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Kyle Bosch, Ex-Wolverine

Kyle Bosch

Sophomore offensive guard Kyle Bosch has received his transfer release. His destination is unclear. If he transfers to another Division I school, he will have to sit out one season before playing again, which means the earliest he could play would be as a redshirt junior. If he transfers to a lower division, he should be able to play immediately.

Bosch came from Wheaton (IL) St. Francis and committed in February of 2012 (LINK). I gave him a TTB Rating of 88, confident that he would be a good starting guard down the line. As a true freshman in 2013, he was forced into action due to injuries and underperformance by his elders. He started three games late in the year but was eventually replaced. This year he played the final offensive snap of the season opener, and then it was reported that he was taking “an indefinite leave of absence” from the team that sounded like some sort of personal or family issue. He tweeted that he would return the next semester, and he has supposedly done so (he tweeted that he was “back in Ann Arbor”) but not to play football. At least not for Jim Harbaugh.

I am disappointed about Bosch’s departure because I thought he would be a very good player. I ranked him as Michigan’s top lineman in the 2013 class, he played first, and he had a nasty disposition. In fact, I think his style of play would work better for Harbaugh than it would have for Brady Hoke. But for whatever reason(s), he has chosen to depart. Of course, part of it may have to do with the issue that caused him to leave the team for almost the whole first semester. Another part may have to do with the fact that Michigan returns all five starters in 2015, plus versatile backup Erik Magnuson. Overall, the reasons seem to have to do with things other than football.

This is the second player to transfer since the firing of Brady Hoke (freshman linebacker Michael Ferns was the first) and the first player to transfer since the hiring of Jim Harbaugh. Bosch is also the first member of the 2013 class to leave, a class that included six linemen altogether. He will probably not be the last player to leave through the transition, and I have heard rumors about 1-2 other linemen, but those rumors came through before Harbaugh was hired; Bosch was also initially on that list of rumored departures, but again, that was somewhat predictable after he left school for three months.

Michigan has six current commits in the 2015 class and at least eight openings, so the class could reach 14 or more.

Michigan Assistant Coach Rumors (January 5)

D.J. Durkin could be the next domino to fall in Michigan’s assistant coaching search.

Here are some updated rumors and speculation about the open coaching positions on Michigan’s staff.

1. Jim Harbaugh, Head Coach/Quarterbacks: Signed, sealed, and delivered (LINK). Next.

2. Tim Drevno, Offensive Coordinator: Drevno, the USC offensive line coach and run game coordinator, is coming to Michigan (LINK).

3. Running backs: Buffalo Bills running backs coach Tyrone Wheatley followed head coach Doug Marrone from Syracuse to Buffalo, and now Marrone has opted out of his contract for 2015. That likely means Wheatley is at least temporarily out of a job. Marrone is expected to interview for other NFL head coaching jobs, so Wheatley could follow him if Marrone gets a head job elsewhere. Wheatley wants to move up the ladder, but I would not expect Drevno and Wheatley to split offensive coordinator duties. The hiring of Drevno seems to dim the hopes of getting Wheatley to coach running backs, but the rumors have been persistent here; also, it would improve Michigan’s chances of landing 2015 tight end/defensive end Tyrone Wheatley, Jr.
Other possibilities: Fred Jackson, Roy Manning

4. Wide receivers: Rumors appeared on New Year’s Eve that John Morton was expected to join Michigan’s staff, although there has been nothing confirmed yet. No, this isn’t the former Detroit Lions wide receiver, but San Francisco 49ers wide receiver coach Morton is out of a job. Morton grew up in Michigan and played wide receiver at Western Michigan, so he’s a midwest guy and would presumably have some connections in the area. San Francisco’s wide receivers weren’t spectacular, but he has worked with some pretty big names in Anquan Boldin and Michael Crabtree.
Other possibilities: Erik Campbell, Ronald Curry, Jeff Hecklinski

5. Tight ends: Kentucky tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator Vince Marrow has reportedly turned down Michigan’s offer, but he did an odd thing in the meantime – he called 2015 tight end recruit Chris Clark and told him that he could get him to the NFL, that he wanted to coach him, etc. Since Kentucky has no shot at getting Clark, Marrow – who did not mention a school – appeared to have been recruiting on behalf of Michigan. I’m leaving Marrow here, despite reports to the contrary. Also, there aren’t a lot of obvious options at this point.
Other possibility: Kevin Koger

