Name: Cole Cabana
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 204 lbs.
High school: Dexter (MI) Dexter
Position: Running back
Class: Redshirt freshman
Jersey number: #24
Last year: I ranked Cabana #59 and said he would be a backup running back and part-time kickoff returner (LINK). He played in one game and ran 2 times for 6 yards.
TTB Rating: 73
Cabana entered 2023 without much of a chance to play a significant role in the offensive backfield. Benjamin Hall was the freshman with the big performance in the spring game, and Michigan had two star running backs in the forms of Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards. On top of that, Cabana’s possible role as a pass catcher and gadget running back was blocked by Edwards, who also has the speed and receiving ability to move around.
But Cabana, a track star in high school, did have the speed Michigan often looks for in kickoff returners. And since he wasn’t going to factor in on offense, I thought he might get a shot to return kicks. But it was a different freshman – wide receiver Semaj Morgan – who led the team in kickoff returns (12 attempts for 186 yards) and nobody else had more than one.
With receivers Roman Wilson and Cornelius Johnson off to the NFL, I’m not sure that Michigan will want to use Morgan so much on returns. He will step into a bigger receiving role, perhaps as the #2 guy behind Tyler Morris. Over the past several years, Michigan has turned to non-starters like Morgan, A.J. Henning, Blake Corum, and Giles Jackson to field kickoffs. If that trend continues, Cabana could be someone whose speed and energy reserves could be used wisely. He won’t play much on offense (Edwards, Kalel Mullings, and at least one or two other guys will probably be ahead of him), so the Wolverines could put him to good use without risking a key offensive cog to injury.
Prediction: Backup running back, part-time kickoff returner
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