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Phillip Paea, Ex-Wolverine

Defensive tackle Phillip Paea has entered the transfer portal. Paea played in just a few games from 2017-2020, bouncing back and forth between offensive and defensive line.

Paea was recruited for defensive tackle, even though I said all along I liked him best on offense (LINK). I initially gave him a TTB Rating of 76 thinking the staff might come around, but as it became clear he was headed for defense, I lowered that to 68 (LINK).

It seems to be rather unusual that a player in modern football sticks around for four years without having a role on offense or defense, but that was the case here with Paea. As a grad transfer, he now has two years to play two.

That 2017 class was thought to be a great in-state haul, but Donovan Peoples-Jones and Ambry Thomas only played three years each, never reaching their ceiling. Deron Irving-Bey, Ja’Raymond Hall, Jaylen Kelly-Powell, and Joshua Ross rounded out that in-state class. The only one remaining is Ross, and so far, none has received honors above Third Team All-Big Ten.

Ex-Wolverines: Class of 2011

Here’s a look back at the recruits who did not pan out for Michigan in 2011, the transition class between Rich Rodriguez and Brady Hoke.

TRANSFERS

Chris Barnett – Tight end – Hurst (TX) L.D. Bell
Barnett was an outstanding tight end coming out of high school.  He tore his ACL during his senior year and struggled to regain his playing shape.  When he arrived at Michigan in the summer of 2011 for his freshman season, he weighed 278 lbs.  By late August the distance from home, the summer classwork, and the required physical conditioning forced him to leave the program and re-evaluate his options.  He enrolled at a Texas junior college, but left that program.
Current status: Unknown

Russell Bellomy – Quarterback – Arlington (TX) Martin
After the decommitment of Kevin Sousa in December 2010 (see below), Michigan was scrambling for a more traditional quarterback, whereas Sousa had been a dual-threat guy. He was previously committed to Purdue, but that changed when Michigan came calling. He redshirted in 2011. Then he played in five games in 2012, including stepping in for Denard Robinson against Nebraska, which was an ugly performance (3/16, 38 yards, 0 TD, 3 INT), and stuck around through 2014. Altogether, he was 4/23 for 46 yards and 4 interceptions at Michigan. He transferred to UTSA as a senior in 2015, completing 4/10 passes for 39 yards and rushing 7 times for 21 yards.
Current status: Out of football

Greg Brown – Cornerback – Fremont (OH) Ross
Brown was the first commitment of the 2011 class after choosing the Wolverines in September of 2009.  He enrolled early in January 2011, but was one of those kids who was caught in the middle between Rich Rodriguez and Brady Hoke.  Rodriguez recruited him, but he wasn’t fired until January, when Brown was already on campus.  The cornerback received mixed reviews in spring practices and played sparingly on special teams at the beginning of the 2011 season, but decided to transfer mid-season.  He played sparingly for Findlay in 2012, then transferred to Iowa Central Community College prior to the 2013 season.
Current status: Out of football

Hit the jump for more.

Way Too Early 2021 Depth Chart: April 2021

The following depth chart has removed the following players from the 2020 depth chart for various reasons:

• LB William Mohan (transfer)
• S Hunter Reynolds (transfer)
• WR Giles Jackson (transfer)
• C Zach Carpenter (transfer to Indiana)
• RB Zach Charbonnet (transfer to UCLA)
• WR Giles Jackson (transfer)
• QB Joe Milton (transfer)
• RB Christian Turner (transfer to Wake Forest)
• LB Ben VanSumeren (transfer to Michigan State)
• DE Luiji Vilain (transfer to Wake Forest)

It also assumes that every currently rostered player and every currently committed prospect will be here in 2021, which is obviously not true.

Hit the jump for the depth chart.

Ex-Wolverine Commit Updates: Spring 2021

I would appreciate any support you can offer through Amazon purchases (LINK):

DECOMMITS

Marcus Allen, WR (Wisconsin): Allen signed with the Badgers in the 2021 class.

Tim Baldwin, Jr., RB (Indiana): Baldwin ran 22 times for 141 yards as a backup for the Hoosiers.

Kalil Branham, WR: Branham is no longer on the Kentucky football team, but he does not appear to be in the transfer portal.

Hit the jump for more.

William Mohan, Ex-Wolverine

Rising second-year linebacker William Mohan has entered the transfer portal. Mohan made 1 tackle on special teams last season.

I gave Mohan a TTB Rating of 88 when he committed (LINK). He was a whirling dervish coming off the edge. At 6’1″ and 205 lbs., he still had some filling out to do but I thought he could be a terror. He was a 3-star, the #23 athlete, and #461 overall coming out of high school in 2020.

Recruited for the Viper position that is now obsolete with the departure of defensive coordinator Don Brown, obviously he did not see a fit with the new defensive staff. I expect Macdonald to use more of a safety-like presence as a nickel player rather than running out a quasi-linebacker on almost every down. As I’ve mentioned previously, it’s much easier to move safeties up into the box than to teach a linebacker to play safety.

Michigan now has 86 scholarship players on the roster (LINK), so at least one more player needs to depart before Michigan is under its limit for 2021.