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2021 Season Countdown: #61 Andrel Anthony

Name: Andrel Anthony
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 180 lbs.
High school: East Lansing (MI) East Lansing
Position: Wide receiver
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: #1
Last year: Anthony was a senior in high school (LINK). He made 26 catches for 474 yards and 4 touchdowns.
TTB Rating: 73

Anthony was also a standout high school basketball player who was considering a career on the hardcourt at one point. Instead, he decided to focus on football and the Wolverines kept him away from the hometown Michigan State Spartans. He ended up ranked as a 3-star, the #81 wide receiver, #525 overall, and #13 in-state.

I originally gave Anthony a TTB Rating of 67, but I’m bumping him up approximately half a notch because some big competition at his position ditched Michigan in favor of Texas. Without Xavier Worthy in his class, I think that will open up more opportunities for Anthony. He also reportedly had a good spring and is the most likely freshman receiver to see significant playing time, though he is expected to be down the depth chart.

Prediction: Backup wide receiver

2021 Season Countdown: #62 Raheem Anderson

Name: Raheem Anderson
Height: 6’3″
Weight: 298 lbs.
High school: Detroit (MI) Cass Tech
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: N/A
Last year: Anderson was a senior in high school (LINK).
TTB Rating: 83

Anderson was a good prospect when he committed to Michigan in April of 2020. I had some criticisms of him, especially in his pass protection, but they were fixable things.

And I think he fixed a lot of them. I thought his senior film was much cleaner and showed that he continued to improve. He keeps a wider base and moves his feet better laterally. I think Michigan got a really good player here.

As for the 2021 season, Sam Webb has been beating the drum that Anderson could potentially be the starting center for Michigan. I find that outcome difficult to picture, especially when Michigan has more experienced and bigger guys vying for playing time at center, from Andrew Vastardis to Zak Zinter to Nolan Rumler to Reece Atteberry. I think Michigan has enough talented bodies to keep Anderson from being that important of a piece this fall, but I could definitely see him earning some playing time to groom him for 2022, when there will be a couple spots open.

Prediction: Backup center/guard

2021 Season Countdown: #63 Joey Velazquez

Name: Joey Velazquez
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 224 lbs.
High school: Columbus (OH) St. Francis De Sales
Position: Linebacker
Class: Redshirt sophomore
Jersey number: #29
Last year: I ranked Velazquez #78 and said he would be a backup linebacker and special teamer (LINK). He played in one game.
TTB Rating: 82

Velazquez has developed roughly in the manner I expected so far during his career. After starting off his career at Viper in 2019, he moved to inside linebacker in 2020. That was a better fit for him, especially considering all the players Michigan had been bringing in at the hybrid Viper position. The one opportunity he got to see the field in 2020 was on special teams against Michigan State.

Now with the defensive coaching change, it’s unclear exactly what the defense will look like in 2021. Velazquez is still a little light at 224 lbs., and his baseball training probably holds him back from realizing his full potential in football. (He hit .174 with 7 RBI and 1 double this spring.) It’s very tough to play two sports in college, and I would not be surprised to see him make a choice sometime in the next year about which sport to choose to play full-time. There were some positive things being said about him this off-season, but at best, he appears to be at least the fifth-best inside linebacker going into year three.

Prediction: Backup linebacker, special teamer

2021 Season Countdown: #64 Rayshaun Benny

NOTE: I’m skipping from #66 Cristian Dixon to #64 Rayshaun Benny because Cornell Wheeler, who is transferring to Kansas, was at #65.

Name: Rayshaun Benny
Height: 6’5″
Weight: 275 lbs.
High school: Oak Park (MI) Oak Park
Position: Defensive tackle
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: N/A
Last year: Benny was a senior in high school (LINK). He made 32 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, and 5.5 sacks in five games.
TTB Rating: 81

Benny went through a meandering process to get to Michigan. A two-way lineman – who I think has more upside on offense – Benny seemed destined to sign with Michigan. Then a little bit out of the blue, he verbally committed to Michigan State. Rumors kept popping up that he would flip to the Wolverines, but he batted those rumors away and insisted that he would be a Spartan . . . except he didn’t sign in the December early signing period. As things moved along toward February, it seemed more and more likely that he would end up signing with Michigan, which he eventually did.

Michigan made a run on defensive tackles at the end of the recruiting cycle, and they also landed transfer Jordan Whittley from Oregon State. It’s hard to pin any single one of those freshmen or transfers down as being ready to contribute this fall, because they’re all unknowns at this point. Michigan has enough guys at defensive tackle this year to potentially plaster Benny to the bench, but the staff can’t really afford to redshirt every big defensive lineman in the class. Benny’s combination of size and athleticism seem to make him the most likely to play, but his strength and conditioning will probably place him in a backup role this season.

Prediction: Backup defensive tackle

2021 Season Countdown: #66 Cristian Dixon

Name: Cristian Dixon
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 187 lbs.
High school: Santa Ana (CA) Mater Dei
Position: Wide receiver
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: N/A
Last year: Dixon was a senior in high school (LINK).
TTB Rating: 75

Dixon had a nice list of offers coming out of high school, picking Michigan over the likes of LSU, Notre Dame, and Oregon. He had been a teammate of now sophomore cornerback Darion Green-Warren, and like all Californians, his season was postponed to the spring. So instead of playing a senior year, he enrolled early at Michigan and went through spring ball.

Buzz about him coming out of practice was pretty much non-existent. And that’s not too surprising, considering that instead of playing a season and going through spring ball to develop even further, his playing experience over the past year was halved. If you then add in that Michigan landed transfer receiver Daylen Baldwin, I think Dixon’s chances of making an impact in 2021 are pretty slim. I expect him to play some, because Michigan should see some departures going into 2022 that might open some doors for playing time, but Dixon will probably not be used much.

Prediction: Backup wide receiver