Tag: Ben Roebuck

2025 Season Countdown: #76-80

80. DE Lugard Edokpayi (RS Fr.): The long, lanky Edokpayi was listed at 6’7″ and 232 lbs. on the spring roster, and looking at him on the field in the spring, that seems about right. There’s probably not going to be much opportunity for him to see the field in important moments until he adds some bulk, and he gets stalemated too easily by offensive tackles right now. We’re probably looking at another season of development for him. Last year’s rank: #93.

79. DT Deyvid Palepale (RS Fr.): We haven’t heard too much about Palepale since he arrived on campus, and that’s not too surprising. Listed at 6’2″, 335 lbs. this spring, he’s likely exclusively a nose tackle and Michigan has a few guys who can play the nose now that they brought in Tre Williams from Clemson and Damon Payne from Alabama. Palepale could be a plugger down the road, but 2025 probably won’t be a breakout for him. Last year’s rank: #62.

78. OT Ben Roebuck (RS Fr.): Roebuck is an interesting offensive line guy, someone who was gargantuan in high school and then leaned out, presumably in an attempt to rebuild his body. At 6’7″ he has a massive frame to work with, but there were times where I think he looked too heavy in high school. After dropping down into the high 200s, he’s now listed at 305 lbs. I don’t think Roebuck will break into the top eight or so linemen this fall, so he’s a deep bench option for now. Last year’s rank: #92.

77. TE Brady Prieskorn (RS Fr.): I thought Prieskorn would play quite a bit more last season, but he was behind fellow freshman Hogan Hansen and then suffered a leg injury during pre-game warmups. He ended up redshirting. Michigan lost starter Colston Loveland, but I think we’ll see a little less tight end usage under new offensive coordinator Chip Lindsay. Hansen, Marlin Klein, Max Bredeson, and Jalen Hoffman all seem like viable options to get a good chunk of snaps, and it becomes questionable after that. Last year’s rank: #47b.

76. WR I’Marion Stewart (RS Fr.): Stewart is still listed at 5’11”, 180 lbs. on the spring roster. He won Offensive Scout Team Player of the Week for preparing the defense for USC, presumably for playing the role of Zachariah Branch (or maybe Makai Lemon). There’s a possibility that he could factor in on kickoff or punt returns, but as for playing the receiver position, it seems like he will need some more time to break into the rotation. Last year’s rank:#90.

2025 Spring Football Preview: Offensive Line

RETURNING PLAYERS: Greg Crippen (RS Sr.), Giovanni El-Hadi (RS Sr.), Connor Jones (RS Jr.), Brooks Bahr (RS So.), Nathan Efobi (RS So.), Evan Link (RS So.), Blake Frazier (RS Fr.), Jake Guarnera (RS Fr.), Luke Hamilton (RS Fr.), Ben Roebuck (RS Fr.), Andrew Sprague (RS Fr.)
NEWCOMERS: Lawrence Hattar (RS Sr.), Brady Norton (RS So.), Andrew Babalola (Fr.), Kaden Strayhorn (Fr.)
DEPARTURES: Raheem Anderson (transfer to Western Michigan), Tristan Bounds (transfer to Arizona), Andrew Gentry (transfer to BYU), Dominick Giudice (transfer to Missouri), Myles Hinton (NFL Draft), Jeffrey Persi (transfer to Pitt), Josh Priebe (NFL Draft)

OUTLOOK: Michigan really struggled up front in 2024, the first year under new offensive line coach Grant Newsome. They did seem to make some progress late in the year, but it was too late to salvage anything but a couple surprise victories against Ohio State and Alabama. The top performer up front was Myles Hinton, a mammoth Stanford transfer. Transfer left guard Josh Priebe struggled at times, and from the center to the right tackle was a travesty for much of the year. Greg Crippen and Dominick Giudice played hot potato with the reins of the center position for the entire year, Giovanni El-Hadi performed disappointingly at right guard, and redshirt freshman Evan Link posted multiple PFF grades of 0.0 in pass protection.

There has been a lot of turnover on the offensive line, with seven players either moving on to the NFL (Hinton, Priebe) or transferring. Giudice, Andrew Gentry, and Jeffrey Persi all had significant starting or playing experience, and all three decided to play elsewhere, leaving somewhat of a void in the remaining offensive line.

The bowl game against Alabama featured Link at left tackle and freshman Andrew Sprague at right tackle, and that may be the configuration we see to begin the spring. Link looked more comfortable on the left side, and Sprague showed some promise at right tackle, especially from an attitude perspective. Add in an off-season of strength and conditioning, and Sprague should be ready to roll.

