2016 Season Countdown: #76 Wyatt Shallman

2016 Season Countdown: #76 Wyatt Shallman


June 24, 2016

Wyatt Shallman

Name: Wyatt Shallman
Height: 6’3″
Weight: 245 lbs.
High school: Novi (MI) Catholic Central
Position: Fullback
Class: Redshirt junior
Jersey number: #33
Last year: I ranked Shallman #63 and said he would be a backup tailback (LINK). He played in one game and ran 3 times for 9 yards.

Shallman was the leading rusher in the 2015 spring game, which led some to believe that he would be used more heavily at tailback. He was dealing with an injury for part of last season, but the only time he saw the field was in a blowout win over Rutgers when he ran 3 times for 9 yards late in the game. Michigan used several other tailbacks more than Shallman, including converted cornerback Ross Taylor-Douglas, who has since transferred to Rutgers, and the now departed Derrick Green (destination: unknown).

This spring Shallman was being used at fullback. In my opinion, he did not look very enthused to be a blocking back. Additionally, I did not think he looked very effective as a blocker. There is a big opportunity at fullback since the top two guys from last year (Joe Kerridge, Sione Houma) are now toiling away in the NFL, but Michigan seems intent to use converted defensive end Henry Poggi and converted tight end Khalid Hill at the position, along with fifth-year walk-on senior Bobby Henderson. Shallman may be the most talented runner of that bunch, so maybe he gets an occasional opportunity to run the ball. However, he does not appear to be in the top three at his position group, so I’m not counting on him to be heavily involved this season.

Prediction: Backup fullback

14 comments

  1. Comments: 6285
    Joined: 8/11/2015
    Lanknows
    Jun 24, 2016 at 8:07 PM

    3 years of conjecture later…still a RB (per UM roster). If you’re going to let Michigan/Wangler make up his height, I think you should let Michigan/Shallman make up his position. Hey – Wangler wasn’t 6’2 in the spring game either 😉

    My comments last year were proven correct – he stuck at RB, not FB through the year. This year – we’ll see!

    I still think Ty Isaac would make a better FB than Shallman. The position is more about effort than anything else though, and neither guy seems to have much interest. I think if I had to bet on a starter other than Hill it might be Henderson.

    • Comments: 2
      Joined: 6/25/2016
      bada bing
      Jun 24, 2016 at 9:00 PM

      You also said that Shallman would have more rushing yards than Isaac last year. Woops!

      • Comments: 3844
        Joined: 7/13/2015
        Jun 24, 2016 at 9:39 PM

        Welcome to the new site, bada bing!

      • Comments: 6285
        Joined: 8/11/2015
        Lanknows
        Jun 25, 2016 at 6:14 PM

        Where did I say that?

    • Comments: 3844
      Joined: 7/13/2015
      Jun 24, 2016 at 9:37 PM

      I don’t agree on Ty Isaac at FB, and the coaches don’t appear to agree, either. That’s why Ty Isaac was having a pretty darn good spring at RB, while Shallman was not-so-happily playing FB.

      You said in 2014 that Shallman would be more important than #66 and thought he would climb much higher in 2015. He wasn’t, and he didn’t. I think Shallman is a guy you’ve been overvaluing for his entire Michigan career. He wasn’t in the mix at RB this spring, and he got less run than Joe Hewlett. If he’s going to be a contributor at running back, I think he’s probably going to need to do it elsewhere.

      • Comments: 6285
        Joined: 8/11/2015
        Lanknows
        Jun 25, 2016 at 6:20 PM

        And the year before that Shallman was playing RB while Isaac not so happily sat the bench. Hewlett was behind Shallman then too. Spring doesn’t really matter.

        I don’t think Isaac is moving to FB either. I’m just saying he has more ability and potential at the position hypothetically. Similar rationale to the many people who want Smith at FB, except Isaac’s dispensable.

        Yeah, 2 years ago I did think Shallman would be important, though not at RB. 2 years ago you thought Derrick Green would be important. As a guy who makes 100s of predictions a year on your blog I would think you’d be well aware you can’t always be right.

        • Comments: 3844
          Joined: 7/13/2015
          Jun 25, 2016 at 8:42 PM

          Huh? In 2013 Wyatt Shallman was redshirting while Ty Isaac was averaging 5.9 yards/carry (yes, as a backup at USC) and scoring 2 TDs.

          I am well aware that you can’t always be right. I’m just saying that if you consistently overvalue Shallman, it’s odd to pat yourself on the back for him being a RB when a) he wasn’t playing RB in the spring and b) he has 14 yards on 4 carries during his first three years in college. I mean, it’s true that he’s a running back on the roster… Otherwise, no other positive expectations have come true.

          • Comments: 6285
            Joined: 8/11/2015
            Lanknows
            Jun 26, 2016 at 4:09 PM

            Dude. You have this backward. This is the 3rd year in a row that you’re projecting a position change and a bigger role. Last year I said he would stick at RB (where he’d be buried). He did and he was. 2 years ago (coming off his RS) I called your ranking “fair”. While I did say he could be more valuable as the only H-back shaped player – that was based on Nussmeir’s offense which devalues traditional FBs and it was heavily qualified (I said he’s probably a year away from contributing in that role).

