Posts by: Thunder

Recruiting Down the Stretch: Quarterback

With the regular season in the rear view mirror and only a bowl game (or maybe playoff) between now and National Signing Day, I thought I would do a rundown of the position groups. This should not be confused with my “If I Had My Druthers…” posts, which rank remaining recruits. With football season wrapping up and the holidays, I haven’t had a ton of time to pore over film. So here’s a look at Michigan’s quarterback recruiting situation in 2017.

COMMITMENTS

Littleton (CO) Valor Christian’s Dylan McCaffrey is a 6’5″, 196 lb. Army All-American. He’s a part of the famed McCaffrey clan. You might have heard of his brother, who won an Olympic medal. No, wait. His dad won an Olympic medal. Or was that his grandfather? Okay, okay, his brother was an NFL receiver for the Broncos. Right? No, that was the mom. The whole family’s just so athletic that I can’t keep things straight. Anyway, Dylan is a 247 Composite 4-star, the #4 pro-style quarterback, and #53 overall in the class. He can run a little bit and has a very similar athletic profile to that of last year’s QB recruit, Brandon Peters.

UNCOMMITTED PLAYERS

• Jackson Gibbs

COMMITTED ELSEWHERE

• Chase Brice (Clemson)
• Jack Coan (Wisconsin)
• Kasim Hill (Maryland)
• Bailey Hockman (Florida State)
• Hunter Johnson (Clemson)
• Tate Martell (Ohio State)
• Davis Mills (Stanford)
• Shawn Robinson (TCU)
• Jelani Woods (Oklahoma State)

RETURNING ROSTER PLAYERS

• Shane Morris (5th)
• John O’Korn (5th)
• Wilton Speight (RS Jr.)*
• Alex Malzone (RS So.)
• Brandon Peters (RS Fr.)

OUTLOOK FOR MICHIGAN

Generally, you want to aim to have about five scholarship quarterbacks on the roster, preferably one in each class to spread out the talent and experience. Including McCaffrey, six are scheduled to be on the roster in 2017. That will almost certainly not be the case when August rolls around. The most glaring reason is that Michigan would have two fifth-year seniors on the roster, neither of whom would likely be starting. With Speight locking down the starting job for the duration of 2016, it would be an upset for one of his elders to win the gig. Expect one or both of Morris and O’Korn to transfer, at the very least. As for the recruiting aspect, Michigan has not been pursuing quarterbacks for months and will stick with only McCaffrey unless something weird happens, like a mass transfer at the position. Gibbs isn’t a serious option for Michigan, and his only chance to join the team would be as a walk-on.

*Returning starter

Ex-Wolverine Updates: Week 13

Damien Harris (#34, image via Maroon and White Nation)

Former CB commit Gareon Conley: Conley made 1 tackle and 1 pass breakup in Ohio State’s 30-27 win over Michigan.

Former defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin: Durkin’s Maryland Terrapins moved to 6-6 and became bowl eligible with a 31-13 victory over the mighty Rutgers Scarlet Knights.

Former RB Derrick Green: Green had just 1 carry for -5 yards in TCU’s 31-9 win over Texas. At 6-6 the Horned Frogs will probably end up in a bowl game, but right now, Green has 38 carries for 141 yards (3.71 yards/carry) and 2 touchdowns on the season.

Hit the jump for several more updates.

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Big Ten Network: 2016 All-Freshman Team

Chris Evans

The Big Ten Network announced its All-Freshman team for the 2016 season (LINK), and there are several Michigan players included. Here’s a rundown of those players, along with those Michigan recruited a season or two ago (since it includes redshirt freshmen).

FIRST TEAM
Chris Evans – RB – Michigan
Mike Weber – RB – Ohio State
K.J. Hill – WR – Ohio State
Ben Bredeson – OG – Michigan
Michael Jordan – OG – Ohio State
Rashan Gary – DE – Michigan
Dre’mont Jones – DT – Ohio State

HONORABLE MENTION
Miles Sanders – RB – Penn State
Kekoa Crawford – WR – Michigan
Eddie McDoom – WR – Michigan
Terrance Davis – OG – Maryland
Connor McGovern – OT – Penn State
Josh King – DE – Michigan State
Carter Coughlin – LB – Minnesota
Justin Layne – CB – Michigan State

School in the News: Oregon

Oregon head coach Mark Helfrich was fired on Tuesday night, which makes it very likely that defensive coordinator Brady Hoke – Michigan’s head coach from 2011-2014 – will not return. The Ducks are in an interesting position where they lost Chip Kelly a few years ago, kept his assistant on to carry the torch, and now fired that successor. So do they go back to the well and hire someone like UCF’s Scott Frost, another former assistant? Or do they hire from outside the family? Some names I’ve seen linked to the search: Western Michigan HC P.J. Fleck, Frost, Boise State HC Bryan Harsin, West Virginia HC Dana Holgorsen, Florida HC Jim McElwain, and Ohio State DC Greg Schiano.

Here’s a look at who might be available for cherry-picking:

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Way Too Early 2017 Depth Chart: November 2016

Wilton Speight (image via Times Leader)

Back in August I took a look at how the depth chart might look in 2017 (LINK), and then I updated it in September (LINK). With the regular season in the rear view mirror, there are some moves to make. Of course, things are always fluid, there will be early departures, there will be injuries, etc. But now that we know how the 2016 team looks, we might have a better view of next season.

Hit the jump for another early look at 2017.

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