2023 Season Countdown: #48 Raheem Anderson II

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4Aug 2023
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2023 Season Countdown: #48 Raheem Anderson II

Raheem Anderson

Name: Raheem Anderson II
Height: 
6’3″
Weight: 
316 lbs.
High school: 
Detroit (MI) Cass Tech
Position
Center/offensive guard
Class: 
Redshirt sophomore
Jersey number: 
#62
Last year: 
I ranked Anderson #61 and said he would be a backup center/guard (LINK). He played in four games.
TTB Rating:
 83

Anderson has spent the past two seasons backing up the center and guard positions. A classmate of Greg Crippen’s, one interesting ongoing battle has been the one for the center spot. It’s not often that Michigan takes two centers in one recruiting class. Anderson played in four games last season while Crippen played in one, which got back Crippen’s redshirt that he burned in 2021. So now instead of having a year of wiggle room between the two, they’re both back to being redshirt sophomores.

I have Anderson ranked ahead of Crippen in the countdown, but some recent comments from Jim Harbaugh have it looking like Crippen is the #2 center. In fact, he said that both Drake Nugent and Crippen could be All-Americans. I would typically rank the backup center higher than this, but with both Anderson and Crippen available if Nugent gets hurt, the importance of either one gets diminished a bit. It still might be good to get all these guys playing time in 2023 since there will be multiple openings to start in 2024.

Prediction: Backup center/offensive guard

31Jul 2023
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2023 Season Countdown: #49 Peyton O’Leary

Peyton O’Leary (image via Daily News)

Name: Peyton O’Leary
Height: 
6’3″
Weight: 
195 lbs.
High school: 
Byfield (MA) Governor’s Academy
Position: 
Wide receiver
Class: 
Redshirt sophomore
Jersey number: 
#81
Last year: 
I ranked O’Leary #110 and said he would be a backup wide receiver (LINK). He played in six games and caught 1 pass for 4 yards.
TTB Rating:
 N/A

I’m going to take a minor victory lap on the emergence of Peyton O’Leary since I’ve been talking him up for the past couple years. Here’s the final sentence from last year’s countdown post for O’Leary:

“Right now Michigan’s wide receiver room is stacked, but if some injuries or blowouts happen, I could see him making a little bit of a name for himself and carving out a role.”

Well, O’Leary didn’t actually make a name for himself until the spring game, where he made 6 catches for 126 yards and 1 touchdown and caught a 2-point conversion. His 2022 season was pretty quiet with just 1 catch for 4 yards, but coming out of the spring, players were talking about O’Leary doing similar things in practice, and Jim Harbaugh said that he would have a role in the fall.

It’s quite a gigantic leap for O’Leary to jump from #110 last year to #49 this season, and maybe it’s too high. I do have some concerns about Michigan’s wide receiver depth, though. O’Leary is unlikely to start, and with the talent at running back and tight end, I’m not sure how much production could be expected from a fourth or fifth receiver. Last year’s fifth most productive receiver (by number of receptions) was Andrel Anthony with 7 catches for 80 yards and 1 touchdown; Anthony was so happy with his involvement that he transferred to Oklahoma. If O’Leary accumulates his spring game numbers over the entire 2023 season, that will be fairly impressive in itself. Cornelius Johnson and Roman Wilson should be the top guys, and we’ll see how many balls are available for any other pass-catchers.

Prediction: Backup wide receiver

31Jul 2023
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2024 Recruiting Update: July 31, 2023

Aaron Scott

OFF THE BOARD

Orlando (FL) Edgewater cornerback Cai Bates (4-star, #11 CB, #107 overall) committed to LSU. He had visited Michigan and put the Wolverines in his top group, but most of the buzz was about him staying south.

