Tag: 2014 season countdown

2014 Season Countdown: #30 Joe Bolden

Joe Bolden

Name: Joe Bolden
Height: 6’3″
Weight: 225 lbs.
High school: Cincinnati (OH) Colerain
Position: Linebacker
Class: Junior
Jersey number: #35
Last year: I ranked Bolden #30 and said he would be a backup middle linebacker. He made 54 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, and 2 sacks.

Bolden turned in a solid sophomore campaign, starting four games and finishing as the fifth-leading tackler for the Wolverines. He really came on against Michigan’s tougher opponents, posting 8 tackles against Michigan State and 1 sack each against Ohio State and Kansas State. Bolden was the top backup inside linebacker, filling in for both middle linebacker Desmond Morgan and weakside linebacker James Ross III. Bolden seemed to genuinely improve throughout the season after looking a little overwhelmed as a freshman, so I think it’s safe to state – and not just guess – that Michigan has some quality depth at the linebacker positions.

Coincidentally, Bolden is once again the #30 player on the list. I might be underrating him, because he started the spring game at WILL linebacker and seems to have closed the gap between himself and Desmond Morgan. I have always thought that Bolden had higher upside, but right now I think they both offer different strengths in different situations. I would be more inclined to play Morgan in run situations or against traditional running scehemes, whereas Bolden is probably the better bet against teams that spread it out. Both linebackers will play a significant number of snaps, but I have hard time seeing a junior leapfrog a senior, three-year starter in Morgan.

Prediction: 50 tackles, 3 sacks

2014 Season Countdown: #31 Delano Hill

Delano Hill (image via GoBlueWolverine.com)

Name: Delano Hill
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 205 lbs.
High school: Detroit (MI) Cass Tech
Position: Safety
Class: Sophomore
Jersey number: #44
Last year: I ranked Hill #72 and said he would see some special teams action. He played on special teams in every game and saw action in one game on defense, making 1 total tackle.

Hill came into college as somewhat of a physical freak, with his high school coaches talking about his speed and hitting ability. What he lacked was technical refinement. Last year he was deemed worthy of running downfield on coverage teams, but he made just 1 tackle. Starting free safety Thomas Gordon graduated, backup Josh Furman transferred, and cornerback/safety Courtney Avery graduated, too. By the time spring rolled around, the door had opened for Hill to run with the first unit alongside junior Jarrod Wilson at safety.

This fall will be very interesting in the defensive backfield, where Michigan has a glut of capable cornerbacks and a bunch of unproven safeties. Wilson has one spot all but locked down, but the strong safety position comes down to Hill, redshirt sophomore Jeremy Clark, sophomore Dymonte Thomas, and perhaps freshman Jabrill Peppers. While the coaches have rotated defensive linemen, linebackers, and even cornerbacks rather freely, the safeties have generally been every-down players. Scuttlebutt out of Schembechler Hall this spring suggested that Hill was the most trusted safety by the coaches. Personally, I have doubts that his discipline has been shored up in just one year of college, but regardless of which safety wins the job, he’s going to be young and/or inexperienced. This looks like a job that might be in flux throughout the year, but with Hill as the potential starter, he’s potentially valuable.

Prediction: 30 tackles, 1 interception

2014 Season Countdown: #32 Scott Sypniewski

Scott Sypniewski

Name: Scott Sypniewski
Height: 6’1″
Weight: 226 lbs.
High school: Ottawa (IL) Marquette
Position: Long snapper
Class: Redshirt freshman
Jersey number: #43
Last year: I ranked Sypniewski #94 and said he would redshirt. He redshirted.

Sypniewski was offered a scholarship out of high school for his long snapping prowess. That’s rare for long snappers, and unheard of (as far as I know) for Michigan in the modern era of the 85-scholarship limit. Last year the Wolverines could afford to redshirt him since they had the near-flawless Jareth Glanda to snap on both the field goal/extra point team and the punt unit. Now Glanda has graduated, and Sypniewski is the only long snapper on the roster. That means there’s a premium on keeping him healthy and getting him prepared for high-pressure situations. The coaches will probably be adding some walk-ons this fall, at least one or two of whom will be able to long snap. We always see a game or two each season come down to the difference between a made field goal and a missed one, and bad punt snaps can be disastrous. Let’s hope that Sypniewski proves he was worth giving a scholarship.

