Michigan’s fourth spring practice week is in the books and we’re on break, which means they’re finally dumping all the info from the last month. Here's a practice video.

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— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) April 3, 2021

The offense is a lot nicer to read about so let’s start there, and I'll swing back around to cover defense later.

Offense Overall

What we want to hear: Architecture beautiful. Society on cutting edge of progress.

What we’re hearing: The airport’s nice, I guess, and there’s lots of little people walking and talking very fast.

It looks great when the quarterbacks execute, and extremely disjointed when they don’t. The defense is either a “work in progress” or “the worst since Rich Rod” depending on if the speaker’s job is to make you feel better, and this tend to come up a lot when they're praising the offense.

What it means: I’m bringing back a Latin phrase I tried to make happen in 2009: CAVEAT DEFENSIONIS. It means take everything nice you hear about the offense in context.

Baseball movie it’s like: Mr. Baseball (1992). Look, an early 1990s fish-out-of-water story about Tom Selleck playing baseball in Japan is going to have some low expectations, and promises some major cringe moments, but all told I think it exceeds expectations.

Quarterback

What we want to hear: Cade has seized the starting job, is matching his in-game moxie with steadiness and leadership. McCarthy is starting to pick things up, and his talent is off the charts.

What we’re hearing: The spring session ended with Cade McNamara clearly out front, but nobody consistent enough to have a grip on the job. The book on him is he’s “not a great practice quarterback” but the coaches know he’s a gamer.

J.J. McCarthy’s practices have been a lot of freshman stuff mixed in with things that bring up old quarterback greats. The specific great he gets compared to most often is the one coaching him, along with a reminder that Jim Harbaugh redshirted in 1982, flashed as QB3 in 1983, and won the job over bad competition as a redshirt sophomore in 1984. Then 1984 is remembered and we have a sad.

What it means: It’s going to be a bumpy ride.

Baseball movie it’s like: Trouble With the Curve (2012), in which an aging scout who might be losing it has one last chance to find a star. You’ve got Clint Eastwood’s grizzled charisma playing against Amy Adams’s evident talent and charm, and then you’re going to throw Justin Timberlake into this mix even though he’s not even from the same medium. The result is a lot of cliché, and the ending is what you’d expect.

[After THE JUMP: The world is made for people who aren’t cursed with self-awareness]

Running Back

Oh, Crash. [Bryan Fuller]

What we want to hear: Corum is starring, Edwards is everything we ever dreamed, Haskins didn’t kill anyone but there were some moments we thought he did.

What we’re hearing: Yep, all of that and then some. Blake Corum was made available to the media, which basically confirms he’s the coaches dream he was expected to be. Things from that: Hart’s introduced some new cutting drills. With just six games last year and a lot of those spent in pass mode nobody got a chance to get into a rhythm. Things are more focused Corum says he’s going to be a big factor in special teams with Giles gone. Donovan Edwards came in ready to play.

Corum likes Hart:

“I think Coach Mike Hart can really help anybody, not just in my stature,” Corum said. “The bigger guys, the little guys, it doesn’t really matter just because of what he brings to the table and how good he was as a running back. I definitely enjoy having a coach similar to my ability coach me just because he can see what I can see on the field, I do like it.”

Donovan Edwards came ready to play. WolverineWire’s Isaiah Hole rounded up quotes from all the veterans who couldn’t keep themselves from sharing. Here’s Josh Ross:

“Speed. Speed, speed, speed,” Ross said. “That dude is flying. He’s so fast. Young guy, still learning, still getting better. But he can fly. I’ll say that. He definitely can fly.”

What it means: The RB room last year was overstocked for how little run time was available, so while each star had their moments nobody really got to shine. This year I think they’ve got a much better mix, and the insiders are trying to tamp down how excited they are.

What it’s like: Bull Durham (1988). Three excellent leads, all perfect for their roles, who play off each other so well you don’t really care that the supporting cast are all pretty goofy and one-dimensional. Susan Sarandon throws herself into this role and comes out the best, and newcomer Tim Robbins slaps, but the best moment by far is Kevin Costner just knocking down every subject.

Wide Receiver

We’re asking the wrong questions. Do you believe in this thing? [Bryan Fuller]

What we want to hear: The speed is all translating but the starters are just killing it.