Springfield (OH) Springfield cornerback Aaron Scott (4-star, #5 CB, #52 overall) committed to Ohio State. This one stings because two of Michigan’s top cornerback prospects, Scott and Bryce West, both have verbally committed to the Buckeyes. But the writing was on the wall when Scott scheduled his announcement for July 30, which is his Buckeye fan father’s birthday. You’re not going to pick the team your dad hates on your dad’s birthday unless you hate your dad.

MISCELLANEY

Here’s a list of BBQ at the Big House visitors (LINK).

30Jul 2023
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2023 Season Countdown: #50 Alex Orji

Alex Orji (image via USA Today)

Name: Alex Orji
Height: 
6’3″
Weight: 
235 lbs.
High school: 
Sachse (TX) Sachse
Position: 
Quarterback
Class: 
Redshirt freshman
Jersey number: 
#10
Last year: 
I ranked Orji #67 and said he would redshirt (LINK). He played in three games and ran 6 times for 37 yards and 2 touchdowns while completed 1/1 pass for 5 yards.
TTB Rating:
 55

Last year I surmised that Orji would run the ball in one or two games, but I was wrong.

He played in three games.

One of those games even resulted in broadcaster Robert Griffin III saying “It’s an Orji in the endzone!” after a running touchdown. I have to imagine the suits at Fox were not too happy with that. But in general, Orji had an okay freshman season for a quarterback. I mean, he scored 2 touchdowns and has a completion percentage of 100%, which is tied for the highest completion percentage in NCAA history.

This year Cade McNamara and Alan Bowman are no longer around, bumping J.J. McCarthy up to surefire starter status. The backup QB job looks like it will be a battle between Indiana transfer Jack Tuttle and walk-on Davis Warren, but I expect Orji to be used more consistently as a running quarterback. Michigan has done something similar with Dan Villari, and even McCarthy was used more as a running option in 2021 when pocket quarterback McNamara was behind center. Look for the coaching staff to put together special packages and formations to get Orji the ball and keep McCarthy fresh.

Prediction: Backup quarterback

29Jul 2023
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2023 Season Countdown: #51 Benjamin Hall

Benjamin Hall (image via 247 Sports)

Name: Benjamin Hall
Height: 
5’11”
Weight: 
235 lbs.
High school: 
Kennesaw (GA) North Cobb
Position: 
Running back
Class: 
Freshman
Jersey number: 
#28
Last year: 
Hall was a senior in high school (LINK). He ran 61 times for 324 yards and 4 touchdowns, and he caught 9 passes for 93 yards and 2 touchdowns.
TTB Rating:
 71

Hall is one of the most interesting recruits in the 2023 class. It’s baffling to me that he played second fiddle to someone else, but that represents the embarrassment of riches North Cobb had at running back this past season. They had a running back going to the Big Ten champion Michigan Wolverines on a scholarship, but their primary running back was Clemson commit David Eziomume (4-star, #30 RB, #366 overall in 2024). Hall was a 3-star, the #55 running back, and #787 overall in 2023.

(In case you think I’m jealous as a coach of North Cobb having two FBS players at one position . . . you’re right. I am jealous.)

When Michigan accepted Hall’s commitment, it was a little bit underwhelming and left a lot of people scratching their heads. Why were the Big Ten champions accepting a commitment from a little known player when the Wolverines were on a run of landing Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards, among others, and producing the likes of Hassan Haskins?

Well, Hall was one of the stars of Michigan’s spring game and showed some excellent vision and toughness. Despite being 235 pounds, he has quick feet and good lateral agility. Perhaps he won’t ever be a superstar because he lacks great speed, but he can be a productive running back at the FBS level. The only thing holding him back right now is that pesky Corum-Edwards combination. Both of them could be picked in the first couple rounds of the 2024 NFL Draft, and both of them could be All-Big Ten in 2023. Hall will likely be battling with sophomore C.J. Stokes for the #3 running back role. I think it’s a toss-up between the two, but Michigan needs to be ready for the 2024 season when Michigan fans could be looking at a competition between Hall, Stokes, and Cole Cabana as the top backs on the roster.

Prediction: Backup running back