Name: Deakon Tonielli
Height: 6’5″
Weight: 238 lbs.
High school: Oswego (IL) Oswego
Position: Tight end
Class: Redshirt freshman
Jersey number: #43
Last year: I ranked Tonielli #90 and said he would redshirt (LINK). He redshirted.
TTB Rating: 76
Tonielli was a 230 pound freshman last year, and at that size, you’re probably not going to play at Michigan as a true freshman. It was a pretty easy guess that he would redshirt, and he did. Of course, it helped that Michigan had Colston Loveland and Indiana transfer A.J. Barner, so the Wolverines had their one-two punch at tight end. They played other guys like Matt Hibner, Josh Beetham, and Zack Marshall, but those weren’t vital cogs in the offense.
Aside from Max Bredeson, who’s essentially a fullback, Michigan seems to have its one-two punch again (Loveland and Marlin Klein), but the guy who plays the role of Hibner could very well be Tonielli. He’s not generating the practice buzz that Klein is, but he is on that next tier – perhaps on the level that Hibner and Klein were generating at one point. The excitement about Hibner (one of the best overall athletes) and Klein (one of the fastest overall players) was about their physical skill sets, while Tonielli seems appreciated for his route running and soft hands. I don’t expect Klein to suddenly jump to the same amount of playing time as, say, Barner, who was #8 on the team with 620 snaps last year, so I think the #3 tight end will get a little more run than last year’s #3 guy (Beetham). I also think the #3 tight end will probably play more snaps in 2024 because I expect some closer games, so Michigan will have to play its top few guys a little more rather than giving garbage time snaps to a bunch of players.
Prediction: Backup tight end; 3 catches for 40 yards
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