Posts under: Blog

2019 Season Countdown: #34 Christian Turner

Thanks to Gregory, Paul, Todd, and Nicholas for the generous donations yesterday via Paypal! A brief explanation of my request for donations:

It took me February, March, April, May, and part of June this year to earn what I made in February 2017 alone. Falling ad revenue across the internet (a.k.a. Google AdSense) combined with Google AdSense forcing me to delete “NSFW” content back around the turn of the year has drastically reduced traffic. And in a nutshell, it took me those 4.5 months mentioned above to just pay off Flywheel for hosting the site – not to mention bills for site maintenance and the domain itself. So all donations are appreciated!

Hit the jump for the Turner profile.

2019 Season Countdown: #35 Jordan Anthony

Name: Jordan Anthony
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 245 lbs.
High school: Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy
Position: Linebacker
Class: Redshirt sophomore
Jersey number: #34
Last year: I ranked Anthony #78 and said he would be a backup linebacker and special teamer (LINK). He played in seven games and made 4 tackles.
TTB Rating: 79

Some people might say it’s getting late early for Jordan Anthony. It’s hard to remember that he was a 5-star prospect to Rivals in 2017 and ranked no lower than #107 overall to any of the sites (that was 247 Sports). He redshirted as a freshman and only played linebacker in four games as a redshirt freshman.

Don Brown has rather consistently just stuck with a three-man rotation at inside linebacker during key moments during his three years as Michigan’s defensive coordinator. Anthony was the odd man out last season when Joshua Ross got a bunch of snaps, and this year that odd man out looks to be Cameron McGrone. I think the battle between Anthony and McGrone is a pretty tight one, but I think Anthony will take the victory by a hair. The big question is what happens going forward into 2020. Anthony, McGrone, and the two starters (Ross and Devin Gil) will still have eligibility, leaving a logjam at the position unless someone leaves for the NFL.

Prediction: Backup inside linebacker

2019 Season Countdown: #36 Stephen Spanellis

Name: Stephen Spanellis
Height: 6’5″
Weight: 300 lbs.
High school: Baltimore (MD) Gilman
Position: Offensive guard/center
Class: Redshirt junior
Jersey number: #72
Last year: I ranked Spanellis #36 and said he would be a backup guard/center (LINK). He played in five games on offense and thirteen on special teams.
TTB Rating: 63

This was an accident, but coincidences like these are inevitable when doing a countdown of about 100 people. Last year Spanellis was #36 in the countdown, and this year he is, too.

Sufficiently amazed?

Okay, moving on.

Spanellis is Michigan’s most experienced backup lineman going into the 2019 season. He has played in 26 games altogether and 11 along the offensive line. There was some talk coming out of last season that he would probably replaced Mike Onwenu at right guard unless Onwenu stepped up his game. In positive news for the team, Onwenu is reportedly in the best shape of his career going into his senior year.

Even though talk of Spanellis starting has dissipated, he will still be a key backup. He’s the #2 center on the depth chart and has spent considerable time at right guard, though if he’s the sixth-best guy, the coaching staff would probably insert him at left guard if the need arose, too. (He probably lacks the foot speed to play tackle.) The 2019 season will be an audition of sorts for Spanellis, who has the chance to get a foothold on a starting position in 2020; once Onwenu and left guard Ben Bredeson graduate (and perhaps if Cesar Ruiz leaves for the NFL), there will be two to three spots open on the interior line.

Prediction: Backup guard/center

2020 Recruiting Update: July 29, 2019

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COMMITMENT

Delran (NJ) Delran linebacker R.J. Moten committed to Michigan (LINK), and here’s the direct link to the scouting report (LINK).

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2020

Antonio Johnson – S – East St. Louis (IL) East St. Louis: Johnson decommitted from Tennessee. He’s a 4-star, the #12 safety, and #149 overall. He has not shown any interest in Michigan, and his crystal ball has no picks right now.

Hit the jump for more.

2019 Season Countdown: #37 Jordan Glasgow

Name: Jordan Glasgow
Height: 6’1″
Weight: 223 lbs.
High school: Aurora (IL) Marmion Academy
Position: Linebacker
Class: Fifth year senior
Jersey number: #29
Last year: I ranked Glasgow #51 and said he would be a backup safety (LINK). He made 28 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, and 1 forced fumble.
TTB Rating: N/A

Glasgow, the last of three walk-on brothers, enters 2019 as a key backup after having a career-best season in 2018. He went from a special teams standout early in his career to a good backup player last year, making 28 tackles and 2 sacks. He backed up Khaleke Hudson at Viper and even found himself on the field at times along with Hudson.

This year we should expect to see more of the same from Glasgow. He appears to be pretty locked in as the backup Viper, and he even took some reps this spring at WILL linebacker. Speaking in the spring, Don Brown stated that we will probably see him at both positions in 2019. While Glasgow is a versatile defender, I’m not sure how much of a drop-off there is to go from him to Michael Barrett as the #3 Viper or, say, Cam McGrone as the next WILL option. My guess is that he’s significantly ahead of Barrett and it’s basically a wash between him and McGrone. Regardless of how his position shakes out, I expect to see him with a lot of special teams action and to have an impact on the defense.

Prediction: Backup linebacker, special teamer