Michigan’s NFL Draft History

Tag: Mike Martin


28Feb 2024
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Michigan’s NFL Draft History

Cesar Ruiz

Probably like many of you, I occasionally have a hankering for some Michigan NFL Draft history. Below you will find (as far as I’m aware) every pro draft pick in the history of Michigan’s football program going all the way back to 1937.

A few little factoids:

  • Michigan’s only two #1 overall NFL Draft picks are Jake Long in 2008 and Tom Harmon in 1941.
  • Michigan set a record in 2017 with 11 total draft picks.
  • Michigan’s record number of 1st round NFL draft picks is a tie with 3 each in 1995 (Tyrone Wheatley, Ty Law, Trezelle Jenkins) and 2001 (David Terrell, Steve Hutchinson, Jeff Backus).

2023
1st round: Mazi Smith – DT – Dallas Cowboys (#26)
2nd round: Luke Schoonmaker – TE – Dallas Cowboys (#58)
2nd round: D.J. Turner II – CB – Cincinnati Bengals (#60)
3rd round: Jake Moody – K – San Francisco 49ers (#99)
5th round: Mike Morris – DE – Seattle Seahawks (#151)
5th round: Olu Oluwatimi – C – Seattle Seahawks (#154)
6th round: Brad Robbins – P – Cincinnati Bengals (#217)
7th round: Ryan Hayes – OT – Miami Dolphins (#238)
7th round: Ronnie Bell – WR – San Francisco 49ers (#253)

2022
1st round: Aidan Hutchinson – DE – Detroit Lions (#2 overall)
1st round: Daxton Hill – S – Cincinnati Bengals (#31 overall)
2nd round: David Ojabo – OLB – Baltimore Ravens (#45 overall)
4th round: Hassan Haskins – RB – Tennessee Titans (#131 overall)
7th round: Andrew Stueber – OT – New England Patriots (#245 overall)

2021
1st round: Kwity Paye – DE – Indianapolis Colts (#21 overall)
3rd round: Jalen Mayfield – OT – Atlanta Falcons (#68 overall)
3rd round: Nico Collins – WR – Houston Texans (#89 overall)
3rd round: Ambry Thomas – CB – San Francisco 49ers (#102 overall)
5th round: Cam McGrone – LB – New England Patriots (#177 overall)
5th round: Ben Mason – FB – Baltimore Ravens (#184 overall)
6th round: Chris Evans – RB – Cincinnati Bengals (#202 overall)
7th round: Camaron Cheeseman – LS – Washington Football Team (#225 overall)

2020
1st round: Cesar Ruiz – C – New Orleans Saints (#24 overall)
2nd round: Josh Uche – OLB – New England Patriots (#60 overall)
4th round: Ben Bredeson – OG – Baltimore Ravens (#143 overall)
5th round: Khaleke Hudson – LB – Washington Redskins (#162 overall)
5th round: Mike Danna – DE – Kansas City Chiefs (#177 overall)
6th round: Michael Onwenu – OG – New England Patriots (#182 overall)
6th round: Donovan Peoples-Jones – WR – Cleveland Browns (#187 overall)
6th round: Jon Runyan, Jr. – OG – Green Bay Packers (#192 overall)
6th round: Josh Metellus – S – Minnesota Vikings (#205 overall)
6th round: Jordan Glasgow – LB – Indianapolis Colts (#213 overall)

2019
1st round: Devin Bush, Jr. – LB – Pittsburgh Steelers (#10 overall)
1st round: Rashan Gary – DE – Green Bay Packers (#12 overall)
3rd round: Chase Winovich – OLB – New England Patriots (#77 overall)
3rd round: David Long, Jr. – CB – Los Angeles Rams (#79 overall)
5th round: Zach Gentry – TE – Pittsburgh Steelers (#141 overall)

2018
3rd round: Mason Cole – C – Arizona Cardinals (#97)
5th round: Maurice Hurst, Jr. – DT – Oakland Raiders (#140)

2017
1st round: Jabrill Peppers – S – Cleveland Browns (#25)
1st round: Taco Charlton – DE – Dallas Cowboys (#28)
3rd round: Chris Wormley – DT – Baltimore Ravens (#74)
3rd round: Jourdan Lewis – CB – Dallas Cowboys (#92)
3rd round: Delano Hill – S – Seattle Seahawks (#95)
3rd round: Amara Darboh – WR – Seattle Seahawks (#106)
4th round: Ben Gedeon – LB – Minnesota Vikings (#120)
4th round: Ryan Glasgow – DT – Cincinnati Bengals (#138)
4th round: Jehu Chesson – WR – Kansas City Chiefs (#139)
5th round: Jake Butt – TE – Denver Broncos (#145)
6th round: Jeremy Clark – CB – New York Jets (#197)

