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Ja’Raymond Hall, Ex-Wolverine

Ja’Raymond Hall (image via 247 Sports)

Freshman offensive lineman Ja’Raymond Hall has elected to transfer. A graduate of Oak Park (MI) Oak Park, he enrolled early but did not play at all during this season. He will have to sit out the 2018 season due to NCAA transfer rules, and he will be a redshirt sophomore when he’s finally eligible to play in a college game in 2019.

Hall was an early addition to the 2017 class, committing in December of 2015. I gave him a final TTB Rating of 77. As an offensive tackle/offensive guard tweener, I thought he was a solid developmental piece, but there are other guys in the class ahead of him and in his class who have higher potential. I also thought Hall lost a little of his athleticism as he added weight during his senior year, and obviously tackles are at a higher premium than guards. This does hurt overall depth on the offensive line, however, a position that Michigan has struggled to recruit as effectively as I expected under Jim Harbaugh.

Hall is the first member of the 30-man class of 2017 to depart. Here’s a look at Michigan’s 2018 scholarship chart with Hall removed (LINK).

Ben Herbert will be Michigan’s new S&C coach

Ben Herbert (right, with Bret Bielema)

Michigan is hiring Ben Herbert to succeed Kevin Tolbert as the strength and conditioning coordinator. Herbert was previously at Wisconsin and Arkansas, spending a lot of time with Bret Bielema, who was fired from at the end of the regular season.

I’m not knowledgeable enough in the area of strength coaches to know who was available or interested, but I was hoping Michigan would hire someone from a physical program, and Wisconsin and Arkansas both count. Here’s a link to Herbert’s bio on the Arkansas website (LINK).

I think Michigan has been caught in a No Man’s Land lately when it comes to the offensive line, which is the biggest spot that needs to be shored up from an S&C standpoint. They don’t have an identity. Do they want to be thin and athletic to run inside/outside zone? Do they want to be huge to run power and inside zone? Or do they want to be somewhere in between so they can run a variety of things?

Here’s Arkansas’ starting line in 2017:

• LT: 6’6″, 298
• LG: 6’4″, 311
• C: 6’1″, 309
• RG: 6’4″, 333
• RT: 6’6″, 335

Michigan’s starting line in 2017:

• LT: 6’5″, 305
• LG: 6’5″, 310
• C: 6’6″, 302
• RG: 6’3″, 315
• RT: 6’5″, 325

That’s an average of 317.2 lbs. for Arkansas, and it’s 311 lbs. for Michigan. That’s only about a 6 lb. difference, but why was Arkansas’ 6’1″ center heavier than Michigan’s 6’6″ center? Why isn’t a guy with Ben Bredeson’s frame playing guard around 320 lbs.?

For the record, I’m okay with having beefy inside guys paired with more athletic tackles, but Michigan hasn’t had that over the past few years. They’ve had a bunch of guard types playing tackle, and they’re neither athletic enough on the edge to hold up against pass rushers nor strong enough to get a push up the middle on combo blocks. If you’re going to roll a bunch of guards out there as your entire offensive line, then you might as well have them bulky enough to get a push. Because when you establish the running game, it slows down the pass rush enough that it can get the defense a half step out of position, thus allowing your slightly less athletic offensive linemen to do what they need to do.

This should be a solid hire for Michigan going forward.

Attractive Michigan Girl of the Week: Elle Johnson

Elle Johnson is after the jump in a picture that is probably NSFW, so hit the jump if you’re interested.

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Class of 2018 Offense-Defense All-American Bowl

Jalil Irvin (image via 247 Sports)

The Offense-Defense All-American Bowl will be taking place on December 29, 2017, at 6:26 p.m. EST in New Orleans, LA.  This is a second-tier national all-star bowl, but there are still some solid players here. The game boasts a history of alumni including Dallas Cowboys WR Dez Bryant, Louisville QB Lamar Jackson, and Carolina Panthers QB Cam Newton, among others. Below is a list of Michigan offerees to watch:

AMERICAN TEAM

• WR Kevin Austin (Notre Dame)
• OT Jerome Carvin (Tennessee)
• CB Isaiah Bolden (Florida State)
• OG Jalil Irvin (Auburn)*
• RB Tavion Thomas (Oklahoma)

NATIONAL TEAM

• OG Barton Clement (Texas A&M)
• OT Dejmi Dumervil-Jean (Louisville)
• OT Michael Furtney (Wisconsin)**
• WR Mario Goodrich
• OT Raiqwon O’Neal (Rutgers)
• LB Bumper Pool (Oklahoma)
• S Jamien Sherwood (Auburn)
• LB DeAndre Square (Kentucky)**

*Previously committed to Michigan
**From the state of Michigan but not offered by the Wolverines

Former Michigan Athlete of the Week: Willie Henry

Willie Henry

Baltimore Ravens defensive tackle Willie Henry notched 5 tackles and 1 sack in a 23-16 win over the Indianapolis Colts. He now has 33 tackles, 3.5 sacks, and 5 pass breakups this season.

HONORABLE MENTION

• New England Patriots QB Tom Brady was 21/28 for 224 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception in a 37-16 win over the Buffalo Bills
• Dallas Cowboys DE Taco Charlton had 2 tackles and 1 sack in a 21-12 loss to the Seattle Seahawks
• Seahawks DE Frank Clark made 4 tackles and 1 sack in the same game
• Carolina Panthers WR Devin Funchess caught 3 passes for 11 yards in a 22-19 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
• Minnesota Vikings LB Ben Gedeon made 4 tackles in a 16-0 win over the Green Bay Packers
• Philadelphia Eagles DE Brandon Graham made 4 tackles in a 19-10 win over the Oakland Raiders
• San Francisco 49ers CB Leon Hall made 5 tackles in a 44-33 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars
• Dallas Cowboys CB Jourdan Lewis made 2 tackles in the loss to the Seahawks
• Cleveland Browns S Jabrill Peppers made 3 tackles and returned 4 punts for 27 yards in a 20-3 loss to Da Bears
• Seattle Seahawks RB Thomas Rawls had 5 carries for 20 yards in the win over the Cowboys
• Packers LB Jake Ryan made 11 tackles in a 16-0 loss to the Vikings
• Denver Broncos S Dymonte Thomas made 2 tackles in his NFL debut, a 27-11 loss to the Washington Redskins