Red Shirts seem to be settled down

Submitted by reddogrjw on

7 left - I imagine the only one that might get burned is Nordin

QB - Peters

RB - Walker

G - Spanellis

DE - Kemp - played, so the web page here should be updated

DE - R. Johnson

OLB - Gil - played, so the web page here should be updated

these 6 likely stick unless injuries force one of the defensive guys in

K - Nordin - plays based on need vs. FG Kicking performance

 

I think the 2 DE's plus those in the 2017 class and carryover should really continue to give us a great rotation there.  Onwenu to DT and get about 10 OL in the 2017 class and we're good

 

Walker and 2017 guys replacing Deveon Smith should keep that going strong - are Walker and Smith similar?  I want to say yes but do others have more insight?

 

Edit in bold - Even with those 2 defensive guys getting in some time depth on the D-Line should be in fine shape

Everyone Murders

October 13th, 2016 at 10:21 AM ^

The bonfire of the redshirts seems to have, as you note, settled.  This had been prominently on my radar in the beginning of the season and then I got distracted by all the shiny points and defensive displays. 

It's good to see that we have a decent number of redshirts tucked away.  I'd be OK with Nordin's getting burned, though, if we can't get the FG ship righted.

Ron Utah

October 13th, 2016 at 10:21 AM ^

I thought Kemp had played.
Walker and Smith are very different, IMO. Walker is faster but Smith has better balance. Walker is strong, but Smith is one of toughest RBs to tackle in Michigan history.
If Walker can develop vision and hit holes hard, he has the potential to be a terrific back. I doubt he will ever break tackles like Smith, but his speed makes him more of a home run threat, and he's plenty strong enough to bust arm tackles and gain extra yards after contact.



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LSAClassOf2000

October 13th, 2016 at 10:27 AM ^

I thought he played too, and I believe that that sort of stuff usually ends up on their player bios if they at least saw game action, but I could be wrong. Anyway, a casual thumb through the archives and other sources seems to confirm that Kemp did not see action yet this year, and I assume now he won't anyway. 

Qmatic

October 13th, 2016 at 10:30 AM ^

Kemp has played this year. He played against Penn St and Rutgers. He actually had a bad read on the first play he was in, which allowed Rutgers to gain their first first down.

Walker is a much different back than Smith. Walker is defnitely more elusive and has better speed than Smith. Smith hits the hole harder and has better balance. Smith also is probably the best pass blocker we've had at RB since Minor. I'm interested to see where Walker fits into the equation next year; especially if we somehow land Harris. Isaac, Evans, and Higdon look to be a great trio (reminds me of Earth, Wind, and Fire with the Giants).

TheTeamTheTeam…

October 13th, 2016 at 11:26 AM ^

Might even say Walker is more similar to Isaac than he is to Smith. Im with you on wondering where Walker fits in next year especially when you incorporate O'Maury Samuels, who I think has the best shot in the '17 crop to see the field early (assuming Harris is not in the class). But say Isaac does take the lead role next year, that just means that Walker (or others) can ease into high contributing roles before being the lead back

ChiCityWolverine

October 13th, 2016 at 10:33 AM ^

Now that the dust has settled on this a bit, I think the mass-burning of redshirts makes more sense looking back. McKeon/Eubanks were odd given TE depth, and Kingston Davis is likewise pretty buried on a loaded depth chart at RB. Many of the rest are either contributors, an injury away from the two-deep, and/or expected to be a key piece at their position in 2017. 

ChiCityWolverine

October 13th, 2016 at 11:23 AM ^

Yeah, I said it was odd that they burned the redshirts of both new TEs. Causes a logjam of 5 in the same "class" (although by spring we may be calling Gentry a WR). Even with Bunting nicked up, it's not like we've needed to dip down to our 6th and 7th TEs, including Jocz as a minor contributor as a walk-on.