As for new faces for 2025, Ferris State transfer Lawrence Hattar could possibly be penciled in to start at guard; he’s a fifth year player with lots of starting experience at the Division II level. Andrew Babalola is a 5-star prospect who’s big enough and athletic enough to compete for playing time at one of the tackle positions. Junior college transfer Brady Norton has potential down the road, but he’s probably a developmental guy at this point.

A couple other players who have been rumored to be in contention for playing time are redshirt junior Connor Jones and redshirt sophomore Nathan Efobi. Redshirt freshman Blake Frazier has been mentioned as having potential if he can get/stay healthy, and redshirt freshman Ben Roebuck had college-ready size when he arrived in 2024. All of those players are huge question marks since we haven’t really seen them on the field except during spring games.

Overall, the offensive line is a group with a lot of individual talent, but very little cohesion from playing together. Center Greg Crippen and offensive guard Giovanni El-Hadi have spent lots of time together as two fifth year seniors, but the rest of the players are either young or new to the system. It’s probably a pipe dream to hope for a return to the Joe Moore Award-level play we saw in 2021 and 2022, but it’s going to be very disappointing if Michigan can’t perform better in the trenches than they did in 2024.

2024 Season Countdown: #92 Ben Roebuck

Name: Ben Roebuck
Height: 6’7″
Weight: 330 lbs.
High school: Lakewood (OH) St. Edward’s
Position: Offensive guard
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: N/A
Last year: Roebuck was a senior in high school (LINK).
TTB Rating: 64

Roebuck is a mammoth offensive lineman who committed to the Wolverines in March of 2023. He and fellow Ohioan offensive lineman Luke Hamilton had some fun exchanges about Ohio State on Twitter, ingratiating them with Michigan fans. Players from Ohio who don’t get recruited by OSU have a chip on their shoulders when it comes to the Buckeyes, which may help down the road.

Anyway, Roebuck finished the cycle as a 247 Composite 3-star, the #41 offensive tackle, and #539 overall player. I pointed out some issues in his original commitment post, and those issues still existed in his senior highlights: he’s a huge player who doesn’t really finish blocks with a lot of ferocity, and he’s limited athletically (doesn’t show a lot of foot quickness, doesn’t bend particularly well, etc.).

After having played tackle in high school, I think Roebuck will have to move inside to guard. That should help mitigate some of the above issues. I had some of the same concerns about Michael Onwenu, and Onwenu played as a freshman, so perhaps Roebuck’s size will be too overwhelming to keep off the field. Maybe he’ll get a few snaps late in games. Ultimately, I’ll think he’ll play in four games or fewer and keep his redshirt.

Prediction: Redshirt

Visitors: Michigan vs. Ohio State

2024 PROSPECTS

Gatlin Bair – WR – Burley (ID) Burley: Bair is a 6’2″, 195-pounder who is committed to Boise State, who just fired head coach Andy Avalos. Bair is headed on a two-year Mormon mission after high school, so he will basically end up being a 2026 prospect. Bair is also considering Michigan and Oregon, along with BSU. He’s a 4-star, the #10 WR, and #40 overall. This visit is a possibility, but not set in stone at this point.

Zaquan Patterson – S – Hollywood (FL) Chaminade-Madonna: Patterson is a 6’0″, 185 lb. prospect who is committed to Miami. He’s a teammate of 2025 Michigan commit Chris Ewald. Patterson is a 4-star, the #5 safety, and #70 overall.

2024 COMMITS

QB Jadyn Davis
RB Micah Ka’apana
RB Jordan Marshall
WR Channing Goodwin
WR I’Marion Stewart
TE Hogan Hansen
TE Brady Prieskorn
OL Blake Frazier
OL Jake Guarnera
OL Luke Hamilton
OL Ben Roebuck
OL Andrew Sprague
DE Ted Hammond
DT Owen Wafle
LB Jeremiah Beasley
LB Mason Curtis
LB Zach Ludwig
LB Cole Sullivan
CB Jeremiah Lowe

Hit the jump for more.

Visitors: Michigan vs. Purdue

2024

Jadyn Davis – QB – Charlotte (NC) Providence Day: Davis is committed to Michigan (LINK).

Jo’Ziah Edmond – CB – Nappanee (IN) Northwood: Edmond is committed to Michigan.

Channing Goodwin – WR – Charlotte (NC) Providence Day: Goodwin is committed to Michigan (LINK).

Hit the jump for more.