2015 Season Countdown: #8 Mason Cole

2015 Season Countdown: #8 Mason Cole


August 23, 2015

Mason Cole (#52)


Name:
Mason Cole
Height: 6’5″
Weight: 287 lbs.
High school: Tarpon Springs (FL) East Lake
Position: Offensive tackle
Class: Sophomore
Jersey number: #52
Last year: I ranked Cole #58 and said he would be a backup offensive lineman. He started all twelve games at left tackle.

Cole surprised a lot of people – including me – when he rolled out there as the starting left tackle on opening day in 2014. A highly touted offensive lineman who performed well against elite players in the 2014 U.S. Army All-American Bowl, he was expected to be an offensive guard who would need some time to bulk up and learn the nuances of the game at the next level. Instead, his spring game start at left tackle turned into a very unique situation where the Wolverines started a true freshman, blind-side tackle for every game of the year. Perhaps most amazing was the fact that Cole didn’t look too much out of place, and he was part of a line that improved significantly in many categories. A tip of the cap should go to Cole and his high school coach, because while many other Michigan linemen looked confused over the past few years under Brady Hoke and offensive line coach Darrell Funk, Cole was pretty adept at putting together all the moving parts into a puzzle he could understand.

Now he’s a grizzled veteran as a true sophomore. Even with a new coaching staff, Cole has been pretty steadily involved as the left tackle. This spring the coaches flirted with moving him inside to center, but snaps were reportedly an issue and the experiment did not last long. Erik Magnuson, who I thought would be the left tackle last year, is now at right tackle after spending half the season playing guard last year. There are no other contenders for the left tackle position, and an injury to Cole would likely mean a flip of Magnuson to the left side with someone like Logan Tuley-Tillman moving in on the right. Left tackle is a tough position to replace, but Cole does not seem to be the difference-maker just yet to warrant placing him higher on the list. I expect a solid performance out of him once again.

Prediction: Starting left tackle

7 comments

  1. Comments: 6285
    Joined: 8/11/2015
    Lanknows
    Aug 23, 2015 at 6:40 PM

    In last years post an Anonymous poster left the following comment:

    “AnonymousJune 29, 2014 at 11:26 PM

    You’d guess he starts? Really? The starting lineup WILL BE Magnuson. Kalis. Glasgow (Miller for the first game). Bosch. Braden.

    Cole is not starting.”

    I wonder if that Anon would stand up and own up. From the tone, it sounds like it could be somebody who comments on the new and improved site,.

  2. Comments: 6285
    Joined: 8/11/2015
    Lanknows
    Aug 23, 2015 at 6:44 PM

    Nice post Thunder. The only quibble I have is that if Morris ends up being the QB (which we don’t expect, but is feasible) then Magnuson might just stick at RT.

    While I get your point about not being a great player just yet – I’d also say that Cole is somewhat of a “difference-maker”, because from all reports LTT isn’t ready and Braden struggled at tackle last year. If Cole goes down, Michigan is pretty screwed.

    Also, you haven’t ranked Peppers yet and I’d say he’s not a “difference-maker” yet either, despite all the hype.

    • Comments: 1364
      Joined: 8/11/2015
      WindyCityBlue
      Aug 23, 2015 at 7:13 PM

      Morris will not start at QB this year, unless Rudock gets hurt, and maybe not even then. If he does, who starts at RT will be the least of our problems.

      • Comments: 6285
        Joined: 8/11/2015
        Lanknows
        Aug 23, 2015 at 9:44 PM

        Ha. I agree, but see the Anon comment above.

    • Comments: 3844
      Joined: 7/13/2015
      Aug 23, 2015 at 7:38 PM

      Again, this is a projection. And I would say that Peppers is a difference-maker. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be playing all over the place, getting reps on offense, in the mix to return kicks, etc.

      Ever since Rudock announced he was going to come to Michigan, I’ve thought he would start. Now the reports from practice are saying he’s #1 over Morris. I didn’t really account for that because a) I don’t expect it and b) not all contingencies can be considered in one post.

      • Comments: 6285
        Joined: 8/11/2015
        Lanknows
        Aug 23, 2015 at 9:43 PM

        Oh yeah, don’t get me wrong — I think Rudock is the guy and expect him to be better than Morris by a mile. I posted a bunch of times over the last two years that Morris was overrated and I don’t think Harbaugh can change right away. Still – I’ve made plenty of incorrect ‘projections’ too, so I’m not going to call it 100% to Rudock.

        I was just pointing out that we don’t know for sure, and that there isn’t really a good backup tackle option. Even Magnuson has been benched, and has reportedly struggled in pass protection at times. If Magnuson settles in and plays well at RT, They might just ‘live’ with whatever they have at LT rather than risk creating two problem spots.

        I appreciate that there are different opinions. No wrong answers, no incorrect guesses (yet), etc. But the rank isn’t just about guessing talent – we have past data, and we know (more or less) team needs. Some projections are just more ‘gueswork’ than others, and I think it’s interesting to discuss.

        I’m sure there’ll be more conversation on the Peppers post. For now I’ll just say — Teric Jones and Ross-Douglas played all over the place too. Not nearly the hype of course, and that was over multiple seasons, and Peppers did play in a backup role right away last year, but my point is that playing a lot of different spots doesn’t necessarily mean you’re an impact player.

        For the record – I think Peppers is an impact guy, but I think Cole is too. You don’t see true freshman play that well very often. It’s possible he is closer to his ceiling than say Long or Lewan, who red-shirted, or doesn’t have the physical ceiling of those guys, but I expect him to make a big leap his sophomore year, like most linemen do. There’s a chance he’s one of the 2 or 3 best football players on this team.

  3. Comments: 313
    Joined: 8/17/2015
    JC
    Aug 24, 2015 at 9:43 AM

    This is what I like about these posts.

    When we’re in the 40+ rankings, it’s easy to argue someone should be six spots higher, five spots lower, and not really think too much about it.

    When you get in the top 20, that room for wiggle gets a lot tighter, but I feel there is an exception with Cole. I could see Cole being ranked anywhere from #4 to #10, and I wouldn’t really argue for him to be higher or lower if anyone put him in that range. He’s the starting LT. He started as a LT as a true freshman, which really speaks to how well our OL was developing under Funk and Hoke. 10 recruits in the two classes before him, most of them very highly touted, and Cole wins the LT job as a true freshman.

    Cole was a good recruit, but he wasn’t a top 10 – definitely going to be a difference maker as a freshman – type recruit. He’s not a world beater or an athletic freak, but he knows his assignment and doesn’t get dominated. He is the Brennen Beyer of LTs.

    I’m rambling. Good spot for Cole, post, and blog.

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