6. Offensive line: Nebraska hired Harbaugh’s offensive line coach from San Francisco, Reggie Davis, so maybe Harbaugh didn’t plan to bring him to Ann Arbor, anyway. Now it would seem that Cleveland Browns offensive line coach Andy Moeller would be a strong possibility. Moeller was an assistant at Michigan under Lloyd Carr, played at Michigan, and is the son of former Michigan head coach Gary Moeller. Unfortunately, Andy has a history of run-ins with the law involving alcohol, so he’s not a perfect choice.
Other possibility: Todd Washington

7. Defensive coordinator: Florida defensive coordinator and interim head coach D.J. Durkin has been a popular name floating around for the past few weeks. He worked with Harbaugh at Stanford and has experience working with special teams, defensive ends, and linebackers, so he could help out in any of those areas. Brian at MGoBlog says this is a lock to happen as soon as Florida’s bowl game is done this afternoon (LINK). Stanford defensive coordinator Lance Anderson reportedly turned down Michigan’s overtures, which is not surprising.
Other possibility: Greg Mattison

8. Defensive line: Oklahoma defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery has been suggested as a possibility. Montgomery, of course, was at Michigan for the first couple years of Brady Hoke’s tenure and then left for a bigger paycheck in Norman. Montgomery was only ever in charge of part of the defensive line at Michigan, so the only real reasons to move back would be another pay raise and/or control over the whole position group.
Other possibilities: D.J. Durkin, Roy Manning, Greg Mattison

9. Linebackers: Michigan defensive coordinator Greg Mattison might be a holdover from the previous staff to this one. Mattison has family in the area, loves the University of Michigan, is a pretty good coach with NFL experience, and is a great recruiter. He also has connections to Harbaugh and potential defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin. Brian at MGoBlog says this is a lock, although Mattison can also coach defensive line (LINK).
Other possibility: Lance Anderson, Peter Hansen, Roy Manning

10. Defensive backs: San Francisco 49ers defensive backs coach Greg Jackson will be looking for a job. He is from Florida and played college football at LSU, so his potential connections in Florida and SEC country could help Michigan’s recruiting efforts in difficult locations.
Other possibility: Curt Mallory, Roy Manning

11. Strength and conditioning: Stanford strength and conditioning coordinator Shannon Turley apparently agreed to come to Michigan and then rescinded. The next most likely option seems to be Kevin Tolbert, who had been Harbaugh’s strength and conditioning coach with the 49ers and for a couple years at Stanford. Tolbert is a Navy grad and former football player, and he also spent eight years working under Mike Gittleson, Michigan’s former S&C coach prior to Rich Rodriguez’s hiring.
Other possibility: ???

Ex-Wolverine Updates: Post-Bowl Edition

Oregon offensive tackle Jake Fisher was first team all-conference

The national championship game still remains for Gareon Conley at Ohio State and Jake Fisher at Oregon, but otherwise, the former Wolverines are finished with their college seasons. Here’s a look at what former players, commits, and coaches accomplished during the 2014 season.

Former DT Richard Ash: Ash’s Western Michigan Broncos lost to Air Force in the Idaho Potato Bowl by a score of 38-24. Ash made 2 tackles in the game, finishing the year with 42 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, 2 pass breakups, and 2 blocked kicks. The Broncos went 8-5 on the year.

Former TE commit Pharaoh Brown: Brown suffered a nasty knee injury in game ten, so he has missed a chunk of Oregon’s run to the national championship game. He still put up pretty darn good numbers with 25 catches, 420 yards (16.8 yards/catch), and 6 touchdowns, and those were good enough to earn him First Team All-Pac 12 honors. He played too much of this season to get a medical redshirt, so he will presumably return to playing as a true senior in 2015 as long as his knee heals well.

Former CB Cullen Christian: Christian was declared academically ineligible for West Virginia’s Liberty Bowl appearance against Texas A&M, which the Aggies won by a score of 45-37. The Mountaineers went 7-6 this season and didn’t get much help from Christian, who made 5 total tackles on the year as a backup safety.

Hit the jump for the rest of the rundown.

