20Aug 2012
Video: Countdown to Kickoff 2012 – Day 12: Desmond Morgan
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| Desmond Morgan (#44) |
Name: Desmond Morgan
Height: 6’1″
Weight: 227 lbs.
High school: Holland (MI) West Ottawa
Position: Linebacker
Class: Sophomore
Jersey number: #44
Last year: I ranked Morgan #78 and said he would be a special teamer. He started seven games at weakside linebacker, making 63 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, 1 sack, 1 pass breakup, and 1 fumble recovery.
It took a pretty odd confluence of events for Desmond Morgan to usurp the starting weakside linebacker job in 2011, but that’s exactly what happened. Let’s go through those events:
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| Senior WILL Brandin Hawthorne was Saturday’s defensive MVP |
DEFENSIVE ENDS
I thought Craig Roh looked pretty darn good at strongside end. The starter at weakside end was Brennen Beyer, who looks significantly bigger this spring than he did in the fall. He looked like a bona fide weakside end instead of a lanky outside linebacker. Beyer got a good pass rush a couple times. Meanwhile, backup weakside end Frank Clark performed solidly and made a nice hit on fullback Joey Kerridge, whom Clark chased down out of the backfield. I also thought backup strongside end Keith Heitzman looked pretty solid. Based on how Nathan Brink looked last year, I’m going to posit that Heitzman passes up Brink this fall. (Brink sat out the spring game, still recovering from his broken leg.)
DEFENSIVE TACKLES
William Campbell looked alternately solid and inconsequential. He had one or two good plays but he just didn’t seem to be going hard all the time. He should have destroyed walk-on guard Joey Burzynski (or so I would think) but instead got stalemated too often. Maybe the coaches are teaching him differently than I would expect, but it all seemed to start with his stance, which needs work from my perspective. Jibreel Black looks like a matchup nightmare for a lot of offensive guards, because he’s too quick to handle with any consistency. He looks bigger than last year (although the neck roll might have had something to do with that). It also seems that Richard Ash has taken a step forward, and I was surprised by how big backup 3-tech Chris Rock has become. I saw glimmers of hope there for some competent rotation players. Quinton Washington and Ken Wilkins still didn’t impress me.
LINEBACKERS
I didn’t pay much attention to Jake Ryan because we already know he’s a good player. Kenny Demens looked solid but unspectacular at MIKE. Desmond Morgan left the scrimmage early after getting chopped down on a blitz; he limped to the sideline and was later carted into the tunnel. Hopefully it was nothing serious. Cam Gordon was Ryan’s backup at SAM, and he’s definitely put on some weight since last year. Now he looks like a linebacker rather than a strong safety. I don’t think he’ll surpass Ryan, but he’s a very good backup. It will be interesting to see what the coaches do with him in 2013 as a senior, because by that time, I don’t think they’ll be able to afford to keep him off the field. Mike Jones and Joe Bolden played as backup middle linebackers, but neither one was particularly visible. I saw a couple loafs out of Antonio Poole, which does not bode well for his immediate future. Kaleb Ringer looked like he was in great shape and he made a nice tackle on Justice Hayes, but both of those guys seem to be a ways down on the depth chart. The linebacker who impressed me most on the day was Brandin Hawthorne, who made a couple nice tackles for loss and grabbed a one-handed pick, albeit off walk-on Jack Kennedy, who floated the ball across the middle. Hawthorne looked good at times last year, too, but he’s another guy who loafs once in a while, and that seemed to get him in the dighouse. The linebackers now have depth, which we haven’t been able to say for several years. I truly believe that Michigan has five starter-level linebackers: Ryan, Gordon, Demens, Morgan, and Hawthorne.
CORNERBACKS
J.T. Floyd started over Terrence Talbott, despite reports that Talbott had overtaken Floyd. That was somewhat expected. Floyd looked solid but was never tested deep. Blake Countess made a nice pick on a late Devin Gardner throw and also made a couple nice tackles. The backup cornerbacks did not impress me, although I don’t remember seeing much out of Talbott. Maybe he’s the third guy and we’ll be fine, but I don’t think Raymon Taylor and Delonte Hollowell are ready. We know Courtney Avery is pretty solid at the nickel corner, and although he pulled up on a tackle, it seemed like he was trying not to submarine the leaping receiver; if it were a game, I would be disappointed by that play, but I think he was just trying not to hurt his teammate.
SAFETIES
The starting safeties weren’t really tested in the running or the passing game. Jordan Kovacs should be good and practice reports suggest that Thomas Gordon has improved once again, but I guess we’ll have to wait and see on him. Backup free safety Jarrod Wilson needs to get stronger. He did miss a tackle on Thomas Rawls that turned into a touchdown, but Wilson should be struggling through senioritis and ordering his prom tux right now. Tackling 220 lb. running backs is a tough task for a safety so young. Marvin Robinson looked solid as the backup strong safety and made a nice tackle for little or no gain in the run game. As long as Robinson’s legal troubles are behind him, I expect him to improve and be a good in-the-box safety. He should be a good replacement for Kovacs after the latter graduates.
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| Desmond Morgan (#44) played extensively as a true freshman last season |
A couple weeks ago, I posted a poll asking who the starting weakside linebacker will be against Alabama in September. Michigan has two returning starters at the position, but both have some deficiencies and some Michigan fans have made noise about wanting them to be surpassed. Here are the results of the poll:
Desmond Morgan: 64%
The sophomore Morgan appears to be the starting weakside linebacker going into the spring, which continues his reign on the spot from last season. Last year he made 63 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, and 1 sack while playing in twelve of the thirteen games. He has added some weight during the off-season, so we’ll see if that affects his speed in a significant way.
