27 Tickets To Team 135 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.

OH YOU BETTER BELIEVE I DID THIS WOO

Previously: Team 134

PACK YOUR BAGS

Players who will be starting unless injury derails them. Early entry possibilities are not taken into account because they're too unpredictable this far out.

bilde1_thumb111. OLB Jake Ryan, Sr*

By 2014, Jake Ryan's hair will reach the small of his back and his terror will reach former Yugoslav republics, spawning an incomprehensible evil only he can defeat.

hi-res-6696076_crop_6501_thumb52. ILB Desmond Morgan, Sr

Joe Bolden will spot him frequently but extremely hard to see anyone displacing him once he moves to a more natural MLB spot. May or may not be Demens++.

funchess1_thumb83. FLEX Devin Funchess, Jr

I mean surely this will be the year he breaks Jim Mandich's record, if it isn't slap me and call me Tressel what's that I couldn't read your very clear email detailing NCAA malfeasance

raymon-taylor-pick-thumb-646x429-122[1]4. CB Raymon Taylor, Sr

At this point has learned what a zone is and drops into it impeccably. Still large, probably playing field corner, does not have to be covered up as much deep. I call this guy RAYMON because that's his name.

bilde1_thumb185. QB Devin Gardner, Sr.*

In retrospect ranked too low in the last piece since like dude is kind of on pace to be #1 in passer rating if given enough sample size and competition is true freshman. Quality fifth-year option not starting lol you crazy.

112900911_thumb76. T Ben Braden, So*

Road-grading tackle will have competition from only then-redshirt-freshmen Chris Fox and Logan Tuley-Tillman; LTT is a project who will be at least a year from ready and Fox may be more of a left tackle type.

x2_e56dbd91_thumb77. CB Blake Countess, Jr*

Should be fully healthy in 2014 and in the starting lineup no problem. Ligament stuff should be fully healed, and Countess is still the guy who locked down a starting job as a freshman and was headed on a stardom track before cruel fate intervened.

0[1]8. NT Ondre Pipkins, Jr

Would have to bust spectacularly to not ease into the starting lineup; only other competition is Willie Henry and maybe Maurice Hurst, and Pipkins is clearly ahead of Henry now.

Kyle_Kalis_Action-thumb-590x499-83769. G Kyle Kalis, So*

If Kalis isn't starting at guard by his sophomore year, some very strange things will have happened, or an injury, which is not strange. But really I call this guy TIGER TESTICLES because Brady Hoke is searching for him on the black market to acquire his toughness via sympathetic magic.

UNLESS SOMETHING STRANGE HAPPENS

MattWile_FGandPunt-thumb-590x374-85807[1]10./11. K/P Matt Wile, Sr

Multi-purpose kicker has proven himself an adequate or better punter and displayed a big leg on kickoffs and certain long field goals. May lose one job to an as-yet-undetermined freshman specialist but should start at one spot or the other.

bilde2_thumb212. ILB James Ross, Jr

In 2014 James Ross sees the playcall in his head, Terminator-HUD style, and ruthlessly exterminates any living thing that gets in his way. His one weakness is Lou Holtz. In the distance, a wolf cries. Ross feels the same kinship he always does, scratching behind his ear.

Joe Kerridge in action during Michigan's annual Spring Football Game at Michigan Stadium, Saturday, April 15th.13. FB Joe Kerridge, Jr.*

Hopkins will be out the door and Houma is always going to be smaller than Kerridge. When Michigan needs a linebacker plowed, Kerridge will get the call first. Fullback is a veteran's position.

Ld4vH1_thumb1314. S Jarrod Wilson, Jr

With Marvin Robinson and Thomas Gordon out the door, Wilson will be the most experienced safety on the roster; as a four-star he's got the cred and probably a year of starting under his belt. Does not know Aaron Paul; Still 'shopped, rookie.

noodling11_thumb615. TE AJ Williams, Jr

Presumably at this point he will be a sixth offensive lineman or on the bench behind year two Jake Butt; both will get playing time; Williams figures to get more. Fish fear still reading zero. Or thereabouts, fear may increase if blocking technique does not.

FAIRLY SAFE BET

viking25[1]16. T Erik Magnuson, So*

Touted Californian a better fit at left tackle than Braden and has a clear path to start. Name reminds Hoke of wearing a polo shirt on his trip to the North Pole, which will give him the edge on the redshirt freshmen.

freetownsfinest-thumb-300x224-101756[1]17. WR Amarah Darboh, Jr.

Dileo, Gallon, and Jackson graduate, leaving Jerald Robinson, Darboh, and Chesson plus whoever ends up in the incoming recruiting class. Darboh did not redshirt and is the most likely guy to be a starter on the outside.

JackMiller1_thumb518. C Jack Miller, Jr*

A rare downgrade from a projected starting job on 134, Miller's competition gets fierce in 2014 with Bars and Kugler both pressing from behind. He should hold onto the job but if he's smaller than the other guys and that's just not changing…

deveon-smith[1]19. RB Deveon Smith, So.

