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2023 Season Countdown: #4 Drake Nugent

Name: Drake Nugent
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 301 lbs.
High school: Lone Tree (CO) Highlands Ranch
Position: Center
Class: Fifth year senior
Jersey number: #60
Last year: Nugent played at Stanford. He was a team captain and named Honorable Mention All-Pac 12.
TTB Rating: N/A

Nugent appeared in just three games during his first two years on campus in Palo Alto, and then he became a full-time starter in 2021 for the Cardinal. He was named Honorable Mention All-Pac 12 both seasons and even became a Rimington finalist last year. Unfortunately, his team was terrible and didn’t get much respect. When head coach David Shaw resigned, a bunch of players hit the transfer portal, including Nugent and offensive tackle Myles Hinton, both of whom ended up in Ann Arbor.

Michigan lost Rimington Award winner Olu Oluwatimi, but reports out of practice suggest the drop-off won’t be that noticeable with Nugent snapping the ball. He’s a fire hydrant in the middle of the offensive line, and he can move a little bit, too. (Which kind of ruins my fire hydrant metaphor, I guess.) He has good leverage at just 6’2″, and he reportedly has proven to be tough and stout in fall practices after missing time in the spring due to injury. Nugent should start and be backed up by Greg Crippen. Jim Harbaugh has said both players could be All-Americans, but it seems for the second straight year that Crippen will be blocked by a transfer. There’s a good chance that Nugent will at least be an All-Big Ten player, if not in line for even higher honors.

Prediction: Starting center

2023 Season Countdown: #5 Rod Moore

Name: Rod Moore
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 198 lbs.
High school: Clayton (OH) Northmont
Position: Safety
Class: Junior
Jersey number: #19
Last year: I ranked Moore #16 and said he would start at safety (LINK). He made 71 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 0.5 sacks, 4 interceptions, and 7 pass breakups.
TTB Rating: 72

By this point Michigan fans are very familiar with the name Rod Moore, but I feel like he did not garner quite enough attention last season. Maybe it’s because he was in his first year as a starter, or maybe it’s because he was not a highly valued recruit. Whatever the reason, he turned in a great season for the Wolverines, notching 71 tackles and 4 interceptions. In fact, that season total of 4 interceptions is the highest season total for a Michigan safety since Dewayne Patmon in 1998. Moore was solid on the back end and did a great job of keeping things in front of him, rarely getting beaten for big plays.

Moore is one of the best safeties in recent Michigan history, both in coverage and when coming downhill to make tackles. He has good speed and is fairly physical, but he just seems to be in the right place at the right time, which is probably more important than anything when playing the middle of the field. He’s supposedly a film junkie and has aspirations of playing in the NFL . . . in 2024. There has been some talk that his junior year of 2023 might be his last in the college ranks. I would expect him to be an all-conference player this season, backed up by Keon Sabb and/or Zeke Berry, both second-year players, and fifth year senior Quinten Johnson.

Prediction: Starting safety; 70 tackles, 2 interceptions

Recruit Tracker: 2024 RB Jordan Marshall

September 8, 2023: Marshall ran 35 times for 167 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 35-34 loss to Greenwood (IN) Center Grove.
Season totals: 73 caries, 502 yards, and 7 touchdowns, plus 7 catches for 81 yards and 3 touchdown

September 1, 2023: Marshall ran 15 times for 113 yards and caught 1 pass for a 23-yard touchdown in a 38-28 loss to Cincinnati (OH) East Central.
Season totals: 38 carries for 335 yards and 4 touchdowns, plus 7 catches for 81 yards and 3 touchdowns

August 28, 2023: Marshall ran 4 times for 102 yards and 1 touchdown, a 75-yarder on the first play, in a 57-0 victory over Bishop Dwenger. He also caught 2 passes for 13 yards and 1 touchdown. Archbishop Moeller is 1-1.
Season totals: 23 carries for 222 yards and 4 touchdowns, plus 6 catches for 58 yards and 2 touchdowns

August 21, 2023: Marshall ran 19 times for 120 yards and 3 touchdowns, and he caught 4 passes for 45 yards and 1 score, in a 49-28 loss to Indianapolis (IN) Ben Davis. Moeller is 0-1.