Prediction: Starting long snapper

2014 Season Countdown: #34 Will Hagerup

Will Hagerup (with Erin Andrews)

Name: Will Hagerup
Height: 6’4″
Weight: 225 lbs.
High school: Milwaukee (WI) Whitefish Bay
Position: Punter
Class: Redshirt senior
Jersey number: #43
Last year: I ranked Hagerup #95 and said he would sit out the year because he was suspended. I was right!

Hagerup was the Big Ten’s best punter the last time we saw him. Unfortunately, the last time we saw him was in 2012. Which was two years ago, for you calendar junkies. It really was 2012, too, because he was suspended for the New Year’s Day bowl game in 2013 against South Carolina, plus the whole 2013 season. Hagerup has had some undisclosed issues with staying on the right side of the rules.

This might actually be too high (heh…too high) for Hagerup, who has a couple suitable backups in senior Matt Wile and redshirt sophomore Kenny Allen. Wile would probably be better served concentrating on kickoffs and placekicking, the former of which he has been doing, and the latter of which he will take over full-time from the departed Brendan Gibbons, who had his own legal issues. Allen has a lone punt to his credit, although that punt traveled a long way. Still, Hagerup can be a weapon with his booming punts. The hope is that Hagerup has turned over a new leaf and can weed out the sticky inconsistencies of his personal life, potentially resulting in a veritable pot of gold for his teammates, who will be racing down the green field in a joint venture to nip opponents’ punt returns in the bud. If Hagerup plays in every game this season, it will be the first time in his five years that he will not have been suspended for at least one contest.

Prediction: Starting punter; 44-yard average

2014 Season Countdown: #35 Royce Jenkins-Stone

Royce Jenkins-Stone (#52)

Name: Royce Jenkins-Stone
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 221 lbs.
High school: Detroit (MI) Cass Tech
Position: Linebacker
Class: Junior
Jersey number: #52
Last year: I ranked Jenkins-Stone #41 and said he would be a backup linebacker and special teamer. He made 5 tackles while playing in thirteen games, mostly on special teams.

Jenkins-Stone’s biggest impact last season was when he initiated a minor brawl against Ohio State, for which he was booted out of the game (along with Buckeyes Marcus Hall and Dontre Wilson). It was a somewhat ugly incident, and despite inciting it by ripping off Wilson’s helmet during a routine tackle, Ohio State came out looking worse after Wilson threw a punch and Hall flipped off the crowd on his way to the tunnel. Either way, the other parts of Jenkins-Stone’s 2013 season were pretty forgettable. He couldn’t pierce the rotation at linebacker, and he made fewer special teams tackles than a wide receiver (Jehu Chesson) and a fullback (Sione Houma).

This year brings a modified defense, the 4-3 Over, and some new hope for Jenkins-Stone. Recruited as a middle linebacker, he’s too light at 221 lbs. to be the thumper in the middle that was expected of him. Instead, he’s a special teamer who has shown an ability to slash downhill but not much else. While I normally wouldn’t expect much of a guy who has essentially only contributed on special teams, I am making an exception for him. I have never viewed him as a read-and-react guy, so his new position as a SAM linebacker in the Over fits well – he should be able to blitz from that position and play downhill if flow comes his way. There were some rumblings in the spring that he had leapfrogged incumbent starter James Ross III (who bumped over from WILL in the shakeup), but I find it hard to believe that last year’s second-leading tackler will lose his job to a special teamer with 11 career stops. However, I like how Jenkins-Stone fits at SAM, and I think he will get a fair amount of playing time on the defensive side of the ball, not just on specials.

Prediction: Backup SAM linebacker; 20 tackles, 1 sack