What we’re hearing: Awesome, but CAVEAT DEFENSIONIS. Sainristil used his media availability to praise the vibe around the offense. He’s also very very good at saying nothing, which around Schembechler Hall is appreciated even more than it’s not by guys like me. The one bit is he commented on Andrel Anthony’s speed:

Andrel is very fast. He’s definitely—we always talk about speed in the receiver’s room, he’s definitely one of the faster guys in the room.

Sam dug into the situation at wide receiver($) after insiders shared a guy moving up the depth chart likely precipitated Giles Jackson’s transfer.

Word is Cornelius Johnson and Mike Sainristil have taken their games up several notches and had separated themselves with Ronnie Bell as the top performers. I’m told “it wasn’t close” and that that trio “is playing at a very high level.” That said, it’s worthy of reiterating that spring depth charts are merely a snapshot of a point in time.

Expectation is Roman Wilson and AJ Henning will make another run at the starters in fall, and of course Xavier Worthy is going to make a dent. Chris Balas shared he doesn’t think the Jackson transfer will affect things with his friend($):

Count this as one of those situations. It was best for both parties that he move on. And no, we do not believe it affects Xavier Worthy, on whom he worked to land in Ann Arbor.

What it means: This is where CAVEAT DEFENSIONIS matters the most, but it’s hard to get around the fact that what we’re hearing exactly matches what we wanted to hear, especially regarding Cornelius Johnson. I love speed too, but it’s not hard to imagine Roman Wilson is running by Vincent Gray on the regular. Compare the talk last year, which was Ronnie Bell is all alone, to this year when Bell has company from the #1 remaining slot receiver and the #1 outside receiver who isn’t a freshman.

Baseball movie it’s like: Moneyball (2011). We’re taking something that’s complex, including some new things that mathletic fans are dying to see on film, and simplifying it enough to fit into the structure of a movie. Will it meet astronomical expectations? Of course not. Will it drag at times but hit the notes it’s supposed to and leave you wanting more of what you can’t have? Yes.

Tight End

What we want to hear: No more of that “A previous starter has fallen behind and might transfer” business.

What we’re hearing: A reversal of that “a previous starter has fallen behind and might transfer” business, via an ITF($):

We mentioned potential movement at tight end. It sounds like — for now, at least — that's on hold. Guys are putting in the work there, and it's been good.

What it means: I can only guess this was Erick All having some struggles in early spring. Emphasis on “guess.” Schoonmaker and Hibner are the only only non-walk-ons so who else could it be.

Baseball movie it’s like: For Love of the Game (1999). It’s a baseball movie that also tries to be a romance, but just isn’t really good at being a romance. Don’t get me wrong, it’s watchable, especially if you’re here because you like Kevin Costner baseball movies and the Detroit Tigers (raises hand). But let’s be honest, if we’re watching this it’s because I used my turn to choose a baseball movie about the Tigers, not because my wife used her turn to choose a love story about a single mom who needed to learn to trust again.

Offensive Line

We came for a good time, not for a long time. [Patrick Barron]

What we want to hear: They now have 7 or more very talented guys, including one or two who might be as good as Onwenu/Mayfield/Ruiz, and the young guys are coming along so well that grad transfer Willie Allen is coming in on the goal line or riding bench unless there’s a bunch of injuries.

What we’re hearing: Only our board and Isaiah Hole recognized that Michigan hired a new offensive analyst. Isaiah:

While the former Michigan football defensive coordinator landed in Tuscon with the Arizona Wildcats, the offensive line coach with the Pac-12 program is making his way to Ann Arbor. Kyle DeVan had a long NFL playing career with Washington, the New York Jets, the Indianapolis Colts, Philadelphia Eagles and Tennessee Titans before hanging up his cleats in 2012.

He started coaching in 2013, first as a grad assistant at Oregon State and USC before becoming an assistant offensive line coach with the New Orleans Saints. He spent three seasons as the offensive line coach at Ball State (where he also was the assistant head coach) before the past two at Arizona.

