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School in the News: Wisconsin

Antonio Williams (image via 247Sports.com)

Well, head coach Gary Andersen pulled a shocker this evening when it was announced that he was leaving Wisconsin for the ripe football program at . . . Oregon State? In the world of rodents, I guess Beavers are cooler than Badgers.

I didn’t care much when Oregon State lost Mike Riley to Nebraska, because Michigan doesn’t compete with the Beavers for recruits very often. But Wisconsin and Michigan do cross paths quite a bit on the recruiting trail. In fact, class of 2016 running back Antonio Williams – who had developed a good relationship with Michigan assistant coach Roy Manning – just committed to the Badgers last week. So depending on the hire in Madison goes, Michigan might be able to get back in the equation if they make a good hire in Ann Arbor.

2015 commits with Michigan offers: None
2016 commits with Michigan offers: RB Antonio Williams
Roster players recruited by Michigan (with 2015 eligibility): OL Ray Ball (5th), LB Vince Biegel (RS Jr.), RB Corey Clement (Jr.), RB Melvin Gordon (5th), QB Tanner McEvoy (5th), DE Conor Sheehy (So.), OL Dan Voltz (RS Jr.), Robert Wheelwright (Jr.)

I wouldn’t expect anything to come out of this for Michigan as far as transfers, but the coaching change may have a slight effect. There’s no doubt that Wisconsin would want a run-heavy coach to fit their personnel since they’ve been having quite a bit of success, so someone like former Wisconsin offensive coordinator Paul Chryst (now the head coach at Pitt) makes sense.

Coaching Candidate: Steve Addazio

Steve Addazio

Steve Addazio
Age: 55
Current position: Boston College head coach
Salary:
Head coaching experience: 14-11 at Boston College (2013-present), 13-11 at Temple (2011-2012), 27-24 overall
History: Addazio was born in Connecticut and played football at Central Connecticut. After some time coaching at a small college and in high school, he got a job with Syracuse in 1995. He then worked at Notre Dame under Bob Davie, Indiana under Gerry DiNardo, and Florida under Urban Meyer, all coaching the offensive line (and occasionally tight ends) through 2008. When Florida offensive coordinator Dan Mullen left to take the head coaching job at Mississippi State, Addazio was promoted to his spot. The Gators went 21-6 in Addazio’s two years as offensive coordinator, where he worked with Tim Tebow in 2009 and John Brantley in 2010. Tebow was spectacular, while Brantley threw 9 touchdowns and 10 picks. When Urban Meyer “retired” after the 2010 season, Addazio took the head coaching job at Temple. The Owls went 9-4 in the MAC that first year, ranking #1 in the conference in total defense and #7 in offense. When Temple moved to the Big East in 2012, they were last in defense and second-worst in offense on the way to a 4-7 record. Somehow that earned him a promotion to Boston College. His first team saw running back Andre Williams rush for 2,177 yards, but they still finished #11 in the ACC in offense and #14 in total defense. That defense jumped to #3 in the conference in 2014, but the Eagles were still #10 in defense. Senior quarterback Tyler Murphy eked out 1,000 yards rushing on the ground to lead the team, while freshman running back Jon Hilliman managed just 3.83 yards/carry. Both seasons in Boston College have resulted in 7 wins (with a chance to get to 8 this year).
My thoughts: I am thoroughly unimpressed with Addazio’s resume. Addazio’s teams are wildly inconsistent, and the individual successes – Tim Tebow in 2009, Andre Williams in 2013, Tyler Murphy in 2014 – are odd and unreliable, too. Aside from Tebow that first year, the quarterback play has been subpar with his guys totaling 61 touchdowns and 40 interceptions. From what I gather, Addazio is an upstanding guy whose personality would fit in very well with what Michigan wants. That’s the scary part. His record is slightly above .500, which is frighteningly close to Brady Hoke’s 47-50 job before arriving in Ann Arbor. Unfortunately, that comes without the ingrained affinity for the Wolverines and the upward trajectory that Hoke’s Ball State and San Diego State’s teams had. This would be an underwhelming hire, and recruiting would suffer, particularly in the short term.
Likelihood of coming to Michigan: Addazio is getting too many mentions in the media and the Michigan blogosphere to ignore. Likely because of his cultural fit and desire to run the ball, he seems to be on the list. I would assume that athletic director Jim Hackett realizes how disappointing this hire would be, so Addazio seems like an emergency possibility in case Harbaugh, Stoops, Miles, and probably others fall through. Regardless, his name terrifies me and would seem to assure mediocrity for Michigan.

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

Devin Funchess declared for the NFL Draft

This was Devin Funchess’s one impressive game in 2014

Michigan tight end/wide receiver Devin Funchess declared for the NFL Draft on Tuesday afternoon. Coincidentally, this morning I left him out of a projected 2015 depth chart (LINK) because I figured he would be out of the picture. The 6’5″, 230 lb. true junior led the Wolverines this season with 62 catches for 733 yards and 4 touchdowns playing wide receiver full-time. He was voted Second Team All-Big Ten this year by conference coaches.

