Tyrone Wheatley, Jr. (left) with his father in summer 2015
If you guess the score correctly for the upcoming basketball game vs. the Buckeyes, you can win a $40 gift card to Amazon (LINK).
A few weeks ago, I asked the poll question: Which redshirting playing are you most excited about for the future?
Hit the jump for the results:
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| Grant Newsome is going to have to settle for . . . a better number. He’ll wear #77 in college. Redshirt sophomore Logan Tuley-Tillman wears #72 currently. |
The incoming freshmen have jersey numbers. And, boy oh boy, this is an exciting time and we’re all nerds.
Reuben Jones: #4
Last worn on defense by: Linebacker Cameron Gordon from 2010-2013.
Currently worn by: Running back De’Veon Smith.
Keith Washington: #6
Last worn on defense by: Cornerback Raymon Taylor from 2011-2014.
Currently worn by: Quarterback Brian Cleary.
Tyrone Wheatley, Jr.: #8
Last worn on offense by: Quarterback Russell Bellomy from 2012-2014.
Currently worn by: Quarterback Joey Hewlett and cornerback Channing Stribling.
Grant Perry: #9
Last worn on offense by: Wide receiver Martavious Odoms from 2008-2011.
Currently worn by: Linebacker Mike McCray II.
Zach Gentry: #10
Last worn on offense by: Wide receiver Da’Mario Jones. Jones wore #11 in high school, which is the Wistert brothers’ retired number.
Currently worn by: Da’Mario Jones?
Alex Malzone: #12
Last worn on offense by: Wide receiver Roy Roundtree from 2009-2011.
Currently worn by: Linebacker Allen Gant.
Andrew David: #16
Last worn on special teams by: Kicker Peter Elezovic in 1992.
Currently worn by: Wide receiver Jack Wangler.
Tyree Kinnel: #17
Last worn on defense by: Cornerback Tony Anderson from 2008-2011.
Currently worn by: Wide receiver Freddy Canteen.
Karan Higdon: #22
Last worn on offense by: Wide receiver Darryl Stonum from 2008-2011.
Currently worn by: Safety Jarrod Wilson.
Jon Runyan, Jr.: #75
Last worn on offense by: Offensive tackle Michael Schofield from 2009-2013. Runyan’s father, who played for Michigan in the 1990’s, wore #69.
Currently worn by: Runyan only.
Grant Newsome: #77
Last worn on offense by: Offensive tackle Taylor Lewan from 2009-2013.
Currently worn by: Newsome only.
Brian Cole: #81
Last worn on offense by: Wide receiver Csont’e York in 2013.
Currently worn by: Only Cole.
The following players’ jersey numbers have not been released yet (previous number in parentheses):
Shelton Johnson (#7)
Wayne Lyons (#2)
John O’Korn (#5)
Blake O’Neill (#39)
Jake Rudock (#15)
Nolan Ulizio (#70)
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| Brian Cole, Jim Harbaugh, and Tyree Kinnel (left to right) |
Yeah, that’s right. Michigan. What is up with Michigan’s recruiting?
2015 Team Ranking: #38. Michigan signed six 4-stars and eight 3-stars in February. The 14 total signees is Michigan’s smallest class in the Rivals era, which began in 2002.
Cream of 2015 Crop: The biggest fish is Saginaw (MI) Heritage wide receiver Brian Cole, who was a 4-star, the #5 athlete, and #74 overall. Cole was a speedy jack of all trades in high school, playing running back, receiver, safety, returner, and punter. He enrolled early in the spring and got positive reviews, although he needs to get stronger in order to match up against college players. The Wolverines also pulled in a late steal in the form of Albuquerque (NM) Eldorado quarterback Zach Gentry, a 6’7″, 230 lb. pro-style quarterback who’s a 4-star, the #8 player at his position, and #175 overall.
2016 Team Ranking: #31. Michigan has three 4-stars and three 3-stars committed.
Cream of 2016 Crop: Michigan’s highest rated recruit so far is Downers Grove (IL) South offensive tackle Erik Swenson, who committed to Michigan in November 2013 and has since pulled in an offer from Alabama. He’s a 4-star, the #17 offensive tackle, and #158 overall. Slightly behind him is Avon (IN) Avon quarterback Brandon Peters, who chose Michigan over LSU in early April 2014. Peters is a 4-star, the #9 pro-style guy, and #185 overall.
