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Dan Samuelson, Ex-Wolverine

Dan Samuelson

Redshirt sophomore offensive guard Dan Samuelson has decided to transfer. I had ranked him at #79 (LINK) in the 2015 Season Countdown, so you can see I was not counting on him to be a major factor this year. When he flipped from Nebraska to Michigan in January of 2013, I gave him a TTB Rating of 65 (LINK

). I did not see him as the caliber of player that Michigan should have been recruiting at that stage, and I had been hoping that the Wolverines would be able to reel in Cameron Hunt, who eventually signed with Oregon and has been a two-year starter for the Ducks, including seven games as a true freshman.

Michigan took six offensive linemen in that 2013 class, and Samuelson is the third to leave, joining Kyle Bosch (now at West Virginia) and Chris Fox (now on medical scholarship). That monster offensive line class has now been whittled down to David Dawson, Patrick Kugler, and Logan Tuley-Tillman, none of whom have made an impact yet. But out of 27 signees in that cycle, only four have left so far – those three linemen and wide receiver Csont’e York, who got into some legal trouble in Ann Arbor.

With three open scholarships and thirteen seniors scheduled to graduate following the upcoming season, Michigan’s 2016 class technically has 16 spots right now.

2015 Season Countdown: #16 Chris Wormley

Chris Wormley

Name: Chris Wormley
Height:

6’5″
Weight: 300 lbs.
High school: Toledo (OH) Whitmer
Position: Defensive end
Class: Redshirt junior
Jersey number: #43
Last year: I ranked Wormley #17 and said he would be a starting defensive tackle with 35 tackles, 6 tackles for loss, and 3 sacks. He started six games and made 21 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, and 3 sacks.

Wormley has continued to take incremental steps forward each year. When he was in high school, there were questions about his motor. When he got to college, he was probably going to play as a freshman before he tore his ACL in the summer. When he was a redshirt freshman, he showed a couple flashes of having the athletic ability dominate. Last year he started to put it all together for longer stretches. He split time at the 3-tech defensive tackle position, and he was fairly productive (7th on the team in tackles for loss, tied for 5th in sacks). He has yet to have a breakout game of dominance, but he seems to make one or two plays per game.

The new coaching staff has worked wonders with Wormley, because most guys stop growing upward in college. Now listed at 6’5″ and 300 lbs. (previously 6’4″, 295), Wormley has been playing strongside end in the new regime. He has the chops to move inside to defensive tackle, but despite the injury to Bryan Mone, Michigan has more depth on the interior. At the strongside end spot, it’s basically up to Wormley, Taco Charlton, and then questions (mainly, are Henry Poggi and Tom Strobel tight ends or defensive ends?). Wormley and Charlton are both known for inconsistency, but now that Brennen Beyer has graduated, those two might push each other to new heights in their attempts to become full-time starters. For his own part, Wormley started earning lots of hype in the spring, and D.J. Durkin has said some really positive things about him recently. My guess is that he beats out Charlton, although there will be lots of rotation on the defensive line.

Prediction: 40 tackles, 9 tackles for loss, 6 sacks

Wall Street Journal: The Seduction of Jim Harbaugh

Here’s an excerpt in the Wall Street Journal from John U. Bacon’s upcoming book, Endzone: The Rise, Fall, and Return of Michigan Football (LINK

). The book comes out in September but can be pre-ordered on Amazon (LINK).

Hit the jump for some pictures of Catalina Otalvaro.
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2015 Season Countdown: #17 Ben Braden

Ben Braden

Name: Ben Braden
Height: 6’6″
Weight: 331 lbs.
High school: Rockford (MI) Rockford
Position: Offensive guard
Class:

Redshirt junior
Jersey number: #71
Last year: I ranked Braden #27 and said he would be the starting right tackle. He started all twelve games at right tackle.

The tackle positions were giant question marks heading into last season. Michigan had lost Taylor Lewan and Michael Schofield to graduation and the NFL, and the backups at those positions were completely unproven. Braden, who had played in just two games in 2013, was one of them. Meanwhile, Erik Magnuson was the higher rated recruit and had played more in 2013. It seemed likely that Magnuson would start at one of the two tackle spots. Instead, Braden locked down the job on the right side while true freshman Mason Cole started all twelve games on the left. Michigan’s offensive line improved from terrible two seasons ago to mediocre last year.

The line as a whole needs to take another step forward, but so does Braden as an individual. A weakness in pass protection makes him a bit of a liability. However, he seems likely to start somewhere. Going into the season, he looks like a front-runner to start at one of the guard positions. Michigan had Magnuson starting at right tackle in the spring, and Braden had bumped over to left guard. Some early reports out of August practice have Braden playing some right guard. Either way, he and Kyle Kalis are manning those two spots. Braden has added 9 lbs. to his already massive frame, and he was reportedly torching the other linemen in sprints and conditioning in the spring. If he can hone his technique, he could be a very powerful interior presence for the next couple seasons.

Prediction: Starting right guard

Video: Greg Mattison talks defensive line adjustments