Smith is currently the best bet to see a majority of the carries in 2014. Rawls may be a fullback, and Smith fits the MANBALL paradigm better than Hayes or Norfleet. Derrick Green may supplant him here.

rn_dymontethomas_ms_200[1]20. S Dymonte Thomas, So

Furman and Gordon exit, leaving Thomas fending off Jeremy Clark and Allen Gant. Thomas is the most-hyped safety Michigan's brought in for a long while and has the athleticism to bump Wilson (back?) down to strong safety. The job is his to lose

IN A BATTLE

brennen-beyer-minnesota1_thumb1121. WDE Brennen Beyer, Sr.

Time will not thin out the WDE battle here; in fact it may make it murkier with 6'6" pass rusher Taco Charlton presumably coming off a redshirt this year. Whoever wins the job will have earned it.

rn_terryrichardson_ms_576[1]22. NICKEL Terry Richardson, Jr

By 2014 the Cass Tech alum should be less tiny and prepping for a shot at a starting job in 2015; more likely he ends up in the Avery role for the duration as Michigan seeks out bigger guys on the outside.

bilde2_thumb23. G Chris Bryant, Jr*

Competition will be fierce at this point with Blake Bars and Kyle Bosch pressing; Bryant retains a size and experience edge but if Bosch is what he's supposed to be this will be a tight tight battle.

013112 hfb Tom Strobel24. SDE Tom Strobel, So*

By this point his career, Strobel should pass the smaller Heitzman for the starting job, but candidates will be thick on the ground in 2014. Has a better recruiting pedigree, as well.

rn_chriswormley_ms_576[1]25. DT Chris Wormley, So*

I've heard from multiple folks that Wormley was going to play extensively this year before his ACL injury. In 2014 he will be fully healthy and huge and coached up and should fend off Matt Godin and others. May be at SDE.

4f9ee4cdf015e.image[1]26. WR Jehu Chesson, So*

The second starting wide receiver slot is anyone's guess. Chesson has the experience edge and an endorsement from the near-flawless MGoBlog Sleeper of the Year award. Fast, lanky leaper will hopefully be Braylon to Darboh's Avant.

c15b261f7463214432e9aaefd6b51644[1]27. SLOT Justice Hayes, Jr*

Potentially 404 FILE NOT FOUND here due to MANBALL. If they do have a smallish receiver who specializes in screens and end arounds, they'll have converted Hayes or it'll be an incoming freshman.

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

PUSHING FROM BEHIND

QB Shane Morris—raring to go after hopeful redshirt

RB Dennis Norfleet—make this man make plays

RB Thomas Rawls—Kevin Grady 2.0

WR Jaron Dukes—Junior Hemingway 2.0?

WR Pick An Apostroph'd Michigan Sleeper—one of Csont'e York or Da'Mario Jones will play

TE Jake Butt—strapping lad will be a matchup problem

C Blake Bars—could also play G if needed 

C Patrick Kugler—son of Steelers OL coach should be ready to go early.

G Kyle Bosch—reportedly the most ready of the 2013 class to compete right away

T Chris Fox—will have to wait on LTT so should be the third tackle

DE Keith Heitzman—in the rotation for sure

NT Willie Henry—late add from Glenville will be a major wild card

DT Matt Godin—run stuffer sort

WDE Frank Clark—will rotate with Beyer.

WDE Mario Ojemudia—will either be an impact rusher or off the radar by now

MLB Joe Bolden—probably a quasi-starter by this point.

ILB Royce Jenkins-Stone—Ross backup probably.

ILB Ben Gedeon—hanging around

CB Jourdan Lewis—Cass guy but bigger than most.

CB Delonte Holowell—will push at nickel. Has stopped tweeting : (

S Jeremy Clark—prospect of a 6'4" free safety entices

Comments

DualThreat

November 30th, 2012 at 12:15 PM ^

Team 135 just looks awesome.  Can't wait for that season.

Part of me just wishes we had this team on an odd numbered year to get the relatively easier schedule (a la 2011) vs. the harder schedule (a la 2012).  I could see this team playing for the National Championship without batting an eye.

As much as I'm looking forward to Shane Morris, boy am I going to miss quarterbacks who can make monstrous plays with their legs.  Team 135 looks to be the last team lead by a man of this style for quite some time.  Shame.

Nick Sparks

November 30th, 2012 at 12:26 PM ^

Hey Brian (or anyone) - just curious as to why you always list Norfleet as a RB when in our MANBALL offense he seems much more like a slot/Breaston/screen/end around type of guy and would make a better fit for your #27 spot than Hayes.

What am I missing here?

Ziff72

November 30th, 2012 at 1:01 PM ^

I love the piece, but I think you are placing a little too much faith in Morgan.  I like him,  I think you are right, but he has some guys behind him that may be tough to keep off the field.

