB Brandon Smith was the #18 player in the 2019 class and gives this unit the best shot at a high-impact player to at least replace some of Parsons' production. Redshirt junior Ellis Brooks was a four-star that Michigan also recruited, though he lagged behind the other linebackers to see significant time last year. Penn State has recruited the position well; if they need someone to step in, it'll probably be a four-star.

Tier III: Good When Helped

Antjuan Simmons (#34) is MSU's only returning starter [Barron]

5. Michigan State. It may not be fair to judge MSU's linebackers against last year's group, as this year's unit may be hounded by free-releasing linemen where last year's was shielded by Raekwon Williams and Mike Panasiuk.

Still, Noah Harvey was a notable downgrade from now-graduated MIKE Joe Bachie when the latter was suspended for PED use. Antjuan Simmons is the best linebacker on the team and put up nice numbers; he's at his best at the WILL. It's unclear how those two will align; ideally, Harvey would hold up well enough in the middle for Simmons to stay on the outside. Harvey appears to have bulked up, which would help him take on blocks, though probably not improve his limited athleticism.

The third starter appears to be Chase Kline, a 235-pound sophomore who moved from defensive end last season and saw a handful of defensive snaps.

6. Indiana. There's some potential the Hoosiers are better than I credit them for here; they look good on an individual level, but the defenses haven't had the production to match what's on paper.

MIKE Micah McFadden is a little undersized at 235 pounds but generally effective; he led the team with 61 tackles, ten TFLs, and two interceptions. His problem is one that goes with his size: he misses a lot of tackles. WILL Cam Jones is 230 pounds, stuffs the stat sheet, and suffers from the other run defense problem you find in linebackers trying to overcome a size differential: he plays himself out of position by trying to run around blocks. 

The Hoosiers hope hybrid Marcelino Ball bounces back to his 2018 form after a disappointing junior season. At his best, he's a disruptive edge player with some coverage skills. At his worst, he tries to do too much and opens up big plays for the opposition. There was way too much of the latter last year; he'll try to turn that around as a senior.

EDIT: I knew I'd miss something. Ball is out for the year with a torn ACL suffered in practice a couple weeks ago. I guess the good news is he was their worst-graded defensive player last year. Also, replacement Bryant Fitzgerald is a junior who's looked solid in limited on-field experience; he actually first jumped out to me when he was Brandon Peters' younger teammate at Avon High School. Given how Ball played last year, I'm not sure this actually impacts IU too much.

7. Rutgers. Surprise! Not last, jerks. While the Rutgers defense was an abomination, their three linebackers were the clear standouts. MLB Tyshon Fogg, WLB Olakunle Fatukasi, and SAM/hybrid Tyreek Maddox-Williams combined for 234 tackles and 14 tackles for loss; they all return.

As was the case last year, it probably won't matter that these guys are decent players, but don't be shocked if one or two end up on an NFL roster. 

Tier IV: Need Reinforcements

Shaq Smith transferred from Clemson, which helps the ol' talent level [Paul Sherman]

8. Maryland. The Terps lost Antoine Brooks, their excellent nickel, and may go to playing more 3-4 looks as a result. As BiSB outlined in HTTV, that's not necessarily an ideal solution:

Former Top-100 recruit and Clemson transfer Shaq Smith will slide inside for his senior season after spending last year at the JACK (hybrid OLB) spot. That means sophomore Durell Nchami—who missed 2019 with a torn ACL—will likely start at the JACK. With Smith moving, however, the outside linebacker position gets awfully thin, both literally and figuratively. Keandre Jones graduated and Bryce Brand transferred to West Virginia, leaving sophomore Cortez Andrews and true freshman Ruben Hyppolite competing at the SAM.

Smith, Chance Campbell, and Ayinde Eley provide an experienced inside linebacking group. Eley emerged midseason at the WILL; he’s a rangy, instinctive, and explosive, as well as a sound tackler. Smith and the smaller Campbell will likely rotate situationally.

Campbell could be in line for a breakout but this team just did not do a good job against the run last year. Only Nebraska allowed more carries to break for 10+ yards in conference play; the Terps allowed 66 such plays in nine games.

9. Minnesota. The Gophers lose nearly all of their linebacker production from a 2019 group that was merely decent statistically despite the presence of two (departed) all-conference LBs.

Now the most experience player in the group is Raphael Sori-Marin, who had seven spot starts last year and didn't play very well. The early projected starter at WILL, Braelen Oliver, suffered an undisclosed spring practice injury that apparently is serious enough to put his season in jeopardy. That leaves a couple sophomores who were middling recruits that haven't seen the field and a couple true freshman who are higher-rated but true freshmen to fill that role.

The SAM doesn't see much action as Minnesota tends to play five defensive backs; Thomas Rush saw a handful of snaps, some of them with his hand in the dirt, as a Furbush-type.