zack marshall

Previously: The Story. Quarterback. Running Back. Wide Receiver.

THE POTATOMAN COMETH

RATING: 5

Depth Chart

[Barron]

Last year's preview had a brief aside about COLSTON LOVELAND [recruiting profile]. It made a very bad prediction about playing time:

…true freshmen COLSTON LOVELAND and MARLIN KLEIN have a 0% chance of seeing meaningful snaps without a zombie apocalypse.

Uhhh no. Bad prediction. At least this from the post-Illinois UFR was better:

I think he's getting a crucial chunk pass off PA in The Game.

Yessir!

That preview did single Loveland out as the freshman tight end who was supposedly the Next One, per insider chatter. By the time the Big Ten Championship game rolled around, he was the Current One:

And lo, here we are. I'm not sure I can recall a guy going into his true sophomore season who 1) hasn't really played a lot and 2) has the world convinced he's going to be an All-American like Loveland. Here's BTN analyst Rick Pizzo after taking in a Michigan practice:

"You have a tight end in Colston Loveland that I think may be the breakout star in the Big Ten this year. Mark this down: he is going to be an NFL All-Pro at tight end."

Well then.

[After THE JUMP: why]

Previously: Last year’s profiles, K Adam Samaha, K James Turner (Tr), S Brandyn Hillman, CB DJ Waller, CB Cameron Calhoun, CB Jyaire Hill, HSP/LB Jason Hewlett, LB Hayden Moore, LB Semaj Bridgeman, LB Ernest Hausmann (Tr), OLB Breeon Ishmail, DE Aymeric Koumba, DE Enow Etta, DE Josaiah Stewart (Tr), DT Brooks Bahr, DT Cameron Brandt, DT Trey Pierce, OT Evan Link, OT Myles Hinton (Tr), OT LaDarius Henderson (Tr), OG Nathan Efobi, IOL Amir Herring, OC Drake Nugent (Tr), TE Deakon Tonielli

Carlsbad, CA – 6'4"/220
		247: 6'4/220                            3.68*	3*, 88, NR overall #46 ATH, #68 CA
		On3: 6'4/220                            3.84*	3*, 89, NR overall #28 TE, #33 CA
		Rivals: 6'5/210                            3.80*	3*, 5.7, NR overall #28 TE, #34 CA
		ESPN: 6'4/215                            3.64*	3*, 78, #109 West #23 TE-H, #65 CA
		Composite                3.84*/3.83*	3*, #544/#530 Ovr #26 TE, #45 CA
		MGoAverage                            3.76*	3.5*, #557/797 Ovr #38/52 TEs since '90
		YMRMFSPA	Erick All
Other Suitors	Utah, Cal
Previously On MGoBlog	Hello by yours truly.
Notes	Early enrollee. 7v7 team: Seven60
Film:
Senior Highlights:Junior Highlights:Hudl. 4 senior games. One-hander. TD catch. Interview.

Every year Michigan will point at one two athletic receiver-ish tight ends from the myriad tall and athletic guys around the country and decide that's whom they want to Herbertize into pro prospects. For this year's class they had Andrew Rapplyea until Penn State pried him out of the class. When Michigan took Deakon Tonielli the story was they were going to just have one in the class. Then Zachary Marshall came to the BBQ and ran around some.

People wondering how a receiving target of a 5-star QB for SoCal power-program Carlsbad could be a considered a "hidden gem" don't know the full story. Marshall was playing receiver for small Santa Fe Christian Academy, producing 1012 yards and 9 TDs on 44 catches as a junior, also playing defense. Matt Weiss got a tipoff and traveled over there to see him, invited Marshall to the BBQ, and Michigan saw something (via Steve Lorenz):

I'm told Marshall 'absolutely blew (Michigan) away' during a one-on-one workout with the staff before the actual BBQ on Sunday afternoon. His visit was one the Wolverines were looking forward to and now I expect them to go all in for Marshall going forward.

Suddenly two TEs in the class was on again. Marshall committed soon thereafter.

Transfer rules forced him to sit out his first four games at Carlsbad, and by January he was enrolled (and sick in bed) at Michigan.

[After THE JUMP: Not the same article from Wednesday, I swear] 

We're circling back on the guys who committed during football season. Marshall jumped in way back on August 13th, but that's when we went into preseason mode. It was also a few months after the commitment of fellow TE Deakon Tonielli, and the decommitment of TE Andrew Rappleyea a few months before that.

Marshall was a guy Matt Weiss discovered while out in San Diego, and things moved quickly from there, with Marshall visiting for the barbecue, reporting an offer on July 31, and pledging shortly thereafter. He had a 1000+yard junior year as a receiver at lower-division Santa Fe Christian before switching to TE and moving up to local power Carlsbad, where he was just one of many targets of 5-star 2024 Alabama commit Julian Sayin.

GURU RATINGS 

Last row is my conversion to five-star scales. Links are to profiles

Rivals recently moved Marshall up to a 5.7 and inside the top-40 in California. On3 has him on the cusp of 4 stars. The skeptics are 247, who has him ranked as an Athlete, and ESPN, who has him ranked as not going to the SEC. 247 hasn't really put a scout's eyes on him since before that junior season except when he was visiting Michigan for the MSU game, at which point Biggens noted Marshall's gotten way bigger. He might be a candidate for a re-rank but I doubt it.

[AFTER THE JUMP: Athletic athlete who athletes]