Posts by: Thunder

2019 Season Countdown: #25 Vincent Gray

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Name: Vincent Gray
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 185 lbs.
High school: Rochester (MI) Adams
Position: Cornerback
Class: Redshirt freshman
Jersey number: #31
Last year: I ranked Gray #98 and said he would redshirt (LINK). He played in three games.
TTB Rating: 71

For better or worse, Gray has had a rapid ascent in Michigan’s secondary. He was late flyer in the 2018 class, and he was not a highly touted player. The Wolverines seemed to have good depth at cornerback last season, and Gray wasn’t needed to play. With David Long, Lavert Hill, Brandon Watson, Ambry Thomas, Benjamin St-Juste, and Myles Sims (among others) lined up to play the position, Gray was buried. Then Long left for the NFL, Watson graduated, St-Juste didn’t play due to injury (and transferred to Minnesota), Sims was buried so deep that he crawled out of the earth on Georgia Tech’s campus, and…

…maybe Vincent Gray will be a starter in 2019. Now when this list was originally concocted, I expected Gray to be the #3 corner. But since that time, it came out that Ambry Thomas has been dealing with some health issues and might miss camp and/or the beginning of the season. That places Gray in prime position to start in Thomas’s place, opposite Hill. Will Gray be any good? On the plus side, Michigan’s coaching staff has spoken highly of him and they have never had a bad starting corner under Jim Harbaugh. On the concerning side, Gray is fairly slight at 6’2″ and 185 pounds, and his athletic profile suggests he needs to be physical to make up for a shortage of speed. I trust Michigan’s coaching staff to put good defensive backs out there, but if Thomas is out, you have to imagine opposing coaches will be testing Gray early to see if he’s up to the task.

Prediction: Backup cornerback

2019 Season Countdown: #26 Dylan McCaffrey

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Name: Dylan McCaffrey
Height: 6’5″
Weight: 220 lbs.
High school: Castle Rock (CO) Valor Christian
Position: Quarterback
Class: Redshirt sophomore
Jersey number: #10
Last year: I ranked McCaffrey #61 and said he would be a backup quarterback (LINK). He was 8/15 for 126 yards and 2 touchdowns, along with running 10 times for 99 yards and 1 touchdown.
TTB Rating: 91

McCaffrey had a bit of a battle on his hands going into the 2018 season, with an older Brandon Peters and a decent freshman in Joe Milton trying to grab the #2 quarterback spot. Only a select few know exactly how close that battle was, but McCaffrey came out the victor and forced Peters to transfer to Illinois this off-season. Michigan fans didn’t have to wait long for the redshirt freshman to debut; he made 6 pass attempts and 3 rush attempts in the season opener against Notre Dame. McCaffrey showed flashes of good play, none more scintillating than a late 44-yard touchdown run against Wisconsin.

That’s a 6’5″, 220 lb. quarterback outrunning a 6’0″, 190 lb. safety and linebacker T.J. Edwards for a long touchdown.

Hit the jump for more.

Nightly Roundup: August 5, 2019

Michigan freshman wide receiver Quintel Kent is sitting out this season due to some undisclosed medical issues. He was a 3-star, the #116 wide receiver, and #958 overall. I had him at #65 in the countdown (LINK). All of that, of course, is less important than his health.

pic.twitter.com/z7UNiZBMcc

— Q? (@Quintelkent1) August 5, 2019

The Detroit News profiles former Michigan wide receiver Ron Bellamy, who is now the head coach at West Bloomfield (LINK).

2019 Freshman Jersey Numbers

QB Cade McNamara: #12
RB Jordan Castleberry: #23
RB Zach Charbonnet: #24
WR Giles Jackson: #15
WR Cornelius Johnson: #6
WR George Johnson III: #22
WR Quintel Kent:
WR Mike Sainristil: #19
TE Erick All: #83
OL Karsen Barnhart: #52
OL Zach Carpenter: #58
OL Trente Jones: #53
OL Trevor Keegan: #77
OL Nolan Rumler: #55
OL Jack Stewart: #70
DL Mike Danna (transfer): #4
DL Chris Hinton, Jr.: #15
DL Michael Morris: #80
DL Gabe Newburg: #99
DL David Ojabo: #71
DL Mazi Smith: #58
LB Anthony Solomon: #10
LB Charles Thomas: #13
LB Joey Velazquez: #9
CB Jalen Perry: #3
CB D.J. Turner II: #5
S Daxton Hill: #30
S Quinten Johnson: #23

2019 Season Countdown: #27 Ronnie Bell

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Name: Ronnie Bell
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 184 lbs.
High school: Kansas City (MO) Park Hill
Position: Wide receiver
Class: Sophomore
Jersey number: #8
Last year: I ranked Bell #95 and said he would redshirt (LINK). He had 8 catches for 145 yards and 2 touchdowns.
TTB Rating: 71

For those of you longing for the return of Steve Breaston, I think you may have found a reasonable facsimile in Ronnie Bell. Bell is a slightly built, slippery slot receiver who has the ability to break away without ever really looking like a blazing runner. Bell played early and often as a true freshman, and he figured into the team’s plans in many ways. He caught the ball (8 catches for 145 yards and 2 TD), ran the ball (5 carries for -2 yards), returned punts (2 returns for 7 yards), and returned kickoffs (2 returns for 53 yards). Not bad for a wide receiver who was a recruiting afterthought.

But not great, either. Bell got some jet sweeps despite not having great speed to really threaten the defense to the edge, and I think Michigan’s staff just wasn’t sure how to use him. They wanted some Eddie McDoom or Jehu Chesson jet sweep magic, but Bell just doesn’t quite have that explosion. I think Josh Gattis will have a better idea of how to use Bell, and it also helps that Bell will have spent another year in the weight program. With a guy like him who has a natural ability and willingness to shake off tacklers, a little bit of extra strength should benefit him.

It’s a mighty large jump to go from #95 to #27 in one year. Part of that is because of the promise Bell showed, but it also represents Michigan’s slightly shaky wide receiver situation. I had Bell ranked here even before Oliver Martin’s transfer, and a big reason is that Tarik Black just hasn’t shown that he can stay healthy. Even with the arrival of Mike Sainristil and other touted freshman receivers, having a guy who spent the spring in the system (unlike Cornelius Johnson, George Johnson III, and Giles Jackson) should help him plug in various places if necessary. For now I expect Bell to be a backup in the slot, but he can help in so many ways that a top-30 ranking seems right.

Prediction: Backup slot receiver/punt returner/kickoff returner