Chase Winovich debuts on Mel Kiper's big board
http://www.espn.com/nfl/draft2019/insider/story/_/id/24933320/2019-nfl-draft-prospects-ranking-mel-kiper-big-board-ranking-top-25-grades-october
Now ranked #24, Chase has a real shot at a first-round selection if he can keep it up. I believe Brian and co. knew from the very start that he was dramatically under-rated as a recruit, but great to see him get the recognition like this. Keep up the good work Chase!
October 11th, 2018 at 3:19 PM ^
He could have went to the NFL last year and been drafted in the mid rounds. What a great decision he made for both himself and the team. Thank you chase !
October 11th, 2018 at 7:27 PM ^
Please share this post with a Mr. Rashan Gary.
October 11th, 2018 at 7:33 PM ^
He could have gone there as well.
October 11th, 2018 at 8:06 PM ^
Mo Hurst and now Winovich both drastically improving their draft position after returning for another year. Guess this means Gary and Bush have no choice but to return for their senior years
October 11th, 2018 at 8:22 PM ^
Mo Hurst? You are aware that he was drafted in the 5th round, right?
October 11th, 2018 at 8:51 PM ^
And almost certainly goes undrafted if not for his monster year that allowed a team to look past his medical condition.
October 12th, 2018 at 9:21 AM ^
He was projected as a potential first round draft pick before his last year. It wasn’t like he was thought of as a 4th rounder and played his way up.
I love Mo Hurst and watching him during his senior year was awesome, but he may not be the best example of somebody who stayed and completely elevated his stock.
October 11th, 2018 at 9:45 PM ^
Context clues are a hell of a thing.
October 11th, 2018 at 9:47 PM ^
LOL WOOPS
Ok technically his draft stock was still most likely improved even though he was a 5th rounder. I doubt teams would've drafted him any higher than the 5th before his breakout final year
I was going by what his draft stock was (1st-2nd round) before his heart issue came into play
October 11th, 2018 at 3:24 PM ^
Hello post and Recruiting Profile for reference.
October 11th, 2018 at 3:32 PM ^
Pretty on point, actually. Brian talked about him as a linebacker but the rest is accurate.
October 11th, 2018 at 3:32 PM ^
Uggggh, reading the comments section of that hello post. And this line ..... wow did UM whiff on a ton...
Michigan now has 11 commits in the class of 2014 and should be finished recruiting linebackers with Ferns and Winovich in the fold. The Wolverines currently have room to take ~15 players in the class, though that number should swell to around 20 when all is said and done. The main targets moving forward are SDE Da'Shawn Hand, 3-tech/SDE Malik McDowell, slot receiver Artavis Scott, and a trio of highly-ranked defensive backs: CA ATH Juju Smith, CA CB Adoree' Jackson, and IL CB Parrker Westphal, with the latter the most likely to end up in the class. They'll also likely take one more offensive lineman, though the top candidate for that spot is less clear—IL OL Jamarco Jones is the highest-rated target and has Michigan among his favorites, but Ohio State is presumed to hold the edge in his recruitment.
October 11th, 2018 at 3:50 PM ^
That was a brutal paragraph. The only name relevant to us was Winovich. Winter was coming.
October 11th, 2018 at 4:01 PM ^
It's rough, though both McDowell and Hand wound up not hurting as much as I thought they would. And good lord would JuJu Smith been unhappy in a Hoke offense.
October 11th, 2018 at 5:16 PM ^
Hoke would have wanted Smith at safety. Smith might have preferred it here too.
October 11th, 2018 at 8:23 PM ^
Probably, though seeing how he grew into a WR it's hard to know if he would have stuck to that at Michigan, especially considering Michigan wasn't really recruiting elite athletes at WR during the Hoke era, or at least not intentionally.
October 11th, 2018 at 5:11 PM ^
Is Juju Smith the same steelers WR Smith-Schuster ????
October 11th, 2018 at 5:17 PM ^
Based on when this was posted, position out of HS, ranking, and unique JuJu name, I would say yes for sure.
October 11th, 2018 at 5:37 PM ^
Hard to say, I work with two other guys named Juju Smith so it’s quite a common name.
October 11th, 2018 at 6:07 PM ^
My mom's name is juju Smith.
October 11th, 2018 at 6:22 PM ^
I once bought a box of jujubes, not bad.
October 11th, 2018 at 9:35 PM ^
Once my mother called me"Juju. ONCE!
October 11th, 2018 at 7:50 PM ^
I work with a couple Juju Smiths as well, and I don’t think we work at the same place.
October 12th, 2018 at 11:41 AM ^
Yes, and those guys were all elite elite prospects that year, so categorizing them as total whiffs is a bit harsh IMO.
Juju was never going to anywhere other than USC and Artavis Scott went to Clemson, Hand to Nana obviously .