2016
3rd round: Graham Glasgow – C – Detroit Lions (#95)
4th round: Willie Henry – DT – Baltimore Ravens (#132)
6th round: Jake Rudock – QB – Detroit Lions (#191)

2015
2nd round: Devin Funchess – WR – Carolina Panthers (#41)
2nd round: Frank Clark – DE – Seattle Seahawks (#63)
4th round: Jake Ryan – LB – Green Bay Packers (#129)

2014
1st round: Taylor Lewan – OT – Tennessee Titans (#11)
3rd round: Michael Schofield – OT – Denver Broncos (#95)
7th round: Jeremy Gallon – WR – New England Patriots (#244)

2013
5th round: Denard Robinson – RB – Jacksonville Jaguars (#135)
6th round: William Campbell – DT – New York Jets (#178)

Hit the jump for the remainder of Michigan’s historical draft picks.

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31Dec 2019
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Michigan’s All-Decade Team: 2010-2019

Taylor Lewan

There are probably some controversial choices here – starting with the quarterback choice – but if I were putting together an all-star squad from the 2010-2019 seasons, here’s who I would want on my team.

QUARTERBACK: Jake Rudock
RUNNING BACK: Fitzgerald Toussaint
FULLBACK/H-BACK: Khalid Hill
WIDE RECEIVER: Jeremy Gallon
WIDE RECEIVER: Junior Hemingway
TIGHT END: Jake Butt
OFFENSIVE TACKLE: Taylor Lewan
OFFENSIVE GUARD: Ben Bredeson
CENTER: David Molk
OFFENSIVE GUARD: Patrick Omameh
OFFENSIVE TACKLE: Mason Cole
OFFENSIVE ALL-PURPOSE: Denard Robinson

DEFENSIVE END: Chase Winovich
DEFENSIVE END: Taco Charlton
DEFENSIVE TACKLE: Maurice Hurst, Jr.
DEFENSIVE TACKLE: Mike Martin
OUTSIDE LINEBACKER: Jake Ryan
INSIDE LINEBACKER: Devin Bush, Jr.
INSIDE LINEBACKER: Ben Gedeon
CORNERBACK: Jourdan Lewis
CORNERBACK: David Long
SAFETY: Jarrod Wilson
SAFETY: Dymonte Thomas
NICKEL: Jabrill Peppers
DEFENSIVE ALL-PURPOSE: Jordan Kovacs

PUNTER: Will Hart
KICKER: Kenny Allen
PUNT RETURNER: Donovan Peoples-Jones
KICKOFF RETURNER: Giles Jackson

6Dec 2019
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Review of 2008 Recruiting: Defensive Tackle

Mike Martin (image via AnnArbor.com)

THE ROSTER

  • Will Johnson (RS Sr.)
  • Terrance Taylor (Sr.)
  • Jason Kates (RS So.)
  • Renaldo Sagesse (So.)

THE RECRUITS

Mike Martin
High school: Novi (MI) Catholic Central
Ratings: 4-star, #14 DT, #213 overall
School: Michigan
Other notable offers: Michigan State, Notre Dame, Penn State
Scoop: Martin was an immediate-impact guy in Ann Arbor. He made 20 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, and 2 sacks as a true freshman. He was consistently good and highly productive for the Wolverines, totaling 172 tackles, 25 tackles for loss, and 10 sacks through 2011. He was a 3rd round pick (#82 overall) of the Tennessee Titans in 2012, but his career slowly faded. His best year was his rookie season (22 tackles, 3 sacks), he barely played in 2015, and he ended up signed with the Eagles in 2016 but didn’t play during the regular season.

Hit the jump for more.

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13Jul 2019
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The All-Rodriguez Team: Defense and Special Teams

Brandon Graham

This is the second installment of the All-Rodriguez Team (offense here), the brightest and best of the players coached by Rich Rodriguez and his bumbling henchmen defensive colleagues.

And I’m choosing players for a 4-3, not that moronic 3-3-5* they tried to shoehorn in there.

DE: Brandon Graham (2009)
64 tackles, 26 tackles for loss, 10.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery
Graham was the single most dominant defensive player during Rodriguez’s tenure.  He put up ridiculous numbers for a bad defense, even though he was double-teamed frequently.  And the best thing about Graham was the way his motor improved throughout his career.  He ate his way into playing defensive tackle as a freshman, but by his senior year in 2009, he never stopped going 100%.  That year turned him into a first round pick by the Philadelphia Eagles.

