Cornerback Benjamin St-Juste is transferring (LINK). We had heard before that he was medically retiring. This seems like an Ondre Pipkins situation, where Michigan didn’t think he could keep playing and/or didn’t want him taking up a scholarship, but he thought he could still play and went to Texas Tech to prove it.
Aaron McMann went out on a limb and predicted that Shea Patterson will be the starting QB in 2019 (LINK).
Benjamin St-Juste (image via Radio Canada)
Name: Benjamin St-Juste
Height: 6’3″
Weight: 193 lbs.
High school: Montreal (Quebec) Cegep du Vieux
Position: Cornerback
Class: Sophomore
Jersey number: #25
Last year: I ranked St-Juste #65 and said he would be a backup cornerback (LINK). He made 1 tackle.
St-Juste was an early enrollee in January of 2017, and he got torched in the spring game by fellow freshman Tarik Black. Based on that performance, it looked like St-Juste would not be a significant contributor in 2017, and that proved to be true. He was used on special teams, but Michigan went with the quartet of Lavert Hill, David Long, Ambry Thomas, and Brandon Watson at the cornerback positions.
All four of those guys are slated to return in 2018, so I see no upward mobility for St-Juste. He appears to be in a holding pattern, and there are several 2018 freshmen lurking, too. St-Juste should play on special teams once again, but defensively, there just won’t be many extra snaps to go around. Watson is a senior and Hill/Long could leave early for the draft, so maybe 2019 will be more sunny of an outlook for St-Juste.
Prediction: Backup cornerback, special teamer
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| Jourdan Lewis and Delano Hill were two of Michigan’s ten eventual signees to participate in Nike’s The Opening in 2012 |
2018
Stephen Herron, Jr., DE – Louisville, KY
Cade McNamara, QB – Reno, NV
D.J. Turner II, CB – Suwanee, GA
2017
Gemon Green, CB – DeSoto, TX
Cameron McGrone, LB – Indianapolis, IN
Myles Sims, CB – Atlanta, GA
Christian Turner, RB – Buford, GA
2016
Jordan Anthony, LB – Bradenton, FL
Jaylen Kelly-Powell, S – Detroit, MI
Oliver Martin, WR – Iowa City, IA
Dylan McCaffrey, QB – Littleton, CO
Donovan Peoples-Jones, WR – Detroit, MI
Joshua Ross, LB – Orchard Lake, MI
Cesar Ruiz, C – Bradenton, FL
O’Maury Samuels, RB – Los Lunas, NM
Drew Singleton, LB – Paramus, NJ
Benjamin St-Juste, CB – Montreal, Canada
Ambry Thomas, CB – Detroit, MI
Hit the jump for more.
Bryan Mone and Chase Winovich (image via iSportsWeb)
I addressed potential offensive attrition last week (LINK), and here’s the defensive edition. As I mentioned in that previous post, this is about the depth chart and opportunity for playing time; these posts are not about rumors or talent judgments.
DEFENSIVE LINE: First of all, it’s important to note that there are few places in the country where defensive linemen get better coaching than Michigan. If you want to be good and have the ability, Michigan gives you as good of a chance as anyone. It’s not like Alabama or Clemson, where elite recruits simply continue to be elite. It’s a place where walk-ons (Ryan Glasgow) and lowly 3-stars (Frank Clark, Maurice Hurst) can be turned into high draft picks. But if you’re not on their level, you won’t get on the field. In that regard, there are a few guys who are buried on the depth chart. One is defensive end Reuben Jones (RS Jr.), who has been passed by younger guys, and another is Ron Johnson (RS So.), who has bounced between defensive end and defensive tackle. Both are finding it difficult to find the field. Meanwhile, interior players Lawrence Marshall (RS Sr.) and Bryan Mone (RS Sr.) have both been passed by younger guys, most notably Aubrey Solomon, a 2017 signee. Michigan rotates defensive linemen quite a bit, so there’s playing time available for both, but becoming a starter would be a tall order. Most importantly of all, there’s a chance that Chase Winovich (RS Sr.) might enter the NFL Draft.
Hit the jump for a discussion of the linebackers and defensive backs.
Benjamin St-Juste (image via Twitter)
Name: Benjamin St-Juste
Height: 6’3″
Weight: 188 lbs.
High school: Montreal (Quebec) Vieux
Position: Cornerback
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: #25
Last year: St-Juste was a senior in high school. He made 30 tackles, 2 interceptions, and 18 pass breakups.
TTB Rating:Â 78
St-Juste had an odd route to Michigan. Originally committed as a part of the 2016 class, he reclassified to 2017. He was a very inexperienced football player and extremely raw when he first popped up onto the scene and committed to Michigan in June of 2015. Many Michigan fans – including me – were unsure why the Wolverines would take a chance on him, even though Michigan offered him after they saw him at a camp in person.
But then came his 2016 season and an early enrollment and the spring game, and maybe we were wrong. Michigan just had a 6’3″, 220 lb. cornerback with a torn ACL get drafted, and maybe Jim Harbaugh knows what he’s doing with big corners. Â St-Juste had an okay spring game where he was toasted by fellow freshman Tarik Black for several catches, except St-Juste was right in his hip pocket the whole time and it took some nice throws and catches to complete those passes. The defense needs two brand new starting corners this year, and while St-Juste probably won’t be a starter this year, he could be a depth player who gets groomed for a bigger role as a boundary corner in the next couple years.
Prediction: Backup cornerback