That was closer than it should have been. Maryland has scared me for years, because they’ve had offensive playmakers. This goes back to the days of NFL veteran receiver D.J. Moore, but also a variety of running backs like Ty Johnson and Anthony McFarland, Jr. Now the Terps have a stable of good receivers and a couple solid running backs in speedster Roman Hemby and 235 lb. Antwain Littleton II, who I learned during the game had been a 295 lb. recruit. But the defense is catching up to the offense with size and speed in the secondary. They’re turning into a formidable opponent.
Hello, J.J. McCarthy. Well, McCarthy didn’t wait too long to stake his claim for the starting quarterback job. He completed 11/12 passes for 229 yards, 3 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions while rushing 1 time for 16 yards. His first pass was a 42-yard bomb to Roman Wilson for a touchdown, and he didn’t really slow down after that. Every pass was accurate, even a crisp RPO slant to Ronnie Bell that accounted for McCarthy’s lone incompletion. It was an excellent starting debut against an atrocious team.
Name: C.J. Stokes Height: 5’11” Weight: 190 lbs. High school: Columbia (SC) Hammond Position: Running back Class: Freshman Jersey number: N/A Last year: Stokes was a senior in high school (LINK). TTB Rating:59 71
Michigan beat out Louisville, Minnesota, Missouri, Penn State, and South Carolina for South Carolina native C.J. Stokes. Stokes ended up ranked as a 3-star, the #63 running back, and #798 overall. Playing in a small school league, he dusted the competition on his way to 1,000+ yards in each of his final three seasons and a 13-0 record as a senior.
I have no real reason to distrust Michigan’s running back evaluations. Jim Harbaugh has a track record of production there, even with guys whose talent I didn’t love, such as Karan Higdon and De’Veon Smith. I think Stokes can be a solid college running back. He’s built low to the ground, has some decent agility, and seems to have a good, hard-nosed attitude. Sometimes he seems a little slow to find holes and accelerate through them, and his top-end speed is a little questionable. But Hassan Haskins had some of the same issues, and he turned out just fine. Even so, Michigan has a great 1-2 punch at running back with Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards, and the big back role seems to be a battle between Tavierre Dunlap and Kalel Mullings. Add in walk-on Leon Franklin, who got a decent number of carries last year, and Stokes is going to be fighting for scraps or redshirting.
Thanks to Ashley, Eric, Joe, and Stephen for the recent Paypal donations.
As much as we like to get excited about every single Michigan recruit, it’s important to keep perspective and realize that not every one of these players will be destined for stardom. This exercise can give us a range of what to expect from some of these players, even though star rankings can be very wrong.
Will Johnson – CB – Grosse Pointe (MI) South 2022 ranking: #14 Historical ranking: tied for #9 all-time at Michigan Tied with: S Daxton Hill (2019) and DE LaMarr Woodley (2003) Closest positional comparisons: Jabrill Peppers (#3 in 2014) and Donovan Warren (#27 in 2007)
Derrick Moore – DE – Baltimore (MD) St. Francis 2022 ranking: #49 Historical ranking: tied for #37 all-time at Michigan Tied with: OG Kyle Kalis (2012) and RB Ty Isaac (2013) Closest positional comparisons: Pierre Woods (#43 in 2001) and Luiji Vilain (#56 in 2017)
Keon Sabb – S – Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy 2022 ranking: #84 Historical ranking: #64 all-time at Michigan Flanked by: OT Cory Zirbel (#83 in 2005) and #87 Kyle Bosch (2013) Closest positional comparisons: Michael Williams (#72 in 2007) and Demar Dorsey (#87 in 2010)