Tag: 2012 season countdown

26Jul 2012

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2012 Season Countdown: #35 Brandin Hawthorne

Brandin Hawthorne

Name: Brandin Hawthorne
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 214 lbs.
High school: Pahokee (FL) Pahokee
Position: Linebacker
Class: Senior
Jersey number: #7
Last year: I ranked Hawthorne #62 and said he would be a special teams contributor.  He started five games at WILL, making 43 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 1 sack, 1 interception, and 1 pass breakup.

Lots of unexpected things happened last year for Hawthorne to leap to the forefront of the WILL linebacker depth chart.  Brandon Herron had a great opening game and then hurt his quad.  Marell Evans was ineligible after transferring from Hampton.  And Hawthorne played better than he had thus far in his career.  Despite being only 6’0″ and 214 lbs., he held up fairly well and made some big plays for Michigan during his five starts.  However, things seemed to go downhill with a subpar effort in the Michigan State game, and Hawthorne seemed to find himself in the doghouse from that point onward.  Freshman Desmond Morgan grabbed the reins at WILL and started for the second half of the season.

Hawthorne played a little bit at middle linebacker this spring, too.  He’s probably too small to be a viable full-time option at MIKE, but he could be a situational backup or play in the nickel package.  He made a very nice one-handed interception in the spring game, he’s a hard hitter for his size, and he has good speed.  Unfortunately for him, defensive coordinator Greg Mattison was still not impressed after the spring game and was harping on how Hawthorne needs to become more physical.  This is the conundrum the coaches face.  Should they play a coachable, traditional inside linebacker with perhaps less playmaking ability, such as Desmond Morgan or Joe Bolden?  Or should they play a faster, less coachable guy like Hawthorne?  From what I’ve seen out of this staff, they’ll more often play the traditional guy with better technique.  Hawthorne will still play on special teams and get some action as a backup, but I doubt he has much hope of reclaiming his WILL job.

Prediction: Backup inside linebacker, special teams contributor

25Jul 2012

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2012 Season Countdown: #36 Drew Dileo

Drew Dileo

Name: Drew Dileo
Height: 5’10”
Weight: 172 lbs.
High school: Greenwell Springs (LA) Parkview Baptist
Position: Wide receiver
Class: Junior
Jersey number: #9
Last year: I ranked Dileo #21 and said he would return kickoffs and punts, as well as catch 15 passes.  He was the starting holder, completed 1/1 passes for 11 yards, rushed 2 times for 7 yards, caught 9 passes for 121 yards and 2 touchdowns, and returned 1 punt for 0 yards.

I probably ranked Dileo a little too high last year, because I figured he would have done more in the return game.  He was the holder on the extra point/field goal unit and did haul in nine receptions, so he was a valuable player, but kind of in a jack-of-all-trades way.  He can do lots of things for a team, but he’s not the fastest or most athletic guy around.

This year’s ranking at #36 is sort of a reflection of what he did last year, since it seems some of his skills would be somewhat easily replaceable.  One guy might not be able to hold, catch passes, and return an occasional punt, but there are a few guys who could probably do each of those jobs.  Dileo is a good complementary player, and with three seniors having departed, he could see more passes come his way.  It will be interesting to see how much time he gets in the return game now that incumbent punt returner Jeremy Gallon will presumably start at split end.  If the coaches don’t want to risk Gallon getting dinged or tired, Dileo might get a chance to return punts once again.  He’s a sure-handed good decision maker, so he seems like a safe choice, albeit unlikely to explode for many big returns.

Prediction: Holder, backup wide receiver, occasional returner; 12 receptions for 150 yards and 2 touchdowns

24Jul 2012

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2012 Season Countdown: #37 Jeremy Jackson

Jeremy Jackson

Name: Jeremy Jackson
Height: 6’3″
Weight: 198 lbs.
High school: Ann Arbor (MI) Huron
Position: Wide receiver
Class: Junior
Jersey number: #17
Last year: I ranked Jackson #49 and said he would be a backup WR with 10 catches, 120 yards, and 1 touchdown.  He had 3 receptions for 36 yards (hooray for getting his yards per catch right!).

