Orange Bowl Preview: Michigan Defensive Backs vs. Florida State Receivers

Tag: Delano Hill


29Dec 2016
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Orange Bowl Preview: Michigan Defensive Backs vs. Florida State Receivers

 

Travis Rudolph (image via Chop Chat)

I’ve been posting highlights of commits, top whatever lists, etc. on the Message Board (LINK), so check it out if you get a chance.


MICHIGAN

Starters: Michigan features a two-time First Team All-American in senior cornerback Jourdan Lewis (5’10”, 186 lbs.), who missed the first 25% of the season with a hamstring injury. He still ended up with 23 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, 2 interceptions, and 12 passes defended (tied for #8 in the conference). He owns the school record for pass breakups and generally shuts down his receiver. On the other side is 6’2″, 175 lb. senior Channing Stribling (27 tackles, 3 TFLs, 1 sack, 4 INTs, 12 PBUs), a lanky corner who has struggled in the run game but has had good coverage most of the year. Senior free safety Dymonte Thomas (6’2″, 199 lbs.) has improved from some early-season struggles and ended the regular season fourth on the team in tackles with 61, along with 1 INT and 7 PBUs. Senior Delano Hill (6’1″, 215 lbs.) has 47 tackles, 3.5 TFLs, 3 INTs, and 3 PBUs. This is one of the top few secondaries in the country.

Key backups: Sophomore safety Tyree Kinnel (5’11”, 206 lbs.) is one of just a couple guys worth mentioning after a regular season that included 15 tackles and 1 TFL. He’ll spell either of the other safeties. The other guy is redshirt sophomore nickel corner Brandon Watson (5’11”, 203 lbs.), who was addressed with the linebackers and plays some on the outside. Watson is physical but not a great athlete.

Hit the jump for a look at FSU’s receiving targets.

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27Nov 2016
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Michigan vs. Ohio State Awards

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Taco Charlton (#33, image via Zimbio)

Let’s see more of this guy on offense . . . someone with speed. Eddie McDoom, Jehu Chesson, Jabrill Peppers, Chris Evans, Jourdan Lewis, anyone. There’s a saying everyone’s heard, and that saying is “Speed kills.” Michigan hasn’t had a ton of speed for the past few seasons, but the roster isn’t entirely devoid of those players. What I didn’t see on Saturday was a great effort to get those fast guys the ball in space. It was De’Veon Smith (one of the slower backs in recent Michigan history), Jake Butt, and Amara Darboh touching the ball most of the time. Out of 40 non-Speight rushing attempts, only 12 went to explosive players (Chris Evans had 6, Jabrill Peppers had 4, and Jehu Chesson had 2). Out of 23 receptions, only 2 went to explosive players (Jehu Chesson had both), unless you count Darboh. In my opinion, that’s only 14/63 touches for players who are dangerously speedy, and that’s not enough. Additionally, if you’re going to use Peppers on offense, you have to be more creative. He either has to play more offense so the defense forgets about him a little bit, or the coaches have to use him the same amount but in ways defenses haven’t seen yet.

Hit the jump for more.

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6Nov 2016
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Michigan 59, Maryland 3

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Wilton Speight (image via Lexington Herald Leader)

Maryland just doesn’t have the horses. I actually liked what Maryland was doing offensively and defensively, but they just can’t match up physically. They have some speed offensively, but they’re not very good up front and they’re lacking talent on the defensive side of the ball. They knew they couldn’t push Michigan around at the line of scrimmage, so they consistently tried to get to the edge. That worked for a while, but once Michigan figured out that’s all they were going to do, the safeties and linebackers just started booking it for the edge. Lorenzo Harrison III is a pretty darn good running back to have for the future. If the Terps can keep some of that Maryland/D.C. home, then they have a chance to be dangerous in a year or two.

Hit the jump for more.

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29Oct 2016
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Michigan 32, Michigan State 23

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Jabrill Peppers (image via MLive)

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A win is a win. I know people are upset that the #2 team didn’t beat Michigan State by more, but anything can happen in a rivalry game like this. Michigan State probably isn’t as bad as their 2-6 record suggests, and Michigan hasn’t really proven that they can hang with the big boys like Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, and the like. Michigan fans seemed overconfident this week when talking about this game, and I think that was partially wishful thinking. Ultimately, all we really needed out of this game was a win. It didn’t need to be a by a wide margin, and Michigan didn’t need to be pulling away. When the clock ran out, Michigan just needed to be up by a point. They needed to get over that hump and that mental roadblock stemming from recent years, especially last year’s debacle. Mission accomplished.

Hit the jump for more.

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21Aug 2016
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2016 Season Countdown: #20 Delano Hill

Nov 14, 2015; Bloomington, IN, USA; Michigan Wolverines safety Delano Hill (44) breaks up a pass intended for Indiana Hoosiers wide receiver Mitchell Paige (87) on the last play of the game at Memorial Stadium. Michigan defeats Indiana in double overtime 48-41. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Delano Hill (image via Detroit Jock City)

Name: Delano Hill
Height: 6’1″
Weight: 215 lbs.
High school: Detroit (MI) Cass Tech
Position: Safety
Class: Senior
Jersey number: #44
Last year: I ranked Hill #27 and said he would be the starting nickel safety with 25 tackles (LINK). He started eight games and made 46 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and 2 pass breakups.

The second Hill in the countdown today, Delano earned a role as a part-time starting safety last season. To get an idea of how the safety position is played, with 13 games and two traditional starting safeties, Michigan handed out a total of 37 starts to safeties last year, including 13 to Jarrod Wilson, 12 to Jabrill Peppers, 8 to Hill, and 4 to Dymonte Thomas. It’s a position with a potential for a variety of roles. Hill was used largely as a strong safety who would play in the box, cover tight ends over the middle, or cover in the flat. He was mostly adept at supporting the run, making some nice open-field tackles, including a very nice one against Oregon State early in the year. His best game came against Indiana, when he made 10 tackles and a game-sealing pass breakup. On the flip side, there were a couple occasions where he trailed ball carriers on big plays and tried to punch out the football rather than making a quicker tackle attempt.

Hill is almost assured to start every game this season. With Wilson having graduated and Peppers moving to a SAM linebacker role, the safety position is rather thin. Thomas improved in the second half of last season and should combine with Hill to be the primary duo on the back end. Michigan also has sophomore Tyree Kinnel, who only played special teams last year but has earned some praise this off-season. Other options include freshmen Khaleke Hudson and Josh Hudson, along with a couple walk-ons in A.J. Pearson and Jordan Glasgow. I am not inclined to trust freshman or inexperienced safeties, so it’s important that Thomas, Hill, and Kinnel remain healthy. As for Hill himself, I have never been in love with him as a playmaker. He has a bit of a reputation as a workout warrior (occasionally, you hear the claim that he’s the fastest guy on the team), but that hasn’t necessarily translated to the field. When it comes to being around the ball, he has just 2 pass breakups and 1 fumble recovery in three years on the field. Still, it’s nice to have senior safeties, and I think he’s a solid player to have working in underneath coverages.

Prediction: Starting strong safety; 55 tackles, 1 interception

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