2023 Season Countdown: #6 Blake Corum

Name: Blake Corum
Height: 5’8″
Weight: 213 lbs.
High school: Baltimore (MD) St. Frances
Position: Running back
Class: Senior
Jersey number: #2
Last year: I ranked Corum #3 and said he would be a starting running back with 200 carries for 1,200 yards and 12 touchdowns (LINK). He ran 247 times for 1,463 yards and 18 touchdowns, adding 11 catches for 80 yards and 1 touchdown.
TTB Rating: 83

Corum had an outstanding season in 2022 and was a legitimate Heisman contender going into the home stretch. After a light load in the first few games against cupcakes (12 carries, 71 yards, and 5 TDs vs. UConn alone), he rang up a string of eight 100+ yard games, culminating with 18 carries for 108 yards against Illinois through less than two quarters . . . plus a knee injury. Along the way, he racked up 30, 29, 25, 28, 33, 20, and 28 carries during that stretch, and he was on pace for 36+ carries against the Illini before he was hurt.

After looking lightning fast in 2021, Corum put on some weight and seemed to lose some of that burst, but the burst turned into strength and agility. He made some ridiculous cuts and was very reliable on short yardage. He ran for a career-high 243 yards against Maryland, torched Penn State for 166 yards, and destroyed Michigan State with 177 yards on the ground. It was one of the best stretches of running we have seen from a Michigan back.

This season I’m moving Corum down a little bit because of that roster makeup. First and foremost, we now know that Donovan Edwards is a suitable replacement for Corum and maybe even offers more in the passing game. Second, Michigan now has a larger array of backup running backs. Whereas in 2022 it was either Corum or Edwards or . . . yikes, now the team has Kalel Mullings looking like the #3 running back, along with a seemingly tight battle between C.J. Stokes and Benjamin Hall to be the next guy on the field. Last year’s Illinois game saw a freshman Stokes and walk-on Isaiah Gash (now medically retired) in the game at key points, and it was a nail-biter of a game. This doesn’t diminish Corum’s greatness, but it does soften the blow if he’s unavailable again. I also think Michigan will rely on him a little less in order to keep him fresh through the end of the year. The days of 30 carries just for fun are probably over, and perhaps that type of workload will only occur if Michigan really needs him in a tight game.

Prediction: Starting running back; 220 carries for 1,400 yards and 15 touchdowns

2023 Season Countdown: #7 Roman Wilson

Name: Roman Wilson
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 192 lbs.
High school: Honolulu (HI) St. Louis
Position: Wide receiver
Class: Senior
Jersey number: #1
Last year: I ranked Wilson #24 and said he would be a part-time starting wide receiver with 30 catches for 450 yards and 4 touchdowns (LINK). He started four games and caught 25 passes for 376 yards and 4 touchdowns, and he ran 2 times for 39 yards and 2 touchdowns.
TTB Rating: 78

For the second consecutive year, Wilson made 25 catches in a season. Also for the second consecutive year, he struggled a little bit with nagging injuries that limited his availability and his effectiveness. But when he was available, he showed pretty consistently what his speed could do. With strong-armed quarterback J.J. McCarthy at the helm, Wilson found himself open deep time and time again. Unfortunately, McCarthy’s arm was a little erratic early in the year, so some of the wide-open deep shots ended in frustration. Still, Wilson took a screen 61 yards to the house against Colorado State, he went for 104 yards against TCU, and in between he was keeping defenses honest by occasionally popping open deep to scare people. He also grabbed two carries on the year, turning them into 21- and 18-yard touchdowns on end arounds.

Wilson’s speed is unmatched by the other receivers who have been getting on the field. (Word is that Eamonn Dennis is the fastest receiver, but he has only really played on special teams.) When a team can run the ball like Michigan can, an effective deep target can be a huge weapon. A lot depends on whether McCarthy can perform in 2023 like he did late in 2022. The play action game could be huge for getting Wilson to pop open deep, and on the flip side, if he makes some big plays early in the year, teams are going to have to start respecting that and possibly committing less to stopping the run. Even though I think Cornelius Johnson will lead the team in receptions, Wilson is the guy whose speed could make this offense take the next step in the passing game. Perhaps he and the coaches think so, too, which might be why Wilson will wear #1 this year instead of #14.

Prediction: Starting wide receiver; 38 receptions for 650 yards and 8 touchdowns