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2015 Projected Depth Chart

Jake Butt might be the face of Michigan’s offense heading into 2015

Yes, I know it’s really early in the off-season. We don’t have a bowl game this year. We also don’t have a coach. But it’s never too early to start prognosticating about the 2015 season. So here’s my stab at a 2015 depth chart that will surely change between now and the spring, let alone next year’s season opener.

Some notes before jumping into it:

• I expect Devin Funchess to declare for the NFL Draft, even though I think he would be better off returning for his senior year (EDIT: I originally posted this last week before Funchess did, indeed, declare for the draft. I bumped it to Sunday because I had a busy weekend and couldn’t post something new this morning.).
• I expect Russell Bellomy to graduate and/or transfer.
• I have heard of some other players leaning toward transferring, but I am keeping them on the chart for now. I think most players are in a holding pattern pending the coaching hire, anyway.

QB: Shane Morris (Jr.), Wilton Speight (RS Fr.), Russell Bellomy (5th), Alex Malzone (Fr.)
RB: Ty Isaac (RS So.), Derrick Green (Jr.), Drake Johnson (RS Jr.), De’Veon Smith (Jr.), Justice Hayes (5th)
FB: Joe Kerridge (5th), Sione Houma (Sr.), Wyatt Shallman (RS So.)
WR: Amara Darboh (RS Jr.), Maurice Ways (RS Fr.), Bo Dever (RS So.), Jaron Dukes (RS So.)
WR: Freddy Canteen (So.), Jehu Chesson (RS Jr.), Drake Harris (RS Fr.), Brian Cole (Fr.)
SR: Dennis Norfleet (Sr.), Da’Mario Jones (RS So.), Ross Douglas (RS So.)
TE: Jake Butt (Jr.), A.J. Williams (Sr.), Khalid Hill (RS So.), Keith Heitzman (5th), Ian Bunting (RS Fr.)
LT: Mason Cole (So.), Erik Magnuson (RS Jr.), Logan Tuley-Tillman (RS So.), Grant Newsome (Fr.)
LG: Graham Glasgow (5th), Kyle Bosch (RS So.), Dan Samuelson (RS So.)
C: Jack Miller (5th), Patrick Kugler (RS So.)
RG: Kyle Kalis (RS Jr.), David Dawson (RS So.), Blake Bars (RS Jr.), Jon Runyan Jr. (Fr.)
RT: Ben Braden (RS Jr.), Chris Fox (RS So.), Juwann Bushell-Beatty (RS Fr.)

SDE: Taco Charlton (Jr.), Henry Poggi (RS So.), Tom Strobel (RS Jr.)
DT: Willie Henry (RS Jr.), Chris Wormley (RS So.), Maurice Hurst Jr. (RS So.), Matthew Godin (RS Jr.)
DT: Ryan Glasgow (RS Jr.), Bryan Mone (So.), Ondre Pipkins (Sr.), Brady Pallante (RS Fr.)
WDE: Mario Ojemudia (Sr.), Lawrence Marshall (RS Fr.)
SLB: James Ross (Sr.), Royce Jenkins-Stone (Sr.), Allen Gant (RS Jr.)
MLB: Joe Bolden (Sr.), Mike McCray II (RS So.), Chase Winovich (RS Fr.), Michael Ferns (RS Fr.)
WLB: Desmond Morgan (5th), Ben Gedeon (Jr.), Noah Furbush (RS Fr.), Jared Wangler (RS Fr.)
CB: Jabrill Peppers (RS Fr.), Channing Stribling (Jr.), Reon Dawson (RS So.)
CB: Jourdan Lewis (Jr.), Terry Richardson (RS Jr.)
NB: Blake Countess (5th)
S: Jarrod Wilson (Sr.), Dymonte Thomas (Jr.), Brandon Watson (RS Fr.)
S: Delano Hill (Jr.), Jeremy Clark (RS So.), Tyree Kinnel (Fr.)

K: Andrew David (Fr.)
P: Kenny Allen (RS So.)
LS: Scott Sypniewski (RS So.)

Former Michigan Athlete of the Week: Tom Brady

Tom Brady

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady was 28/44 for 317 yards and 2 touchdowns in a 23-14 victory over the San Diego Chargers.

Honorable mention: New York Jet David Harris had 9 tackles and 1 tackle for loss in a 30-24 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. Jacksonville Jaguars running back Denard Robinson had 10 carries for 30 yards before suffering a foot sprain that will cause him to miss the final three games of the season; the Jaguars lost to the Houston Texas, 27-13. Oakland Raider Charles Woodson made 8 tackles, 1 interception, and 1 pass breakup in a 24-13 win over Jim Harbaugh’s San Francisco 49ers.

Poll results: Who will be the next head coach at Michigan?

Jim Harbaugh

Michigan fans are buying the hype – almost 50% of them think Jim Harbaugh will be the next Michigan head coach. Greg Schiano is ranked too high at 2%, though, people.

