Tag: 2020 season countdown

2020 Season Countdown: #29 Donovan Jeter

Name: Donovan Jeter
Height: 6’3″
Weight: 318 lbs.
High school: Beaver Falls (PA) Beaver Falls
Position: Defensive tackle
Class: Redshirt junior
Jersey number: #95
Last year: I ranked Jeter #1B and said he would be a starting efensive tackle with 20 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, and 1 sack (LINK). He strted one game and made 3 tackles.
TTB Rating: 78

This is my mea culpa for the 2019 countdown. I ranked Jeter at #1B – just behind Shea Patterson – because I thought he was going to have a little bit of a breakout, but also mostly because he was a big guy at a position where Michigan really didn’t have many big guys.

In my defense, the defensive tackle position was probably the weakest position group, and that really hurt Michigan. But Jeter was not even close to being the guy who mattered most. That honor should have gone to Carlo Kemp, and the likes of Chris Hinton, Jess Speight, and Michael Dwumfour outperformed Jeter.

Kemp, Hinton, and Speight return, while Dwumfour transferred to Rutgers. Jeter will also be battling redshirt freshman Mazi Smith for playing time, along with any of the young whippersnappers who try to step up and play inside.

I don’t expect much from Jeter because he burned me last year. Not only that, but he’s up from a listed 290 to a listed 318 when quickness and conditioning seemed to be part of the issue even at a lighter weight. (For the record, I believe he was heavier than 290 in 2019, but that’s how the roster listed him.) But it’s a now-or-never situation with Jeter, who’s a redshirt junior without much to show for it at this point.

Prediction: Backup defensive tackle

2020 Season Countdown: #30 Jake Moody

Name: Jake Moody
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 177 lbs.
High school: Northville (MI) Northville
Position: Kicker
Class: Sophomore
Jersey number: #2
Last year: I ranked Moody #45 and said he would be the starting kicker (LINK). He was 6/9 on field goals with a long of 43 yards, and 34 of his 75 kickoffs went for touchbacks.
TTB Rating: N/A

Moody had an up-and-down season in 2019. He made his first 4 field goals of the year, but then he went 2-for-5 down the stretch. On the flip side, fellow kicker Quinn Nordin missed his first 3 field goals of the year and then went 10/10 once he took over the job full-time from Moody. Moody made a giant kick against Army, which broke a 21-21 tie to win the game in double overtime. That was the highlight of his year.

I put Moody here at #30 because he is likely to be the kickoff specialist and handle at least some of the placekicking duties. It’s a very odd dynamic between him and Nordin, and there must be things going on in practice and behind closed doors that keeps the competition seesawing back and forth. Nordin was a highly touted kicker and is returning for a fifth year, so the coaches must see some value in having him around . . . but Moody keeps hanging him around, too. It’s not often that Michigan has two scholarship kickers in such a battle.

Prediction: Starting kickoff specialist, part-time placekicker

2020 Season Countdown: #31 Erick All

Name: Erick All
Height: 6’4″
Weight: 242 lbs.
High school: Fairfield (OH) Fairfield
Position: Tight end/wide receiver
Class: Sophomore
Jersey number: #83
Last year: I ranked All #62 and said he would be a backup tight end (LINK). He played in eleven games and made 1 catch for 10 yards.
TTB Rating: 75

All was as advertised in 2019. He was skinny but a good blocker, which was good enough to get him on the field as the #4 tight end. He caught 1 pass for 10 yards in the loss to Penn State, but mostly he was just a guy used as a blocker near the goal line because the guys who are “better” than him don’t like to be physical. So Sean McKeon, Nick Eubanks, and Luke Schoonmaker caught the touchdowns and made the big plays, while All did the dirty work.

Now McKeon is off to the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent, and All is fighting with Schoonmaker to be the primary backup. (It will be interesting to see if Eubanks sticks around for another season in the spring/fall, but if he leaves, that could leave All or Schoonmaker as the starter.) I think All will end up as the #2 guy based mainly on his blocking. He has added significant size, and he reportedly has some of the best hands on the team, regardless of position.

Prediction: Backup tight end

2020 Season Countdown: #32 Andre Seldon, Jr.

Name: Andre Seldon, Jr.
Height: 5’8″
Weight: 172 lbs.
High school: Belleville (MI) Belleville
Position: Cornerback
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: #0
Last year: Seldon was a senior in high school (LINK). He made 27 tackles, 6 interceptions (1 touchdown), 3 pass breakups, and 4 punt return touchdowns.
TTB Rating: 83

Seldon was perhaps Michigan’s most solid commit in the 2020 class and maybe its most prized, too. (This happened despite some friction between Belleville and Michigan.) He finished the cycle as a 4-star, the #11 cornerback, and #161 overall, and he was selected to the Under Armour All-American Bowl.

I didn’t give Seldon a TTB Rating when he committed because it was too early, but I really like him as a player. His upside is limited because of a lack of height, but he can still be a successful college player. With Donovan Peoples-Jones having graduated, I would want Seldon to return punts because he has such good acceleration and change-of-direction skills. On top of that, he will likely be Michigan’s slot corner from his freshman season onward. He’s feisty, tough, and fast with good ball skills.

Prediction: Starting nickel corner

Hit the jump for his senior highlights.

2020 Season Countdown: #33 D.J. Turner II

Name: D.J. Turner II
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 182 lbs.
High school: Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy
Position: Cornerback
Class: Redshirt freshman
Jersey number: #5
Last year: I ranked Turner #70 and said he would redshirt (LINK). He played in four games, preserving his redshirt.
TTB Rating: 82

Turner came into his freshman year after spending a somewhat uninspiring senior year at IMG Academy. However, he had the physicality that can help Michigan defenders be successful. Michigan stayed pretty healthy at defensive back in 2019, which allowed someone like Turner to play in a few select games. After playing in three during the regular season, he was able to play on special teams in the bowl game and still keep his redshirt.

Off-season hype has ticked up for Turner, placing him above all the other outside corners in the countdown. The expectation is for Vincent Gray to start opposite Ambry Thomas, and the #3 corner gets a fair amount of playing time. Turner is reportedly in the mix as the fastest guy on the team. Sam Webb discussed this spring that Turner had been dealing with a lower body injury for a couple years, and Michigan’s training staff seems to have finally worked it out. So now Turner should be operating at a higher level than where he’s been, and he could very well be starting opposite Gray in the fall of 2021.

Prediction: Backup cornerback