Joe Bolden: 17%
Bolden is a 6’3″, 230 lb. true freshman who enrolled early and has been practicing with the team throughout the spring. He earned rave reviews at the Under Armour All American Game practices, and so far this spring, practice observers have been impressed, too. According to several accounts, he has passed all but Kenny Demens for middle linebacker reps this spring.
Brandin Hawthorne: 5%
Hawthorne is a 6’0″, 214 lb. senior who played pretty extensively last season. He made 43 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, and 1 sack while starting five of the twelve games in which he played. He lost playing time in the second half of the season to Morgan, though, and this spring he has still been a backup.
Antonio Poole: 5%
Poole is a 6’2″, 212 lb. redshirt freshman who has yet to see the field for the Wolverines. Some rumors have suggested that he’s the #2 weakside linebacker this spring, but he has also seen some reps behind Demens and Bolden at the MIKE position.
James Ross: 4%
Ross will be a true freshman in the fall and has yet to enroll at Michigan. As far as recruiting hype goes, he’s the most touted linebacker of the entire group. But he’s also probably the smallest and he has the least experience, so it will be an uphill battle for him to get on the field this fall.
Kaleb Ringer: 0%
Ringer is one of three true freshmen to enroll early in January (Bolden, safety Jarrod Wilson). He has been practicing this spring, but generally seems to be the least mentioned of the three. And with the depth at inside linebacker, he seems to be way down the list. He has also been getting limited reps at middle linebacker.
Other: 0%
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| Cameron Gordon has impressed the coaches again this spring |
If you missed yesterday’s discussion of the offense, here it is. And now for the defense:
Defensive end: As we know by now, Craig Roh has switched to strongside end. He has done fairly well at the position, but he’ll need to spend the next several months eating a ton and bulking up. The coaches want him in the low 280s and right now he’s about 270. Insiders say Frank Clark looks like the starter at weakside end for the upcoming season. Brennen Beyer, who switched from SAM linebacker this offseason, also has reportedly fared well but looks to be a step behind Clark at the position. Beyer’s a thicker, run-stopping sort and Clark will have to work on that aspect of his game. Nathan Brink is the presumed backup at the 5-tech position but has been limited due to his late-season broken leg. Keith Heitzman is also in the mix, which would be great for depth at the position. I would not be surprised to see one or two of the freshman defensive ends get some action, such as Matt Godin at 5-tech and Mario Ojemudia on the weakside, although Heitzman’s emergence might preclude Godin from having to burn a redshirt.
Defensive tackle: The first team defensive tackles appear to be Will Campbell at nose tackle and Jibreel Black at the 3-tech. Campbell looks fit and is being more consistent with his technique, but the coaches continue to work on that aspect. Black needs to add weight, but he’s more athletic than most 3-techs (especially compared to Will Heininger), so he adds a different dimension. Richard Ash appears to be the backup nose tackle. Meanwhile, Ken Wilkins has supposedly taken a leap forward this spring. He was mired on the bench last season and there were a lot of questions swirling about him, but it seems the light has gone on. He could be the #2 defensive tackle going into the season. Chris Rock has also earned a tiny bit of buzz and has put on a significant amount of weight to play the 3-tech.
Linebacker:
I don’t mean to overstate things, but the competition between Jake Ryan and Cam Gordon appears to be neck-and-neck for the SAM position. The coaches really like Gordon’s athleticism, and he’s done a good job in pass coverage, which makes sense because he’s a converted safety. Ryan has continued to progress after having a solid redshirt freshman season. There was a huge dropoff last season between Ryan and Beyer, but that won’t be the case this year (if Cam Gordon can stay healthy). At the MIKE spot, Kenny Demens hasn’t necessarily taken the forward steps that the coaches want. He has been hampered by a thumb injury, and the #1 middle linebacker in his absence has been freshman Joe Bolden. Mike Jones is buried at the #3 spot. The best linebacker this spring has been Desmond Morgan, according to several accounts. He’s put on a decent amount of weight after playing at 225 last season, and insiders suggest he’s probably close to 240 now. The backup to Morgan at WILL has been Antonio Poole, who redshirted last season.
Cornerback:
Blake Countess has one cornerback position locked down. At the boundary corner position, Terrence Talbott has stepped up to challenge J.T. Floyd. Insiders say that Floyd’s “benching” is partly due to him underperforming and partly due to rewarding Talbott for hard work in the offseason. It might be unlikely that Talbott takes a job from a fifth year senior, but the possibility exists. He’s made his move not by being a great coverage guy but by supporting the run and turning into a very good tackler. Those are the top three corners right there. Raymon Taylor continues to earn buzz as perhaps the secondary’s best athlete, but he’s still not ready mentally and physically. Courtney Avery is the nickel corner, where he did a great job last season and doesn’t seem to getting challenged this spring.
Safety: The starters here are pretty clear with Thomas Gordon at free safety and Jordan Kovacs at strong. Freshman Jarrod Wilson has picked things up quickly, and he might be the #2 free safety. Marvin Robinson has returned to the practice field this spring after disappearing last year with some legal issues. Despite his absence, Robinson appears to have taken another step forward and should be the heir apparent to Kovacs. A couple backup safeties have been absent from practices so far this spring: Tamani Carter and Josh Furman. I would have to assume that they will be buried a little bit if/when they return. These coaches do not like guys who miss practice.