DT: Mike Martin (2009)
51 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 1 forced fumble
Martin seemed like a better player at the beginning of 2010 than in his sophomore year, but a couple sprained ankles slowed him down as a junior.  Even as a crippled junior, though, he would have deserved to be on this team.  Undersized for a nose tackle at 299 lbs., he still defeated double-teams on the regular.

DT: Ryan Van Bergen (2009)
38 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, 5 sacks, 1 fumble recovery, 1 touchdown
Van Bergen’s production in 2010 was virtually the same as 2009, but technically, all thirteen games he started in 2010 were at the defensive end position.  I need a tackle, and he’s my man.  He’s another high-motor guy who played well at DT despite having the body of a strongside end.  I was tempted to choose Terrance Taylor here based on overall talent, but Taylor really didn’t produce much in his only season under Rodriguez (2008: 35 tackles, 1.5 sacks).

DE: Tim Jamison (2008)
50 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles
Jamison didn’t really stand out in 2008, but I think Michigan fans were shell-shocked by how bad the team was overall.  And while Jamison wasn’t a huge difference maker, he would have fit in just as well on a good defense, too.

LB: Steve Brown (2009)
80 tackles, 8 tackles for loss, 1 sack, 3 pass breakups, 1 forced fumble
I don’t know if Brown was miscast as a safety or if he was just coached poorly in his first three years, but he took a quantum leap as a senior when he was moved to the SAM linebacker position.  Brown never came off the field, playing linebacker on first and second downs and then becoming the nickel back on third downs.  Brown’s position change was perhaps the best personnel move of Rodriguez’s tenure, and Brown parlayed it into being a late draft pick by the Oakland Raiders.

LB: Kenny Demens (2010)
82 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 1 pass breakup
I will be the first to admit that I was not enamored with Demens during his first couple years, but he made me a believer in the second half of the season.  He only started seven games after backing up Obi Ezeh for the first half of the year, but he still ended up third on the team in tackles.  I still think Demens makes some poor decisions due to being overaggressive in attacking the line of scrimmage, but that’s probably better than whatever Ezeh did from 2008-10.

LB: Jonas Mouton (2010)
117 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 2 pass breakups, 1 forced fumble, 2 fumble recoveries
Based on statistics alone, Mouton was borderline First Team All-Big Ten.  He averaged 9.8 tackles a game (which was .9 more than teammate Jordan Kovacs and 1.1 more than the next best Big Ten player, Indiana’s Tyler Replogle) and led the conference in tackles, despite playing in only twelve of Michigan’s thirteen contests.  But players on bad defenses don’t get much respect, especially when they make some inexplicably bad plays (see the long TD run by Illinois’s Jason Ford).  With a solid supporting cast, I think Mouton’s play would have stood out more.

CB: Donovan Warren (2009)
66 tackles, 4 interceptions, 7 pass breakups, 1 touchdown
Warren thought his junior season would propel him to NFL stardom, but just like Ernest Shazor, he left early and didn’t even get drafted.  Four interceptions isn’t too shabby, and it helps that one (vs. Iowa) went for a touchdown and another (vs. Indiana) was a fantastic diving interception that preserved a victory for the Wolverines.

CB: Morgan Trent (2008)
41 tackles, 3 interceptions, 2.5 tackles for loss, 2 pass breakups
Michigan fans will hate me for this, but Trent beats out James Rogers.  This just shows how poor Michigan’s defense was over the past three years, because everybody’s whipping boy was the second-best cornerback.  The thing that bugged me about criticism of Trent was that he took a lot of heat on message boards for playing 10 yards off the line of scrimmage, but that was clearly a coaching decision.  I think Michigan fans realized this by 2010, and if Trent had played for Michigan a year or two later, he might not have drawn as much ire.  Trent wasn’t the most agile corner, but he did have good speed and was a better tackler than many gave him credit for.  All that being said, I would actually like to put Troy Woolfolk here, but I need a free safety.

FS: Troy Woolfolk (2009)
46 tackles, 1 pass breakup
Woolfolk could fit on this team at cornerback or safety, but Michigan’s horrible defense was horribler once Woolfolk moved to corner for the second half of the year.  The Wolverines gave up 23 points per game with him at safety, an average that ballooned to 37 points per game (not counting FCS soup can Delaware State) once he switched to cornerback.  His statistics aren’t great, but stats don’t tell the whole story.  He was a consistent presence, a solid tackler, and had the speed to prevent some big plays.