Looking back on what I said about Jackson (and classmates Ricardo Miller and Jerald Robinson) a couple years ago, it’s somewhat alarmingly accurate so far.  Robinson hasn’t played a down, Miller seems to be lost in the shuffle between tight end and receiver, and Jackson is catching a couple passes here and there.  Brady Hoke used more tight ends and rotated wide receivers less often than Rich Rodriguez, so Jackson’s field time  seemed to diminish a little bit from his freshman to sophomore seasons.  He appears to be a big body who can block a little bit and catch some passes over the middle, but not much of a big-play threat.

Opportunities are there for someone to step up now that Junior Hemingway, Martavious Odoms, and Kelvin Grady have graduated.  While I expect that offensive coordinator Al Borges will rely more on the receiving corps and less on tight ends this season, I doubt we’ll see a huge jump in production from Jackson.  Jeremy Gallon and Roy Roundtree seem poised to start, and Jerald Robinson seems poised to grab a chunk of playing time, too.  Michigan will likely rely heavily on the run game and throw the ball mainly to keep defenses honest, so Jackson’s blocking ability might be his biggest asset in hopes of staying on the field.  We’ll probably see Jackson play some slot receiver so he can get open over the middle.

Prediction: Backup wide receiver; 8 catches, 100 yards, 1 touchdown

23Jul 2012

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2012 Season Countdown: #38 Terrence Talbott

Back when Terrence Talbott was #22

Name: Terrence Talbott
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 178 lbs.
High school: Huber Heights (OH) Wayne
Position: Cornerback
Class: Junior
Jersey number: #37
Last year: I ranked Talbott #71 and said he would be a special teams contributor.  He played in two games on special teams but didn’t accrue any statistics.

Talbott is already a junior, even though it feels like he should be a redshirt freshman or sophomore.  One of the victims of the great cornerback migration back in 2010, he played as a redshirt freshman despite being unready.  I would argue that Rodriguez burned Talbott’s redshirt unwisely, but I can’t blame Rodriguez here like I do for Devin Gardner and William Campbell – Michigan did actually need help at cornerback.  So now Talbott’s a junior, and some suggested he was pushing starter J.T. Floyd at the boundary corner position in the spring.  By the April 14 open scrimmage, Floyd was the #1 guy, but it may be a situation to watch.

Floyd had a significant injury in 2010, but otherwise, he has been healthy.  As a fifth year senior and two-year starter, it’s unlikely that he gets unseated at this point, despite some struggles late in the season.  But the news about Talbott’s emergence suggests that if another injury occurs or if Floyd gets tired, he may have a capable backup ready to contribute at a helpful level.  I don’t think Talbott is waiting in the wings to become a star, but he does play the run well, which is very important for a boundary corner in this defense.

Prediction: Backup cornerback

22Jul 2012

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2012 Season Countdown: #39 Richard Ash

Richard Ash (#54) (image via Scout)

Name: Richard Ash
Height: 6’3″
Weight: 301 lbs.
High school: Pahokee (FL) Pahokee
Position: Defensive tackle
Class: Redshirt sophomore
Jersey number: #54
Last year: I ranked Ash #47 and said he would be a backup defensive tackle.  He played in three games at nose tackle but didn’t accrue any statistics.

Ash was sprinkled throughout the season in 2011, showing up against Minnesota, Purdue, and Virginia Tech.  Despite Michigan being pretty thin on the interior of the defensive line, he couldn’t find his way onto the field consistently.  There was quite a bit of rotation at the end positions, but it was mostly Mike Martin and Will Heininger in the middle with a little bit of William Campbell.  Coming out of high school, Ash had a reputation for playing best when he was lighter (around 245 lbs.) and his performance tailed off as he added weight.  Now hovering just above 301 lbs., I wonder if he has adjusted to that additional weight yet.

The opportunity and the need are there for Ash this season.  Starting nose tackle Mike Martin graduated, and senior Will Campbell, whose play hasn’t matched his potential, presumably will be the new starter at NT.    Incoming freshman Ondre Pipkins has the size to play immediately, but freshmen on the defensive line are usually overmatched initially.  Unless Pipkins can break tradition and be an effective interior player as a rookie, then someone like Ash, Quinton Washington, or Ken Wilkins needs to hold the point of attack.  Ash has the best combination of size, quickness, and experience to be Campbell’s primary backup.

Prediction: Backup nose tackle