Zak Zinter represented the offensive line for the media. New OL coach Sherrone Moore is “bringing a new energy” to the line. Zinter himself is playing right guard and confirmed they’ve been giving him a little bit of run at center. He also clarified why he left the Penn State game:

“I tore my UCL the week practice before the Penn State game. I got treatment, was trying to fight through it and play the Penn State game … got through the first drive and it was just super painful, and I couldn’t play at my best to help the team win,” he recalled. “I got surgery, and it’s 100 percent healed now, feeling great. It’s ready to go. It’s not affecting me at all for spring.

(Correction: It's the UCL in his thumb) 

Guy who emails me and Rivals calls the OL a “work in progress”($) and is down on Willie Allen. Balas made a portion of last week’s ITF free. That says Zinter’s been Michigan’s best OL, Stueber is expected to start, Hayes is at left tackle, Filiaga and Keegan are battling for left guard. We also got an explanation why the other guy the staff loves hasn’t been heard from:

Redshirt frosh Karsen Barnhart has been banged up, but most believe there’s a spot for him when he returns. They’ll take the best five linemen and make it work, so he could play tackle or guard. We won’t know how good this group can be until Barnhart gets back and they all have a chance to work together for a while, which obviously won’t be this spring with the session about to wrap up.

Sam Webb’s spring rumblings($) are more positive—CAVEAT DEFENSIONIS. The guys are who you’d expect: Hayes and Stueber at the tackles, with Trente Jones entering and Stueber going down to guard. Zak Zinter has been getting some snaps behind Vastardis at center. Trevor Keegan continues to get talked about and seems to be finally making a run at the LG job.

Everybody says Willie Allen is huuuuuuge, though that might mean too huge. One guy admits Allen’s coming from behind but not so far that he can’t make a run in the fall, and the other guy said don’t hold your breath. Zinter said Allen’s been at tackle, is a “big dude, has got strong hands, athletic. He’s going to be a good tackle.”

Zinter mentioned Greg Crippen as the early enrollee impressing him on the line:

Greg Crippen is standing out a bit. He’s going to have a very bright future in front of him. He’s very smart at the game, wants to learn, has a strong drive. He’s going to be a good player.”

Chris Balas hinted in a recent ITF that we’ll see some OL transfers once things shake out.

What it means: Offensive line analyst has been an underrated position on staff. A lot can explain last year’s drop-off in OL play, but I don’t think it’s a coincidence that our best interior play in a generation occurred when Juan Castillo was on staff. He was hired by the Bears last year, and the NFL guy I talk to a lot said it made an instant impact. While Sherrone Moore was an offensive lineman and involved with the OL coaching during his tenure as TE coach, Michigan’s analyst last year was Mike DeBord.

I don’t want to dunk on Ed Warinner—his track record speaks for itself—but there’s definitely a different vibe around Sherrone. Like a very good one. Like I don’t want share it all because I’m worried we can’t have nice things. But it’s not out of the question that we traded a Beilein for a Juwan here. If that’s the case, Kyle DeVan isn’t exactly Phil Martelli, but yoinking the guy who coached Arizona’s well-organized OL can’t hurt.

Zinter practicing at center confirms he’s a guy Michigan wants on the line in any configuration, and that the next guy in after the starting five will be a guard. It also tells you depth at center isn’t great, which is understandable given depth is a redshirt freshman and a freshman. Karsen Barnhart was probably ticketed for right tackle when he gets back, which would push Stueber to left guard, but Michigan likes Stueber and Zinter together so much that might be reversed. I watched the Penn State game too and I’d be a little miffed, given the practice reports, if Trevor Keegan isn’t ahead of Chuck Filiaga unless the latter’s play has improved significantly. Trente Jones is probably ahead of them both.

Best guess the line starts (left to right): Hayes-Barnhart-Vastardis-Zinter-Stueber, with Jones coming in as a tackle if any of the afore mentioned goes out, and Zinter sliding to center if that’s Vastardis. Keegan is probably next in after that, and then the senior backups if they stick around to be backups.

Baseball movie it’s like: Everybody Wants Some!! (2016).  It’s not marketed very well. It didn’t make back half of its big budget. You’re really not expecting Richard Linklater’s follow-up to Boyhood to be digestible, let alone fun. But there are some really good young cast members in this ensemble, a couple of whom might really blow up into the kinds of guys you can’t believe were all together when they were young. And it’s not missing its beats. And you’re kind of getting into this. It’s not blowing you away, but is this?… this is… I think this is good.