SS: Jordan Kovacs (2010)
116 tackles, 2 interceptions, 8.5 tackles for loss, 1 sack, 1 pass breakup, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery
For two years, I’ve been hoping that someone more athletic would take Kovacs’s job.  But I’ve got to give credit where credit is due – Kovacs has been the best guy so far.  He rarely gets out of position, and I didn’t see a more dependable open field tackler on the team.  His 116 tackles (second only to Jonas Mouton in the Big Ten) speak for themselves, but he fills up the stat sheet in other ways, too.  You can’t help but love the guy.

P: Will Hagerup (2010)
33 punts, 1440 yards, 43.6 yards per punt, 11 punts inside the twenty
This was the most difficult choice of the entire All-Rodriguez team, a head-to-head matchup between Hagerup and Zoltan Mesko 2009.  Mesko averaged 44.5 yards per punt in 2009, but fully one-third of Hagerup’s punts were downed inside the twenty yard line (only 28% of Mesko’s were downed inside the twenty).  If you have a good offense (which this squad does), then you want a guy who can pin the opposing team deep.  It doesn’t matter if you can boom a punt when your offense moves the ball down the field before having to give it up.  But if you do need a long punt, Hagerup has a 72-yarder to his credit.  Both players would be good choices, though.

K: Jason Olesnavage (2009)
11-for-15 on field goals (73.3%), 42-for-43 on extra points (97.7%)
Special teams weren’t a strength under Rodriguez, but Olesnavage was pretty solid.  Along with being nearly perfect on extra points, he was 9-for-10 on field goals longer than 30 yards (only 2-for-5 from 29 yards in).

PR: Martavious Odoms (2008)
10 returns, 126 yards, 12.6 yards per return, 1 touchdown
Do I have to choose?  Seriously, this is painful.  Punt returns have been atrocious since 2008.  Odoms is really the only choice, even though he seemed to muff a punt every other game.  That’s not an exaggeration, either.  I wish it was.  I can either choose Odoms (who did have an exciting 73-yard touchdown against Purdue), or a handful of guys who averaged somewhere around two or four yards a return (Donovan Warren, Greg Mathews, Jeremy Gallon).  I would like to choose Drew Dileo, who looks like the best returner for the near future, but he only had 2 returns for 13 yards in 2010.

KR: Darryl Stonum (2009)
39 returns, 1001 yards, 25.7 yards per return, 1 touchdown
Partially due to the defense giving up a ton of points, Stonum had the most kickoff return yards in any season in Michigan history.  He beat Steve Breaston (2004: 28 returns for 689 yards) by 312 yards.  His 94-yard touchdown return against Notre Dame was one of the most exciting plays of the year.

*For clarification purposes, the 3-3-5 itself is not a moronic concept.  It can work, just not when your personnel is more suited for a 4-man front and your defensive coordinator is clueless about how to run it.

This content was originally posted on April 4, 2011.

6Dec 2014
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The All-Hoke Team: Defense, Special Teams

Jake Ryan (image via MGoBlog)

I posted the offense yesterday (LINK), so here are the defenders and specialists. Since Michigan ran a 4-3 Under for three of Hoke’s four years, I’m going with that look for my all-star team.

SDE: Ryan Van Bergen (2011)

45 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, 1 forced fumble, 3 fumble recoveries, 4 pass breakups
Van Bergen was a stalwart defensive end for Michigan as a senior, earning All-Big Ten Honorable Mention but helping the entire defense by getting consistent penetration and having a great game in the win against Ohio State.

NT: Ryan Glasgow (2014)
24 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery
Glasgow made huge strides from his redshirt freshman to redshirt sophomore season, which propelled him past Quinton Washington for this spot. Glasgow was mostly able to hold his ground against double teams.

DT: Mike Martin (2011)
64 tackles, 6 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks
Martin was named Second Team All-Big Ten for his performance in 2011, and he was consistently in the opponent’s backfield. Opposing centers couldn’t handle him one-on-one as a nose tackle, which allowed some young and/or mediocre linebackers behind him to make plays.

WDE: Frank Clark (2014)
42 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, 1 fumble recovery, 2 pass breakups
I hesitated to put Clark on here because he was kicked off the team for an (alleged) domestic violence transgression. But just looking at the on-field results, Clark was a force. He achieved the above numbers in just ten games before being booted, and they would have been higher if Michigan’s coverage in the secondary hadn’t been so poor in the early part of the season.

Hit the jump for linebackers, defensive backs, and specialists.