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| Shane Morris wasn’t smiling very often during the 2014 season. |
Thanks to Jerry, Jonathan, and Keith for your very generous donations to the TTB redesign drive! If anyone else would like to chip in to the $3,000 goal, you can use Paypal (LINK, or on the left sidebar) or go shopping at Amazon (LINK). Thanks!
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Last week I posed the question: Who will start at quarterback in 2015?
I’ll start off by saying that I don’t really care who the starter is. What matters most to me is that the starter is good, or at least the best man for the job.
Shane Morris (Jr.): 31%
The junior Morris is the most experienced guy currently on Michigan’s roster, although a transfer in from Jake Rudock (below) would change that immediately. Unfortunately, Morris has a 0-to-5 touchdown-to-interception ratio and completed just 35% of his passes last year. The highly touted recruited has a cannon for an arm and some decent wheels, but his decision-making has left a lot to be desired.
Wilton Speight (RS Fr.): 30%
Speight has earned some momentum in spring practices, according to some observers. He’s a big guy who can move a little bit. Despite being a redshirt freshman, he will turn 21 in December of this year after taking an extra year of high school due to a broken collarbone.
Alex Malzone (Fr.): 21%
Malzone has earned some praise this spring from some observers, and the occasional report says he’s the leading candidate for the job right now. However, I have not heard as many positive reports on him as the former two. Malzone is reportedly struggling with mechanics, arm strength, and the speed of the game right now.
Jake Rudock (5th): 16%
Rudock, who is visiting Michigan this weekend, has not been offered by the Wolverines yet. And in order to come to Michigan, he would need to jump through some hoops with the Big Ten, since he’s a fifth year transfer candidate from the University of Iowa. I imagine that 16% number here has more to do with whether he’ll actually choose/be allowed to play for Michigan, since his starting experience, 61.7% completions, and 16-to-5 interception ratio last year would almost certainly vault him to the top of this list.
Zach Gentry (Fr.): 0% (2 votes)
Gentry is a true freshman who will not arrive on campus until this summer. While he might have the highest ceiling of everyone on this list (he’s 6’7″, has a strong arm, and a good runner), he will also be the newest to the college game.
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| You want Wilton Speight to be Michigan’s starter, don’t you? |
In case you’ve been under a rock for the past several months, you realize by now that Michigan is in a pretty undesirable position when it comes to the quarterback . . . position. The Wolverines lost a 2.5-year starter in the form of Devin Gardner, who is pursuing a career as an NFL wide receiver. Meanwhile, one experienced backup has struggled greatly, the other experienced backup transferred to the University of Texas at San Antonio, and the other guys available are freshmen of differing sorts. Nobody really knows how this will shake out, but here are some thoughts and rumors.
THE FRONT-RUNNER: Shane Morris (Jr.)
2014 stats: 14/40 (35%), 128 yards, 0 touchdowns, 3 interceptions
It’s hard to believe that someone with those statistics could be the front-runner for any job, but Morris is the aforementioned experienced backup. He backed up Gardner in 2013 as a freshman when Russell Bellomy had a torn ACL. He did not fare well, but there were glimpses against a pretty good Kansas State defense in the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl. Then 2014 came along, and there were no more glimpses. Morris threw an ugly late-game interception in a blowout win over Appalachian State, and he also threw picks against Utah and Minnesota; meanwhile, despite some decent running skills, Morris has yet to account for any kind of touchdown during his college career. That’s 87 career passing attempts and 15 carries without a score. This spring he has reportedly been splitting snaps pretty evenly with the other scholarship quarterbacks available, but nobody has separated himself. Morris has a strong arm, decent accuracy, and those running skills, but his decision-making has generally been terrible.
Hit the jump for the rest of Michigan’s options under center.
THE FAN FAVORITE: Wilton Speight (RS Fr.)