Jim Harbaugh: 47%

Les Miles: 8%

Greg Schiano: 2%

Recruiting Update: December 12, 2014

Chesapeake (VA) Oscar Smith defensive end Josh Sweat

OFF THE BOARD
Long Beach (CA) Poly cornerback Colin Samuel committed to UCLA. Samuel was offered late in the season as a reaction to Michigan’s losses of Shaun Crawford (Notre Dame) and Garrett Taylor (Penn State) from the 2015 class. He is a teammate of 5-star cornerback Iman Marshall, who is expected to sign with USC.

Chesapeake (VA) Oscar Smith defensive end Josh Sweat committed to Florida State. Sweat is an extremely impressive athlete who unfortunately tore his ACL early in his senior season, but he’s still the #1 overall player to 247 Sports and the #6 player in the 247 Composite rankings. Florida State has three Michigan-offered defensive ends in the 2015 and 2016 classes, including Sweat and 2016s Josh Brown and Janarius Robinson.

Lawrenceville (GA) Central Gwinnett linebacker Adonis Thomas committed to Alabama. Thomas had originally committed to Florida, but he decommitted in late October as their season spiraled downward.

Detroit (MI) Cass Tech running back Mike Weber committed to Ohio State. Weber had originally committed to Michigan, but he announced his decommitment during the Wolverines’ loss to Maryland in late November.

MISCELLANEOUS
Rivals updated their rankings for 2015 (top 100, top 250) and 2016 (top 100, top 250) over the past couple weeks.

Over on Recruiting Season, I posted profiles for Orchard Lake St. Mary’s OG Cameron Kolwich, Grand Rapids West Catholic TE Bryce Witham, and Warren De La Salle RB Allen Stritzinger. There are also several updated profiles with new offers and highlight videos.

Coaching Candidate: Bret Bielema

Bret Bielema

Bret Bielema
Age: 44
Current position: Arkansas Razorbacks head coach
Salary: $2,950,000 per year
Head coaching experience: 9-15 at Arkansas Razorbacks (2013-2014), 68-24 at Wisconsin Badgers (2006-2012), 77-39 overall
History: Bielema grew up in Illinois and got a scholarship to Iowa as a defensive tackle. After a short playing stint in the Arena Football League, he latched on at Iowa as a graduate assistant and then the linebackers coach from 1996-2001. Kansas State hired him away as a co-defensive coordinator in 2002-2003, and then he was hired by Wisconsin head coach Barry Alvarez as the defensive coordinator for 2004 and 2005. After Alvarez retired from coaching, he handed over the reins to Bielema. The Badgers continued their string of highly productive running backs, starting with P.J. Hill (1,161+ yards from 2006-2008), John Clay (1,012+ yards from 2009-2010), and Montee Ball (1,830+ yards in 2011-2012). Bielema and Wisconsin had developed a reputation for producing big-time running backs and big-time offensive linemen. In a bit of a surprising move, he took the head coaching job at Arkansas after the 2012 season. The Razorbacks won their first three games of 2013 but then lost nine straight to end the year, and they are 6-6 so far this year with a bowl game against Texas pending. Meanwhile, his teams’ rushing prowess has continued with two 900+ yards rushers in 2013 and two 1,000+ yard rushers this season.
My thoughts: I hate Bret Bielema. “Hate” is a strong word, because he’s not a criminal or anything. But as far as coaches go, he’s a notch below the likes of Bobby Petrino and Mark Dantonio in my book. Bielema is pompous and a little bit slimy, and he comes off like a meathead. All that aside, he appears to be a pretty darn good football coach. His offensive lines have typically been excellent, and his running backs have been outstanding (at least in college); his quarterbacks have been game managers, and his defenses have been solid (#24 in total defense in 2014, #15 his last year at Wisconsin). It’s hard to argue with his success at Wisconsin, and his current Razorbacks program is headed in the right direction. Michigan is built like a Bret Bielema team – there are highly touted offensive linemen used to a pro-style offense, there are between-the-tackles runners in the stable, and there are pocket-style quarterbacks who should be able to manage games if the running component can improve. At the same time, a move from Arkansas to Michigan after only two years would indicate some instability and make me wonder what his long-term goals would be. Would a successful run in Ann Arbor lead to a jump to, say, Alabama or USC or possibly the NFL?
Likelihood of coming to Michigan: Between the lines, Bielema seems like a great fit at Michigan. His current salary is not steep enough to ward off the Wolverines. His personality might not exactly fit, but he’s familiar with the Big Ten and surely recognizes the traditions, rivalries, etc. Arkansas is a step ahead of Michigan when it comes to their current programs, but he has to understand that Michigan’s ceiling is significantly higher. However, unless he views Michigan as a dream job, it would be hard to jump at this point. I do think Bielema should be on Jim Hackett’s list of potential candidates, and probably higher than just about any other reasonable option.

My wish list (updated):
1. Jim Harbaugh
2. Bob Stoops
3. Bret Bielema
4. Dan Mullen
5. Tom Herman
6. Jim Mora, Jr.
7. Les Miles
8. Greg Schiano
9. Pat Narduzzi
10. Mike Shanahan
11. Steve Addazio