As a sophomore in 2013, he split time between tight end and wide receiver, ending the year with 47 catches for 727 yards and 6 touchdowns. He thought that was good enough to warrant asking for the #1 jersey, which is kinda sorta given to players who will honor the jersey with their leadership and play on the field; Brady Hoke agreed to give it to him prior to the 2014 season.

Aside from an outstanding performance in the 2014 season opener against Appalachian State (3 touchdown receptions), Funchess was mostly a disappointment. His production slipped because of a mediocre offensive line and a struggling quarterback, but also because Funchess looked like he was going about 75% for most of the season. After spraining an ankle against Notre Dame in week two, he missed the next game against Miami. I’ve suspected for a while that he didn’t want to go 100% because he was saving himself for the draft, and that’s exactly what appears to have occurred. Funchess had numerous dropped passes, would not risk his body to make anything other than routine catches, and rarely attempted to break tackles despite being about 6″ taller and 35-40 lbs. heavier than most defensive backs trying to bring him down.

At one point Funchess was projected to be a 1st round pick, and he still might be. His size and speed are tantalizing. I recently saw him projected as a #26 overall pick. The Detroit Lions took a similar player in the 1st round in 2014, Eric Ebron out of North Carolina. I would hope that NFL scouts and coaches look at Funchess’s inconsistency and lack of effort in 2014 as a warning sign, but you never know.

I cannot say that I wish Funchess professional success beyond college. I am indifferent to his success. He was moved away from tight end because he was unwilling to block, and he took the #1 jersey physically but not in spirit. Head coach Brady Hoke stated that he didn’t name captains until the end of 2014 because he thought the 2013 squad had too much of a sense of entitlement, but entitlement seemed apparent in Funchess. Maybe that’s a product of the leadership Hoke mentioned from last year. Regardless, I have very little respect for players who don’t put forth maximum effort, especially on such a regular basis.

Rivals 250 for 2016 updated

Dele’ Harding is the #215 recruit in the country (image via 247Sports.com)

Rivals updated their list of top 250 prospects for 2016 (LINK). Here’s what it looked like in July (LINK). They updated the top 100 yesterday (LINK). Movement for Michigan commits:

– Dele’ Harding dropped from #186 to #215
– Messiah DeWeaver dropped from #210 to #219

Here’s the full list of Michigan’s offerees from #101 to #250:

104. Theo Howard – WR – California
106. Damar Hamlin – CB – Pennsylvania
108. Elijah Holyfield – RB – Georgia
112. Cameron Chambers – WR – New Jersey
113. Darrian Franklin – LB – California
125. Joseph Jackson – DE – Florida
126. J.P. Urquidez – OT – Maryland
130. Josh Imatorbhebhe – WR – Georgia
132. Binjimen Victor – WR – Florida
151. Shaquille Quarterman – LB – Florida (Miami)
152. Brad Hawkins, Jr. – WR – New Jersey
154. Justin Layne – WR – Ohio
164. Luke Farrell – TE – Ohio
170. Michael Onwenu – DT – Michigan
177. Austin Mack – WR – Indiana
185. Antonio Williams – RB – North Carolina (Wisconsin)
186. Kaden Smith – TE – Texas
187. Clark Yarbrough – OT – Virginia
188. Auston Robertson – DE – Indiana
193. Kentrail Moran – RB – Illinois
215. Dele’ Harding – LB – Maryland (Michigan)
219. Messiah DeWeaver – QB – Ohio (Michigan)
225. Jordan Woods – DE – Florida
232. Michael Jordan – OT – Michigan
243. Lavert Hill – CB – Michigan

2014 Football Team Award Winners

Jake Ryan

Michigan held its annual Football Bust on Monday evening, and here are the award winners from the event:

Bo Schembechler Team MVP: Jake Ryan, LB (5th)

Captains: Jake Ryan, LB (5th) and Devin Gardner, QB (5th)

Hugh J. Rader, Jr. Award (best lineman): Jack Miller, OC (RS Jr.)

Dick Katcher Award (best defensive end/outside linebacker): Brennen Beyer, DE (Sr.)

Roger Zatkoff Award (best linebacker): Jake Ryan, LB (5th)

Robert P. Ufer Award (senior who demonstrates love and enthusiasm for the program): Brennen Beyer, DE (Sr.)

Dr Arthur Robinson Scholarship Award (senior scholar): Joey Burzynski, OG (5th)

I don’t think any of these awards would surprise anyone except perhaps the Rader Award. Miller took a lot of heat during the 2013 season for his performance, and he was eventually replaced by Graham Glasgow last year. But he turned into a solid lineman in 2014, which I think is simply proof that experience is key on the offensive line. Michigan improved with two new starters at the offensive tackles, and the interior included two redshirt juniors and a redshirt sophomore. Assuming all five players return in 2015, Michigan will be starting (from left to right) a sophomore, a fifth year senior, a fifth year senior, a redshirt junior, and a redshirt junior. The 2016 season could see a junior, a redshirt senior (Erik Magnuson?), a redshirt junior (Patrick Kugler?), a redshirt senior, and a redshirt senior. Michigan is on its way to having some age and experience across the offensive line once again.