2014 stats: Did not play while redshirting
I call Speight the “fan favorite” because, like just about any fan base, Michigan’s seems to think the backup is better than the starter. I use those terms loosely, of course, because neither slot is filled, but it’s only natural to think that the experienced junior would start while the inexperienced redshirt freshman bides his time. Speight is bigger (6’6″, 235 lbs.) than Morris and not quite as mobile, but the buzz is that he has more leadership qualities and has been picking up the offense quicker. Speight is not exactly a statue in the pocket, but him winning the job would largely negate the threat of designed runs for the quarterback. I was higher on Morris than Speight coming out of high school, although I did have some questions about Morris’s decision-making. Now that it appears Morris will not fill his borderline 5-star potential, it does seem intriguing to see what Speight can do.
THE DARK HORSE: Alex Malzone (Fr.)
2014 stats: 211/325 (64.9%), 2998 yards, 38 touchdowns, 5 interceptions as a senior in high school
Malzone passed up a couple mediocre Power Five conference schools and some MAC offers to stay home and play for the Wolverines. He enrolled early this past January and is currently in the midst of his first spring practice session. One thing I noted when he was in high school was that he seemed to be totally in command of his team’s offense. Nothing really stands out about his high school film other than that – he’s not particularly big, strong-armed, fast, etc. – but sometimes that can be enough. He played in a pro-style offense in high school that should mesh fairly well with what he is learning from Jim Harbaugh, although surely at a more complicated level. The coaches have reportedly been impressed with his ability to learn the playbook quickly, and I should note that I don’t believe I’ve ever heard that reported about Morris. While Speight and Malzone have been noted for their football aptitude, Morris has been more of the best overall athlete of the bunch.
THE ROOKIE GUNSLINGER: Zach Gentry (Fr.)
2014 stats: Unavailable
The 6’7″, 230 lb. freshman won’t arrive at Michigan until the summer, so all we have to go on is his high school film. It’s impressive high school film, but it also shows him playing against a bunch of New Mexicans, who are not regarded for their football abilities. Gentry is a one-time Texas commit, and while he may not have been ranked as high as Morris, he might have been more coveted by other programs; Morris stopped reporting new offers after he committed to Michigan very early in the process. Regardless, Gentry is very tall, has excellent speed for someone his size, and has a pretty strong arm. He might rival Morris for being the best athlete at the quarterback position, but these two will be on opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to experience. After Michigan hired Harbaugh, Gentry became a prime target, so it’s comforting to think that the quarterback guru we hired really wanted this guy. At the same time, freshmen generally play like freshmen, which is not a compliment.
THE CLINT EASTWOOD: Jake Rudock (RS Sr.)
2014 stats: 213/345 (61.7%), 2436 yards, 16 touchdowns, 5 interceptions at Iowa
Who is this Jake Rudock guy and why has he not been playing here the past few years? You might not be too familiar because he’s been Iowa’s starting quarterback for the past two seasons. Reports have been bubbling below the surface for the past month or so that Rudock really wants to play for Jim Harbaugh and get out of Iowa, where ultra-conservative offensive coordinator Greg Davis had called for Rudock to dink and dunk his way to 6.9 and 7.1 yards per attempt for the past two seasons. The staff was not particularly interested to begin with, but none of the quarterbacks look great, so Harbaugh may be considering opening up the competition even further. If Michigan were to accept him, he would not arrive until the summer, but he would be eligible to play this fall due to the NCAA’s graduate transfer rules. Iowa fans do not like Rudock because he is boring, but throwing only 5 interceptions in 345 attempts looks pretty darn exciting to me. He led Iowa to a 7-6 record last year and an 8-5 record the year before, when the Hawkeyes have had a questionable offensive coordinator and debilitation injuries at the running back position. After Michigan went 5-7 last season, I think I would be satisfied with a one-year rental who could win 8 games while being “boring.” Personally, I think Michigan should throw as many darts as they can at the quarterback job, so if there’s any chance that Rudock could be the answer, then the coaching staff should make it happen.
THE UNTOUCHABLE: John O’Korn (RS So.)
2014 stats: 90/173 (52%), 951 yards, 6 touchdowns, 8 interceptions at Houston
O’Korn visited Michigan a few weeks ago and is all but official to be transferring to Michigan. However, he’s not a fifth-year guy and therefore won’t get an exception, so he wouldn’t be available until 2016.
You can voice your opinion on the quarterback situation in the comments or by voting in the poll posted on the left sidebar.
