Elysee Mbem-Bosse (image via Bleacher Report)
Name: Elysee Mbem-Bosse
Height: 6’3″
Weight: 232 lbs.
High school: Ellenwood (GA) Cedar Grove
Position: Linebacker
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: N/A
Last year: Mbem-Bosse was a senior in high school (LINK).
Final TTB Rating: 78
Mbem-Bosse was an early Georgia lean who never got an offer from the Bulldogs. He flirted with other SEC schools, but a dogged late pursuit by new defensive coordinator Don Brown rekindled Mbem-Bosse’s interest in Michigan. He went ahead and committed in January.
At 6’3″ and 232 lbs., Mbem-Bosse might be the most physically ready linebacker in the freshman class. He is a middle linebacker, and starting MIKE Ben Gedeon is the most proven player on the inside. Michigan is going to be looking for a player who can replace Gedeon in 2017, and it’s a good idea to get experience for your linebackers. Mbem-Bosse’s fellow freshman, Devin Bush, also has a good chance to play at the WILL spot. I think there’s a chance that Mbem-Bosse redshirts, but with no clear backup to Gedeon, it seems likely that he will play this season. Sure, an injury to Mbem-Bosse may put the position in flux, but I don’t think he’s all that ready to be a prime-time contributor right now. If the defense had to reshuffle to get McCray or Noah Furbush at MIKE, I don’t think the team would be negatively affected much.
Prediction: Backup linebacker
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I think EMB is very likely to play this year. If he doesn’t, it means he is totally not ready to compete with Bush, Gil, and the other LBs – which would be a disappointment given his recruiting profile. I think all these freshman LBs (maybe save 1) will get immediate playing time against Hawaii and UCF – opportunities to prove themselves as reliable backups and put themselves in a position to contend for a starting job next year.
I think you need 4 guys at ILB. The starters can take most of the snaps, sure, but there is almost always some rotation taking place – especially against Wisconsin/MSU type teams. Perhaps you can get by with 3, if McCray and Gedeon are versatile enough to switch between the 2 positions as Bush slots in a WLB, but you want 4.
It’s not very clear who the 4th guy is right now, but I do think EMB is a reasonable guess. It probably depends on how they use Furbush. If they keep him focused on SAM (i.e., not included in the ILB rotation) then there is a spot for EMB or Wangler to get meaningful snaps. My money would be on EMB over Wangler, if so.
Normally I would say a rotation LB on the projected 2-deep should be higher than the low 50s, but if there is an injury to a starter I think Furbush slides over rather than Bush or EMB becoming the starter. And one must consider the uncertainty of freshman – we have no idea if EMB is better than Gil, Uche, Wangler. Even if he is the gap is not likely to enormous. Still, this feels a few spots low for a guy who seems likely to draw meaningful snaps in competitive situations. I see EMB getting some series against Wisconsin and MSU this season. Hopefully he is up for it.
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Agreed. I think we’ll see a lot of new guys getting tested at LB in our first three (hopefully lopsided) games. While our starting group doesn’t quite make me cringe, they are still inexperienced and unproven, and things get even more uncertain after that. I think we have the necessary bodies to fill a 2 deep, but it will take some time to find out which will do the best. Still puzzled by the coaching staff’s handling of Winovich, too..wish they would have just left him plugged in at LB all along.
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Seems like Winovich outgrew the position, like everyone expected Furbush to. In my mind they just switched roles. But yeah, the year spent at TE seems questionable.
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