            Here is what I said about Shallman 2 years ago when I was “overrating” him. “Shallman offers the potential to be a bigger offensive threat, but as a pure blocker it’s no surprise that a walk-on and upperclassmen would slot in ahead of a guy still working at RB. FB is wide open next year and Shallman could have 2 years there as a starter if that’s something he wants to go after. (Not saying that’s going to happen, just pointing out it’s still on the table.)”

            Him sticking at RB and Harbaugh coming in changed my expectations. My opinions have changed based on the information present. You’ve predicted almost the exact same role for Shallman every year. (You did bump him to 4th string FB instead of 3rd this year.)

            The only thing I’ve ‘overrated’ about Shallman is his special teams contributions.

            I think you’re conflating my arguments about Isaac being overrated with my views on Shallman. I thought Shallman was a promising athlete whose future was at H-back or DE but he never moved. I never thought he’d be a good RB because he’s too big (i.e., same size as Ty Isaac). My point in comparing Isaac and Shallman was never to elevate Shallman.

            Kind of funny that you made my same anti-Isaac argument about RB size in the Shallmen freshman year post. That was before you watched Isaac highlights from the 4th quarter of blowout games and became enamored with his star ranking and YPC, I guess.

            • Comments: 3844
              Joined: 7/13/2015
              Jun 26, 2016 at 11:21 PM

              For the record, I’m not predicting a position change for Shallman. He was playing FB in the spring, period. It’s not a prediction when I saw it happen with my own eyes (and so did others). There were also a number of other fullbacks available (Hill, Henderson, Poggi, etc.), so it’s unlikely the coaches were putting him there to plug a hole due to an injury bug.

              As for the size argument, I said it’s “rare” that 6’3″, 225 lb. high school guys become impact college runners. I didn’t say it was impossible or unheard of. Isaac and Shallman are different breeds from each other. Therefore, the analysis and outcome is different. That analysis has proven to be somewhat accurate so far (Isaac is capable, Shallman is not) based on what the two have done in college. Shallman has barely sniffed the field, while Isaac has averaged over 5.8 yards/carry and scored a few touchdowns. Meanwhile, the biggest knock on Isaac last year was probably his fumbling issue, which has very little to do with his height/weight. If he had been able to hold onto the ball, he probably would have been the #2 guy behind De’Veon Smith last year.

              I rarely, if ever, make blanket statements about size. There are too many mitigating factors (speed, agility, toughness, desire, intelligence, etc.).

          • Comments: 6285
            Joined: 8/11/2015
            Lanknows
            Jun 26, 2016 at 4:11 PM

            Regard the huh comment:

            You wrote: “Ty Isaac was having a pretty darn good spring at RB, while Shallman was not-so-happily playing FB.”

            I said — the year before that the situation was different. Isaac was overweight, hurt, and in the doghouse (the 3 are probably related). So…again…spring isn’t always or even usually a great indicator.

            • Comments: 3844
              Joined: 7/13/2015
              Jun 26, 2016 at 11:01 PM

              I would say that if a guy isn’t even playing his listed position, it’s not a good sign that he’ll be contributing much there in the fall. Meanwhile, I saw Mike Cox tear it up enough in spring games to realize that spring games don’t mean everything. I won’t sit here and say that Ty Isaac is going to be a superstar in the fall. But Isaac looked good in the spring, and I’m not the only one making that assertion. It’s not the only indicator, but it is *an* indicator.

          • Comments: 6285
            Joined: 8/11/2015
            Lanknows
            Jun 26, 2016 at 4:21 PM

            Sorry – you did say he would stick at RB last year. So I was wrong on that point.

            I think that overall I have not disagreed with your ranking or evaluations of Shallman very often. Ty Isaac is where we have disagreed and I think the gap there has closed dramatically over the last 2 years too.

          • Comments: 6285
            Joined: 8/11/2015
            Lanknows
            Jun 27, 2016 at 11:59 PM

            There’s a long tradition of people playing different positions in spring. Shane Morris isn’t a WR. Norfleet and Teric Jones weren’t CBs. Ron Johnson isn’t a LB. On and on it goes. Harbaugh loves to move people around more than any coach I can think of. Moreover, you used the “roster says so” argument a couple posts ago.

            Shallman played RB last year and is listed as a RB on a roster. You’re projecting a position change. It’s a very defensible and long-established projection, but it’s a projection.

            re: shallman vs isaac. Not sure what you mean by “different breeds”.

            I’ll save my Isaac comments for the Isaac post, but there’s a reason it’s rare to find 6’3 RBs. Actually, many reasons.

  2. Comments: 182
    Joined: 9/15/2015
    ragingbull
    Jun 26, 2016 at 5:17 PM

    damn lanknows, youre relentless – and exhausting

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