October 11th, 2018 at 5:16 PM ^
wow did UM whiff on a ton
You realize you're talking about four surefire NFL players, right ? So you expect our recruiting hit rate to be 10X higher than any other team save Alabama ? Think about what you just typed.. it is incredibly irrational...
October 11th, 2018 at 5:36 PM ^
LOL...unless you get most of the top recruits you're going to "whiff on a ton" every year. We're fine.
October 11th, 2018 at 10:17 PM ^
Lol, only 3 posts into his hello post until we got “his OSU offer probably wasn’t committable.” It’s nice to know nothing has changed since 2013
October 11th, 2018 at 3:27 PM ^
Does ripping one's own heart out and eating it help or hurt draft stock?
October 11th, 2018 at 3:39 PM ^
Depends on position. A QB does that and it probably signifies your hurting your team.
October 11th, 2018 at 4:08 PM ^
Can someone much more internet-savvy than I please find a way to crop Chase Winovichs's head onto Mola Ram's body from the Temple of Doom? Right when he rips that prisoner's heart out would be preferable.
Going forward, I would love to hear Winovich shout "KALI MA!!!!!" after every sack.
October 11th, 2018 at 4:41 PM ^
One can be done for every game.
October 11th, 2018 at 5:02 PM ^
I may have found my new avatar picture.
My lone regret, sir, is that I have but one upvote to give.
October 11th, 2018 at 4:44 PM ^
KALI MA!!!
October 11th, 2018 at 5:28 PM ^
CAution LIve aniMAls?
October 11th, 2018 at 3:29 PM ^
Is he projected to go as a DE or LB by Kiper? I've heard some people project him as a LB in the NFL
October 11th, 2018 at 5:21 PM ^
Most likely he's a 3-4 OLB.
Think LaMarr Woodley.
Great DE in college, doesn't quite have the mass to be an every down DL at the next level. Still a position to be a productive pass rusher.
October 11th, 2018 at 3:40 PM ^
If he goes in the 1st round with how stacked this draft is with DL prospects, that really speaks to his talent.
October 11th, 2018 at 3:56 PM ^
I've been wondering why Winovich and Bush aren't appearing in the umpteen million mock drafts? Are they too small or don't project exactly into a pro defense?
October 11th, 2018 at 4:06 PM ^
I hope Bush's height projects him to go late.
October 11th, 2018 at 4:34 PM ^
This has never made sense to me, his height isn't the prototype, but his wingspan is defintely above 6'1" and his weight is 232lbs--and that's at a very low body fat. And he moves like a heat-seeking missle.
Also his torso is unusually wide, go look at any photos, he's built like a stout recking-ball.
Since LB is basically a game of beating someone to the point of attack and "low-man wins", his height is actually an advantage (much like how NFL RBs have actually been gettign SHORTER through the decades).
The only knock against the short height would be subsequent shorter arm length, however, he definitely has longer than average wingspan (although, legitimately all athletes do, hence the term "athletic gene"), and really when it comes down to measurement, he might even have the arm length of a 6'2"-6'3" player.
I don't see his height as a knock on him at all.
Also, this stuff is all pageantry, counting chickens before they hatch. Hell even just following the NFL for a few years, you can see it's all a crapshoot. The amount of washouts in the 1st round, and hidden gems in the 4th. The front offices and coaches can't predict this shit (Pats trade down every time and go for FA signings = sure thing), the "pundits and scribes" sure as hell can't predict this stuff either. It's all gambling, bread and circus show.
My original point, Devin Bush is a freak athlete, has a killer instinct, gets into the backfield, disrupts the pocket with ease, and tracks down and murders RBs game in game out, I believe that's what coaches refer to as a "ball-player".
October 11th, 2018 at 4:51 PM ^
Right - he is like an Eric Kendricks, but will be even better in my opinion and Kendricks is good. Kendricks is listed as 6' 0" 232 but he isn't that tall.
October 11th, 2018 at 5:24 PM ^
London Fletcher but FAST
October 11th, 2018 at 8:32 PM ^
more like earnie sims, the guy the lions took in the first round in '06, out of FSU. listed at 6' 0" 233, but really more like 5' 10 or 11" and fast. led the lions in tackles and had a decent pro career.
October 11th, 2018 at 8:34 PM ^
Julius Erving, but with a wicked forehand.
October 11th, 2018 at 6:15 PM ^
I agree. He should definitely come back to work on his height imo
October 11th, 2018 at 4:07 PM ^
Thank you sir. My fingers are getting numb from all this *Highlight* *Ctrl-C* *Click* *Ctrl-V*.
<3
October 11th, 2018 at 4:04 PM ^
He's had a great season; my guess is he'll get dinged by the perception that he's "maxed out" more than other guys, but he's playing like an AA and it seems like the pros are starting to see his potential.
October 11th, 2018 at 4:06 PM ^
Lions or Packers would be great fits.