WolvinLA2

November 30th, 2012 at 3:20 PM ^

Don't get he wrong - that was an awesome hit.  But he was unblocked, and Miller never even glanced his way, let alone attempted to avoid it.  Nothing against Clark, but any of our other DEs would have made that same play.

And I said this in another post - Clark gets more reps in passing downs, and Beyer gets most of the reps in running situations.  This leads to more big plays for Clark, since sacks and QB pressures don't happen much when you run it up the middle.  Beyer has proven to be the more solid run defender, which is why he gets the nod here.

GoWings2008

November 30th, 2012 at 3:59 PM ^

...and I'd give credit for that sack to not just Clark, but to the secondary for the coverage, the LBs for keeping the left side of the line occupied and Mattison for dialing up the play at the right time.  That was a team sack, for sure. 

Beyer, to my less-than-trained eye, is the more consistent performer.  I do, however, recall Clark making noteworthy plays in a number of the last few games of the season. 

Edit:  And by watching the rest of the play (not just the hit), Ross makes a nice move sucking up the guard (looks like) and then falling back into coverage which seemed to momentarily catch Miller's attention.

DelhiGoBlue

November 30th, 2012 at 7:19 PM ^

yet painful at the same time, and I'm not talking about Miller being in pain.  Clark comes off the end completely unblocked, almost like the right tackle doesn't like Miller.  However, on the opposite side of the line JMFR is cut down like he was struck by a scythe.  For a JMFR fan, that is painful to watch.

evenyoubrutus

November 30th, 2012 at 1:32 PM ^

I would say that on paper we should be freakin awesome in 2015, like we should be expecting an undefeated team heading to Columbus awesome, but I don't want to jinx it so I won't say that.

The FannMan

November 30th, 2012 at 1:50 PM ^

I wish you had waited to post these over the summer.  I have no other reason than how nuts I would have gone over these in late-June or July.  Ya gotta hold on to some stuff to get us through the summer.

WolvinLA2

November 30th, 2012 at 2:01 PM ^

Surprised on the lack of love for Heitzman.  He'll be a 4th year junior in 2014, and will likely be a returning starter (or a guy with a ton of snaps, at the least). 

It looks like you're predicting Strobel to have the job ahead of him, but I wouldn't be too sure about that.  Heitzman is so underrated by the fans it isn't even funny, and I bet it stems from his "meh" recruiting rankings, which is dumb since those can get thrown out the window once a kid has been on campus for a couple years.

jdub55

November 30th, 2012 at 2:15 PM ^

I'm gonna predict Willie Henry and Mario Ojemudia become big timers by then. Henry's recruiting highlights were mighty impressive and with a couple years of Mattison's technique teachings and focusing strictly on football he could be a beast.

ciszew

November 30th, 2012 at 2:41 PM ^

...as it stands now is will there be any playmakers on offense?  Funchbunch, maybe Devin Gardner (if he is still at UM), and D. Smith (unless D. Green decides he wants to play in the Big 16) are the most likely candidates.  For this team to truly achieve they are going to need a superstar on O that makes other coaches game plan for.  Brady needs to find his Braylon. 

I suppose it is way, way to early to even think these things though. 

reshp1

November 30th, 2012 at 4:43 PM ^

Our future WR depth at this point is terrifying. Don't get me wrong, I like the kids we have but there is pretty much zero room for error for any of them to be busts, not to mention injuries. At this point, you almost have to look at one of the CB prospects flipping over to WR

WolvinLA2

November 30th, 2012 at 5:03 PM ^

Terrifying is a stretch, but here is my stab at calming your fears:

If Conley comes back, it's very possible that either he or Jourdan Lewis end up WRs.  Both are dynamic athletes and great HS receivers, so that should help.

We still have a shot at Treadwell.

Even without Treadwell, we have three solid WRs in this class.  One or more of them will be a multi-year starter, most likely C'sonte York, in my opinion.

WR is maybe the easiest position to contribute as a true freshman.  If we don't get Treadwell, one or more elite WRs will be looking our way in the class of 2014, and if our depth ends up being all that terrifying, they'll be able to step in and contribute.

Don't forget about TEs.  Funchess, Butt and Hill are very good receivers and will take the pressure off of the guys out wide. 

Lastly - by 2014, our OL will be so good, whoever is playing QB will have eons to make a throw.  I could get open in the amount of time he'll have to throw.  Major mitigating factor right there. 

YoOoBoMoLloRoHo

December 1st, 2012 at 10:51 AM ^

This starting lineup is very solid and should control most games.

To terrorize the B1G and even contend for Nat Chmpshp, we need more playmakers on the field - especially if JMFR goes pro. Tread and McQuay are targets for exactly that purpose (Green's allure is probably more 20+ carries with 3-12 yd runs to abuse the D).

Dymonte, Devin and Funchess have to generate too many big plays by themselves. Butt, Clark and Mario should start for match-up issues over AJ, Beyer and Strobel. We still need 1-2 CBs with more range to fully use Mattison's D, 2 WRs to stretch the field and a dynamic RB.