2013 Season Countdown: #5 Michael Schofield
Michael Schofield |
Name: Michael Schofield
Height: 6’7″
Weight: 304 lbs.
High school: Orland Park (IL) Carl Sandburg
Position: Offensive tackle
Class: Redshirt senior
Jersey number: #75
Last year: I ranked Schofield #11 and said he would be the starting right tackle. He started all thirteen games at right tackle.
Schofield played left guard for most of the 2011 season, so last year he was somewhat of a position switcher and playing right tackle for the first time. Things went okay for him at right tackle, where he was a solid blocker but not a standout. Overshadowed by all-everything left tackle Taylor Lewan, Schofield managed to start every game on the right side and not earn a single conference or team accolade. He did turn out to be the team’s second-best lineman, but the trio of interior guys last year left a lot to be desired.
This off-season he’s getting quite a bit of hype, although he’s still in the shadow of Lewan. There have been various articles about this being the best tackle tandem in the Big Ten and perhaps the entire nation. Schofield has good length and is a plus pass blocker, but he’s not the overpowering drive blocker you might want in an ideal right tackle. For Michigan I think he’s the fifth-most indispensable player, because the backup options are potentially very questionable. The third tackle into the game would probably be redshirt freshman Erik Magnuson, who has not earned much practice buzz and is hovering around 285 lbs. Otherwise, there’s fifth year senior walk-on Erik Gunderson and part-time guard Ben Braden, who no longer seems to be in the mix for the left guard job but hasn’t been practicing a ton at tackle as a result of his battle for the LG job. Schofield is also the backup left tackle, so any injury to Lewan would force a reshuffling in at least two offensive line spots. He’s the unquestioned starter at right tackle and could be All-Big Ten by the end of the year.
Prediction: Starting right tackle; All-Big Ten Second Team