Name: Greg Crippen
Height: 6’4″
Weight: 309 lbs.
High school: Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy
Position: Center
Class: Redshirt junior
Jersey number: #51
Last year: I ranked Crippen #56 and said he would be a backup center (LINK). He played in nine games.
TTB Rating: 65
Depending on how you look at it, Crippen has had one of the more frustrating careers imaginable in a Michigan uniform. After redshirting in 2021, he would have had a chance to start in 2022 . . . except Michigan brought in Olu Oluwatimi from Virginia, who won the Rimington Trophy for being the nation’s best center.
So then Crippen had a chance to start in 2023 . . . except Michigan brought in Stanford transfer Drake Nugent, who was named First Team All-Big Ten and a Rimington Trophy finalist.
Now Crippen has a chance to start in 2024 . . . except Michigan brought in former 3-star defensive tackle Dominick Giudice?
Okay, so earlier today, head coach Sherrone Moore was asked about the battles on the offensive line, and Moore said the center position was coming down to Crippen and Giudice. It’s surprising that Raheem Anderson wasn’t mentioned (perhaps there’s an injury?), and it’s even more surprising that Giudice is the primary competition after taking just 25 total snaps over the past two years.
Regardless, I’m sticking with the front-runner for the starting center job, and that’s Crippen. The former 4-star recruit has waited around for three years, and there have been positive comments coming from the coaches for the past two years. If Giudice is truly neck-and-neck with Crippen – and better than Anderson – then that likely means positive things for the depth of the line and not necessarily something negative about Crippen.
Prediction: Starting center
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