2022 Season Countdown: #62 Gabe Newburg

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17Jul 2022
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2022 Season Countdown: #62 Gabe Newburg

Gabe Newburg (image via USA Today)

Name: Gabe Newburg
Height:
6’5″
Weight:
251 lbs.
High school:
Clayton (OH) Northmont
Position:
Defensive end
Class:
Redshirt junior
Jersey number:
#99
Last year:
I ranked Newburg #38 and said he would be a backup defensive end (LINK). Newburg did not play in any games.
TTB Rating:
72

Newburg has had a very quiet career in Ann Arbor for the past three years. After redshirting in 2019, he played in four games in 2020 and then had injury issues, causing him to miss the 2021 season. (Odd side note: Because of the 2020 COVID exemption, Newburg could practically count any of his seasons on campus as a redshirt.)

With just 3 tackles to his name, I have a hard time putting too much stock in Newburg’s future in a winged helmet. Practice buzz about him has been almost non-existent, and when I said last year that other guys would have to leapfrog him, well . . . it appears they have. Newburg could still be a decent rotational piece, and maybe 2023 will be a better outlook for him once a couple guys move on, but I’m not expecting a breakout season. In fact, if you’re looking for guys who could potentially finish their careers elsewhere, Newburg seems to be a prime candidate, considering his lack of playing time and practice buzz.

Prediction: Backup defensive end

16Jul 2022
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2022 Season Countdown: #63 Mason Graham

Mason Graham

Name: Mason Graham
Height:
6’3″
Weight:
292 lbs.
High school:
Anaheim (CA) Servite
Position:
Defensive tackle
Class:
Freshman
Jersey number:
#55
Last year:
Graham was a senior in high school (LINK). He made 60 tackles, 22 tackles for loss, and 14 sacks.
TTB Rating:
84

Graham made perhaps the biggest leap (for me) from his junior year to his senior year. Watching his junior film, I thought he was a slightly undersized, try-hard player who was a decent prospect. He was committed to Boise State at one point, and I thought that was appropriate. But the more I watched him as a senior, I thought he made great strides with his technique. And his high effort continued to be there, despite putting on some weight and starting both ways.

I’m leery of placing him too high in the countdown based on the spring, but I think it’s clear that he’s ready to play. He got a good number of reps in the spring game and didn’t look out of place. Here at #63 is a good place for a rotational player, but he has older, more experienced guys in front of him, such as Mazi Smith, Cam Goode, and Kris Jenkins, Jr. I think 2022 will be a developmental year for him, and by his sophomore season, he could be a starter if Smith and Goode move on.

Prediction: Backup defensive tackle

15Jul 2022
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2022 Season Countdown: #64 Davis Warren

Davis Warren (image via Yahoo!)

Name: Davis Warren
Height:
6’2″
Weight:
195 lbs.
High school:
Suffield (CT) Suffield Academy
Position:
Quarterback
Class:
Redshirt freshman
Jersey number:
#16
Last year:
I ranked Warren #126 and said he would redshirt (LINK). He redshirted.
TTB Rating:
N/A

Warren was a true freshman walk-on last season, but he still managed to win Scout Team Player of the Week three times. Here’s what I said about him in last year’s countdown:

I think Michigan got a bit of a steal here with Warren, who has some good athleticism and a live arm. Of course, he’s in the same class as 5-star recruit J.J. McCarthy, but down the road, Warren could be a guy who factors into the depth chart if he continues to build his body and work on his mechanics (which can be inconsistent).

In the spring game back in April, Warren looked like the third best quarterback on the roster – better than former Texas Tech starter Alan Bowman and better than freshman 3-star Alex Orji. Warren completed 12/23 passes for 175 yards and looked like a scholarship quarterback. Will he retain that #3 role during the season? It remains to be seen. What we do know is that both Cade McNamara and J.J. McCarthy will play, and it’s likely that if something happened to either one, the other guy would just be the full-time quarterback. So it would take a couple injuries for Warren to see the field much, but I do think he should be the #3 quarterback.

Prediction: Backup quarterback

15Jul 2022
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2022 Season Countdown: #65 Greg Tarr

Greg Tarr (image via MGoBlue)

Name: Greg Tarr
Height:
6’2″
Weight:
207 lbs.
High school:
Washington (MI) Romeo
Position:
Long snapper
Class:
Redshirt sophomore
Jersey number:
#45
Last year:
I ranked Tarr #80 and said he would be a backup long snapper (LINK). He did not play in any games.
TTB Rating:
N/A

A backup long snapper is completely and utterly useless on game days . . .

. . . until he isn’t.

Will Wagner has Michigan’s long snapping job locked down. Tarr has spent the past two years on campus without seeing the field. Michigan also brought in preferred walk-on Evan Boutorwick in the class of 2022. So how valuable is Tarr, and would he even be the #2 guy? I have to be honest that I don’t know the depth chart of the backup long snappers, but I’m guessing the more experienced guy would be the first one on the field if something happens to Wagner.

Prediction: Backup long snapper

14Jul 2022
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2022 Season Countdown: #66 Tavierre Dunlap

Tavierre Dunlap (image via Twitter)

Name: Tavierre Dunlap
Height:
6’0″
Weight:
222 lbs.
High school:
Del Valle (TX) Del Valle
Position:
Running back
Class:
Redshirt freshman
Jersey number:
#22
Last year:
I ranked Dunlap #69 and said he would be a backup running back (LINK). He played in two games and ran 7 times for 51 yards.
TTB Rating:
59

Dunlap came into the 2021 season as a true freshman trying to earn carries in a loaded backfield. That was always going to be an uphill battle with the roster Michigan had, and being a 220 pound power back with Hassan Haskins on the roster was never going to work unless Haskins got hurt. Luckily, Haskins stayed healthy and Michigan had a great season, but Dunlap appropriately stayed on the bench for most of the year. He retained his redshirt, got a little experience against Northern Illinois and Indiana, and goes into 2022 with a better chance of contributing.

Unfortunately, linebacker Kalel Mullings has entered the mix. The staff realized they would miss Haskins a bunch and wanted to make sure they had a big back ready. This spring Mullings started pulling double duty at running back in addition to linebacker, and based on the spring game, it appears to me that Mullings is ahead of Dunlap. To me it looks like Dunlap is the fourth best back on the roster, and that might change if we get a look at C.J. Stokes in the non-conference season. Dunlap should get a few carries this season, but I don’t think he will play a critical role.

Prediction: Backup running back