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2016 Season Countdown: #17 Erik Magnuson

Erik Magnuson (image via Michigan Daily

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Name: Erik Magnuson
Height: 6’6″
Weight: 305 lbs.
High school: Carlsbad (CA) La Costa Canyon
Position: Offensive tackle
Class: Fifth year senior
Jersey number: #78
Last year: I ranked Magnuson #11 and said he would be the starting right tackle (LINK). He started twelve games at right tackle and was named Third Team All-Big Ten.

Magnuson had a hard time locking down a job in 2013 and 2014, as he bounced between tackle and guard, mostly sticking at the latter. Going into last season, he seemed to have become entrenched at right tackle, and that’s what played out during the year. He was the full-time starter on the right side, and for the most part, he held his own. He struggled against the truly elite edge players, and even this spring, he had a tendency to cross his feet against speed rushers and get off balance. His body hasn’t developed quite the way I expected, and he’s become a little rounder and less like a slab of muscle than I expected.

That last bit doesn’t matter so much at this point, because he is who he is. He’s a solid right tackle who earned All-Big Ten votes by both the coaches and media. I dropped him from #11 to #17 this year, not because I’m less confident in his abilities, but because there are other positions that are more critical and redshirt freshman Nolan Ulizio looked solid in the spring. There’s also the possibility that Ben Bredeson or Grant Newsome could back him up at right tackle, depending on which of those guys wins the left tackle gig. Much like my take on Kyle Kalis yesterday, I think there’s a good chance for Magnuson to once again be All-Big Ten based on his experience and participation on what should be a pretty good team this fall.

Prediction: Starting right tackle; Second Team All-Big Ten

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Ahmir Mitchell, Ex-Wolverine

Ahmir Mitchell (image via MLive

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Freshman wide receiver Ahmir Mitchell announced on Twitter that he plans to transfer. Mitchell was a class of 2016 signee who enrolled early at Michigan in January.

Mitchell is 6’3″, 204-pounder who could play wide receiver, safety, or outside linebacker in college. He was recruited to Michigan as a wideout, but there was a lot of speculation that he would end up playing defense. At one point during his recruitment, it looked like he would end up at Ohio State if they wanted him, but that didn’t really pan out. He was running with the second team in the spring – partially because of some injuries – but there was a good chance that he could have played this fall. Unfortunately, he got into some trouble during the summer, and he was going to be suspended for the year. Instead, he has chosen to transfer.

Hit the jump for more.

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Andrew David, Ex-Wolverine

Andrew David

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Redshirt freshman kicker Andrew David is reportedly transferring to TCU, which is an interesting location, considering that senior running back Derrick Green is also headed there.

David committed to Michigan in June of 2013 as part of the 2015 recruiting class (LINK). He was a 3-star and the #9 kicker in that class. He redshirted last year. I’m admittedly not an expert on kicking, so I mostly left it up to the recruiting sites to determine whether he was any good or not, and they generally thought he was. However, I did not hear great things coming out of practice about him, and when I saw him kicking at Ford Field this spring, I was very underwhelmed. After redshirting in 2015, he was expected to ride the bench this year with fifth year senior Kenny Allen and perhaps true freshman Quinn Nordin handling kickoffs, punts, and placekicking.

David is the second player from the 14-man class of 2015 to depart, joining wide receiver/safety Brian Cole (East Mississippi Community College).

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Jalil Irvin, Ex-Wolverine

Stone Mountain (GA) Stephenson OG Jalil Irvin

Stone Mountain (GA) Stephenson offensive guard Jalil Irvin decommitted from Michigan on Tuesday. He committed to Michigan in June (LINK).

Irvin still has Michigan in his top five and will consider the Wolverines going forward. I originally compared him to former Michigan offensive guard Patrick Omameh, since he’s an athletic guard who can grow into being a lineman at the next level. As a 2018 prospect, it’s too early to regret his departure from the class too much, but it’s reason not to get too invested in these early commitments. Michigan has already offered several other offensive guard prospects, including Indiana’s Emil Ekiyor, Michigan’s own Marquan McCall, and Georgian Jamaree Salyer, among others.

This is the third decommitment for Michigan in two days, as 2017 defensive tackle Aubrey Solomon (LINK) and 2018 defensive end Leonard Taylor (post yet to come) both backed off their commitments on Monday.

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2016 Season Countdown: #18 Kyle Kalis

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Kyle Kalis (#67) with Willie Henry (image via MLive)

Name: Kyle Kalis
Height: 6’5″
Weight: 305 lbs.
High school:

Lakewood (OH) St. Edward’s
Position: Offensive guard
Class: Fifth year senior
Jersey number: #67
Last year: I ranked Kalis #9 and said he would be the starting right guard and Honorable Mention All-Big Ten (LINK). He started all thirteen games.

Kalis was largely unchallenged for the right guard job going into 2015. I thought offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Tim Drevno would make a positive impact on him and the rest of the line, and that was true. It still wasn’t quite as big of a step forward as I had hoped. Kalis missed blocks at times, and I thought he was the weakest member of the starting unit. It’s more mental than physical with him, because he has the bulk, strength, and athleticism to get the job done. He just doesn’t seem to process the blocking schemes and defenses as well as I would expect for the son of an NFL lineman and a veteran player.

Now it’s year five for the touted recruit that was once committed to Ohio State. It seems like a long time ago that he was receiving hate mail from Buckeye fans for flipping to the Wolverines, and now we’re on the precipice of his final year at Michigan. He’s a multi-year starter and the most experienced player on the line with 29 career starts, but so far he hasn’t performed like the 5-star player he was coming out of Ohio. After some strange rumors from Rivals this off-season saying the coaches were looking to push Kalis out the door, he’s back to reprise his role as the starting right guard. Redshirt junior David Dawson has stepped in to play some right guard in August, and rumors have gone around that Kalis is dealing with back issues (which also hampered him early in his college career). They shouldn’t hold him out long-term, but that will be something to watch. Dawson has a fair amount of experience for a backup, and redshirt freshman Jon Runyan, Jr. looked pretty decent this spring. There are options if Kalis has to miss a chunk of time, but it would be a step backward for an offensive line that isn’t expected to be stellar in the first place.

Prediction: Starting right guard; Second Team All-Big Ten