There are eight Michigan players who have been invited to perform at the NFL Combine:
CB Vincent Gray
RB Hassan Haskins
S Daxton Hill
DT Chris Hinton
DE Aidan Hutchinson
DE David Ojabo
LB Joshua Ross
OG Andrew Stueber
A few draft-eligible players were not invited, including WR Daylen Baldwin, S Brad Hawkins, and C Andrew Vastardis. I guess this is my time to reiterate how weird it is for Baldwin to have declared for the draft, since he did not factor much into the Michigan attack this past season. It’s also interesting that Hawkins was not invited despite being literally the most experienced player in Michigan history (by games played).
Michigan wide receiver Cornelius Johnson (6) celebrates his 87-yard touchdown reception with Joel Honigford (84) in the first half of a NCAA college football game against Northern Illinois in Ann Arbor, Mich., Saturday, Sept. 18, 2021. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Let’s see more of this guy on offense . . . A.J. Henning. Henning is averaging 50.0 yards per carry and 12.0 yards per reception. Those are pretty good numbers, but he only has 5 offensive touches so far this season (2 rushes, 3 receptions). As the season goes along, I would like to see him get the ball more, particularly in the passing game.
Let’s see less of this guy on offense . . . nobody.
Let’s see more of this guy on defense . . . Jordan Whittley. This has nothing to do with the play on the field, but as long as it doesn’t put the game at risk, I would like to see Whittley get more playing time so he can work himself into shape. Listed at 348 pounds, he could be a key component at nose tackle down the stretch, but his snaps are limited right now due to conditioning.
Let’s see less of this guy on defense . . . nobody.
Play of the game . . . Cade McNamara’s 87-yard touchdown pass to Cornelius Johnson. Not only did the pass go into the record books as Michigan’s third-longest pass in school history, but it was just exciting to see Michigan take a deep shot and hit it. It was one of those plays where you could hear and feel the excitement in the stadium as Johnson ran a stop-and-go on the right sideline, got himself about five yards of separation, and then pulled away from an overmatched NIU cornerback.
Player of the game . . . Andrew Vastardis. It’s not often that I go with a lineman for player of the game, but I thought Vastardis played very well. Granted, the opposition wasn’t stellar, but that could be said at pretty much every position for Michigan. Playing center, Vastardis and the offensive line didn’t get confused by much of anything Northern Illinois threw at them, and he made some very nice blocks in the running game. Michigan ran 48 times for 373 yards (7.8 yards per carry) and 8 touchdowns, the second-most rushing touchdowns in school history.
Name: Andrew Vastardis Height: 6’3″ Weight: 296 lbs. High school: Ashburn (VA) Stone Bridge Position: Center Class: Sixth year senior Jersey number: #68 Last year: I ranked Vastardis #48 and said he would be a backup center (LINK). TTB Rating: N/A
I pegged Vastardis as a backup going into the 2020 season, and I was proven wrong immediately when he started the first four games of the year. To top it off, he was voted a captain. Unfortunately for him, he tried playing through injury but eventually missed the final two games of the year. In the meantime, his performance was decent but nothing special. Vastardis is a hard-nosed player and respected by his teammates, but he’s neither big nor quick.
I’m not confident in this ranking, since it basically projects a starter, captain, and sixth year player to be a backup to a sophomore who has never played the position in a game, but word coming out of practice is that Zak Zinter will be the starting center. Of course, Vastardis’s presence already helped chase one guy (Zach Carpenter) off to Indiana, so maybe Zinter will be the next Zach(k) to get his position yoinked by the former walk-on. But either way, Vastardis is a good guy to have as a veteran presence, whether he’s a starter or backup.
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Name: Andrew Vastardis Height: 6’3″ Weight: 319 lbs. High school: Ashburn (VA) Stone Bridge Position: Offensive guard/center Class: Fifth year senior Jersey number: #68 Last year: I ranked Vastardis #79 and said he would be a backup center/guard (LINK). He played in five games. TTB Rating: N/A
A good number of walk-ons end up on Michigan’s football team, and the vast majority of them remain unknowns to casual fans. Vastardis started off his career at Michigan as a preferred walk-on. While Michigan does have a fair number of walk-on success stories – many of them Glasgows – Vastardis has an opportunity to add his name to that list. In the past two seasons, he has played in six and five games, respectively, while playing behind Cesar Ruiz.
Ruiz is off to the NFL, which opens a spot at center. Word is that the coaches really like redshirt freshman Zach Carpenter, who seems to be penciled in at the position. But Vastardis offers a great veteran backup option. This will be his fifth year in the program, and he appears to be very strong while lacking a little bit of agility. We probably won’t see much of him as long as everyone stays healthy up front, but the backup center is fairly valuable, considering he’s the one who makes the protection calls for the whole line.
Every year the new season brings changes big and small. It seems that the 2020 season will bring some pretty significant changes to what we see on the field at Michigan, from players to coaches. Here’s a look at the expected changes and what we might see in 2020.
The impact is rated as being positive (+), negative (-), or neutral (=).
Out: QB Shea Patterson In: Dylan McCaffrey/Joe Milton Patterson was just the third quarterback to throw for 3,000 yards in a season, but many weren’t happy with his performance. Redshirt junior McCaffrey and redshirt sophomore Joe Milton will battle it out, and the belief (on my end) is that the loser of that battle will not finish out his career at Michigan. McCaffrey is the better overall player – both passing and running – but a concussion and a collarbone injury have ended his previous two seasons. Impact: =