Former CB commit Gareon Conley: Conley made 2 tackles in Ohio State’s 42-35 victory over Alabama in the College Football Playoff semi-final. He has 16 tackles and 2 pass breakups on the season with the national championship game against Oregon remaining. The Buckeyes are currently 13-1.

Former CB commit Dallas Crawford: Crawford and his Miami Hurricanes lost to South Carolina in the Independence Bowl, 24-21. Miami finishes the year with a 6-7 record. Crawford – who moved from running back to safety last offseason – ended the year with 35 tackles, .5 tackles for loss, and 2 pass breakups. Starting running back Duke Johnson declared for the NFL Draft, but while Crawford was a productive backup in 2013, the Hurricanes have a couple capable guys (Joseph Yearby, Gus Edwards) returning in 2015, so I would not expect Crawford to return to offense.

Former OT commit Jake Fisher: Fisher started the year for Oregon as their right tackle, but he moved to the left side when the starter got injured. Fisher was good enough all around to be named First Team All-Pac 12 and protected quarterback Marcus Mariota on his way to winning the Heisman.

Former S Josh Furman: Furman made 6 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, and 1 sack in Oklahoma State’s 30-22 victory over Washington in the Cactus Bowl. The Cowboys end the year with a 7-6 record. Furman made the move from safety to outside linebacker when he transferred after last season, and he finished the year with 64 tackles, 14 tackles for loss, 7 sacks, 1 interception (returned 35 yards), 4 pass breakups, and 1 forced fumble. Furmer was All-Big 12 honorable mention.

Former K commit Matt Goudis: Goudis, now at Miami with Dallas Crawford (see above), did not play after the first couple games of the year after dealing with an injury. He was 4/6 on field goals and 6/6 on extra points up to that point.

Former RB commit Dee Hart: Hart’s Colorado State Rams lost to Utah in the Las Vegas Bowl by a score of 45-10. Hart had just 7 carries for 21 yards in the game, plus 1 catch for 4 yards. He finished the season with 194 carries, 1275 yards, 6.6 yards/carry, and 16 touchdowns on the ground. He also had 18 catches for 189 yards and 2 touchdowns; 9 punt returns for 41 yards; and 3 kickoff returns for 57 yards. For that performance he was named Second Team All-Mountain West Conference. Hart, who had one season of eligibility remaining, declared for the NFL Draft after CSU head coach (and Hart’s offensive coordinator at Alabama) Jim McElwain took the head coaching job at Florida.

Former assistant coach Les Miles: Miles and his LSU Tigers finished the season 8-5 after a 31-28 loss to Notre Dame in the Music City Bowl. His running back, Leonard Fournette, had the longest ever play from scrimmage against Notre Dame (and 89-yard touchdown run), topping Denard Robinson’s 87-yarder a few years ago. Fournette finished the game with 11 carries for 143 yards and 2 touchdowns, plus a 100-yard kickoff return for a score. After the game, Texas A&M poached LSU defensive coordinator John Chavis from Miles’s staff, so the Tigers are in a bit of flux after a down year.

Former RB Thomas Rawls: Rawls, the starting running back most of the year, did not play for Central Michigan against Western Kentucky in the Bahamas Bowl, which ended as a one-point loss for the Chippewas, 49-48. Rawls ended the season with 210 carries, 1103 yards, 5.3 yards/carry, and 10 touchdowns. He was named Second Team All-MAC and has also been invited to the NFL Combine.

Former DT Chris Rock: Rock did not record any statistics for Ohio State this year as a walk-on defensive lineman.

Former head coach Rich Rodriguez: Rodriguez’s Arizona Wildcats finished the year with a 10-4 record, albeit on a two-game losing streak, falling to Oregon in the Pac-12 championship game and then Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl. The bowl loss was a 38-30 affair in which the Wildcats had a chance at the end of the game, but quarterback Anu Solomon (28/49, 335 yards, 1 touchdown, 2 interceptions) was sacked and time ran out.

Former defensive coordinator Scott Shafer: Shafer, now the head coach at Syracuse, went 3-9 this year, including a five-game losing streak to end the year. The Orangemen were a respectable 37th in scoring defense (24.3 points/game allowed), but they were #121 in scoring offense (17.2 points/game) and #117 in total offense, one spot behind Michigan.

Former QB commit Kevin Sousa: Sousa has had some legal trouble at Wake Forest, and his playing time has been limited. The redshirt junior was 0/1 passing and had 5 carries for 10 yards for the 3-9 Demon Deacons.