SLB: Jake Ryan (2012)
88 tackles, 16 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, 4 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, 3 pass breakups
Ryan was a huge playmaker for the Wolverines coming off the edge, and he had an ability to keep faster players from breaking contain. He was a capable pass rusher who sometimes played defensive end or blitzed from the interior of the defense.

MLB: Desmond Morgan (2012)
81 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, .5 sacks, 2 pass breakups
Pick any year from 2011 to 2013, and Morgan was basically the same guy in each. Other than a superb one-handed interception against UConn in 2013, I thought he peaked as a sophomore (he has one year remaining after redshirting this past season). Just a steady presence in the middle of the field.

WLB: Joe Bolden (2014)
102 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 1 pass breakup
This was a tough choice between Bolden and Kenny Demens, but I think Bolden has developed into a better tackler than Demens. Bolden looked a little out of place in his first two years, but he emerged as a junior under the tutelage of defensive coordinator Greg Mattison, who took over the linebacker position.

CB: Blake Countess (2013)
46 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 6 interceptions (1 touchdown), and 4 pass breakups
Playing a lot of nickel corner in 2013, Countess was outstanding. He was named First Team All-Big Ten and tied for the conference lead in interceptions.

CB: Jourdan Lewis (2014)
39 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 2 interceptions, 6 pass breakups
Lewis got called for a few pass interference penalties, but he almost never got cleanly beaten by defenders. He was the only defensive back to record an interception in 2014, and his hustle plays against Utah and Maryland saved a couple potential touchdowns.

S: Thomas Gordon (2011)
67 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 1 interception, 2 forced fumbles, 4 fumble recoveries, 2 pass breakups
Surely it was a run of good luck, but Gordon was always around the ball as a redshirt sophomore in 2011. From his one-handed interception against Eastern Michigan to his four recoveries, he was a takeaway machine.

S: Jordan Kovacs (2011)
75 tackles, 8 tackles for loss, 4 sacks, 1 interception, 2 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, 1 pass breakup
Kovacs was a revelation for Michigan fans who were used to predictable defense from 2008-2010. Often used as a blitzer, Kovacs would stunt off the edge and was very adept at keeping outside contain despite average speed.

PR: Jeremy Gallon (2011)
19 returns, 192 yards, 10.1 yards/return
In general, the returners were not good during Hoke’s tenure. Gallon was the only one able to manage over 10 yards/return, nobody returned a punt for a touchdown (blocked punts notwithstanding), and Hoke generally went for safety over big-play ability.

KR: Dennis Norfleet (2013)
40 kickoff returns, 938 yards, 23.5 yards/return
Norfleet is #1 all-time at Michigan in career returns (94) and return yardage (2,203). I thought his patience and vision were best in 2013, but all three seasons have seen him with between a 23.05 and 23.63 yard average with a long return of 38-44 yards, so his seasons are mostly indistinguishable from each other.

P: Will Hagerup (2012)
45.0 yards/punt, 3 inside the 20-yard line, 4 touchbacks, 4 fair catches, 13 punts of 50+ yards
It’s tough to pick a season for Hagerup. He was the Big Ten Punter of the Year in 2012, but the coaches in the conference voted him as Honorable Mention All-Big Ten. He showed a big leg, but he only pinned teams inside their own 20-yard line 3 times while having 4 touchbacks (by contrast, he landed 16 inside the 20-yard line in 2014 but also had 9 touchbacks while averaging 42.9 yards/attempt).

K: Brendan Gibbons (2012)
16/18 on field goals (88.9%) with a long of 52, 45/45 on extra points
Gibbons had some memorable kicks in each of his final three years, but he was clutch in 2012. He hit his career long of 52 against Nebraska, he knocked one through to send the Northwestern game to overtime, and he hit the game-winner against Michigan State.

LS: Jareth Glanda (2011)
1 catch for 11 yards
Glanda was only the short snapper (field goals, extra points) in 2011, leaving the long snapping duties (punts) to Tom Pomarico. But Pomarico never caught a pass like Glanda did in the Sugar Bowl. Neither one had a bad snap, and Glanda would go on to be the long snapper in 2012 and 2013, but I’m picking 2011 because it’s my blog, dammit.

H: Drew Dileo (2011 and 2013)
Once again, I’m breaking the rules because you can’t stop me. In 2011 Dileo converted three fake field goals – a 3-yard run against Michigan State, a 4-yard run against Nebraska, and a pass (which was tipped and ended up in the hands of Glanda). Then again, in 2013 he slid into the holding position for Brendan Gibbons’s game-tying field goal at the end of regulation, which helped turn a loss into an eventual victory.