Former CB commit Anthony Standifer: Standifer transferred from Ole Miss to FCS team Eastern Illinois in the off-season. He started ten games at corner, finishing with 33 tackles, .5 tackles for loss, 3 interceptions, and 6 pass breakups.

Former S Ray Vinopal: Vinopal’s Pitt Panthers lost to Houston in a thrilling Armed Forces Bowl, 35-34. Down two scores in the last few minutes, Houston scored a touchdown, recovered an onside kick, scored another touchdown, and then hit the two-point conversion with under a minute left for the win. Vinopal made 7 tackles in the game. The senior safety ended the year with 68 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 2 interceptions (returned for 13 yards), 5 pass breakups, and 2 forced fumbles.

Former DT Ken Wilkins: Wilkins, listed as a 6’3″, 250 lb. redshirt junior, played in nine games for California University of Pennsylvania this fall. He finished the year with 37 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, 1 pass breakup, and 2 forced fumbles.

Shannon Turley, Wolverine

Shannon Turley (image via StanfordDaily.com)

UPDATE: The below information may have been premature. Despite conformations that Turley was going to come, some outlets are now reporting that he will stay at Stanford.

Stanford strength and conditioning coach Shannon Turley has reportedly been hired by Michigan. He replaces Aaron Wellman, whom Brady Hoke brought with him from San Diego State.

Turley graduated from Virginia Tech and has since spent time at Missouri, San Diego, and Stanford. He worked for Jim Harbaugh at San Diego in 2006 and then at Stanford from 2007-2010; Turley stayed in Palo Alto when Harbaugh moved to the 49ers. Turley was Football Scoop’s Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year in 2011, and he won the National Strength and Conditioning Association’s award in 2013. The guy knows his stuff.

One thing I have appreciated about watching Stanford is watching them win physical battles, especially up front. They have not been a team to get pushed around. Whether it’s the offensive line coach or the players or the head coach or the S&C guy, those linemen get underneath the opponents’ pads and set the line of scrimmage pretty consistently.

I was not impressed with Wellman. There are some guys who seemed to improve physically over the four years he was employed, but not enough. Not enough battles were won up front, and the skill guys just seemed to flat-out lack speed overall. I also thought the number of ACL injuries was abnormally high (Drake Johnson twice, Jake Butt, Jake Ryan, Russell Bellomy, Khalid Hill, etc.), although every team gets ACL injuries at some point or another. It’s very tough as an outsider to assign credit or blame to a strength and conditioning guy, but I do not feel Wellman was doing a great job for the Wolverines.

Regardless, Turley seems like a well respected member of his profession, and the results at Stanford over the last eight years suggest he knows what he’s doing. Stanford started getting some top-notch recruits a few years ago, but a lot of the guys beating up Pac-10/Pac-12 opponents were little known players coming out of high school. Turley is yet another guy who was a part of that.

2015 Semper Fidelis All-American Bowl rosters

Grant Newsome (image via 247Sports.com)

The 2015 version of the Semper Fidelis All-American Bowl will be played on Sunday, January 4, at 9:00 p.m. EST. It will be played in California and aired on Fox Sports 1. One current Michigan commit will be on the field in offensive tackle Grant Newsome, and you can also see former Michigan commit Darian Roseboro and the son of Michigan legend Tyrone Wheatley.

EAST
Pat Allen – OL – Maryland
Zach Giella – OL – Georgia (Clemson)
Grant Newsome – OL – New Jersey (Michigan)
Kirk Merritt – WR – Louisiana
Tyrone Wheatley, Jr. – TE – New York
Darian Roseboro – DE – North Carolina (North Carolina State)
Darrell Taylor – DE – Virginia (Tennessee)
Tyriq Thompson – LB – Michigan (Michigan State)
Rashard Causey – CB – Florida (Florida International)
Mook Reynolds – CB – North Carolina (Virginia Tech)
Jordan Whitehead – CB – Pennsylvania (Pitt)

WEST
Miles Boykin – WR – Illinois (Notre Dame)
Shane Lemieux – OL – Washington (Oregon)
Cameron Townsend – LB – Texas (Texas)

Players expected to commit during the game are:
OL Pat Allen
QB Dwayne Lawson
ATH Austin Joyner