2016 Season Countdown: #42 Drake Harris

Tag: Drake Harris


31Jul 2016
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2016 Season Countdown: #42 Drake Harris

Drake Harris 178x

Drake Harris

Name: Drake Harris
Height: 6’4″
Weight: 181 lbs.
High school: Grand Rapids (MI) Christian
Position: Wide receiver
Class: Redshirt sophomore
Jersey number: #14
Last year: I ranked Harris #37 and said he would be a backup wide receiver with 15 catches for 225 yards and 2 TDs (LINK). He made 6 catches for 39 yards.

Harris came in for a ton of spring and summer hype last off-season. According to some, he was the most impressive receiver on the roster. He wasn’t. Jehu Chesson had a breakout season, Amara Darboh did what he does, and Harris was mainly a decoy of one sort or another. He quietly made 6 catches, but he didn’t do anything outstanding on a team that was lacking much depth at the position. Truthfully, it wasn’t too disappointing since the guy had been sitting out for two seasons with a nagging hamstring problem, but it didn’t inspire me to predict greatness.

So here Harris is at #42. Chesson and Darboh return, so Harris probably won’t start unless Chesson’s injury lingers from last season. Even if he does, there are other young guys who could make a push for playing time, along with Maurice Ways, who is recovering from his own injury. Harris himself is still only 181 lbs. and looks like he could be snapped in two by a couple of kids mistaking him for a wishbone at Thanksgiving. I think Harris might get pushed out of the way by some younger guys during his career, but for now, Harris – who did an okay job of blocking – has the experience edge on most.

Prediction: Backup wide receiver; 9 catches, 90 yards, 1 TD

27Feb 2016
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Spring Football Preview: Wide Receivers

Amara Darboh (82) of the Michigan Wolverines pulls in a pass with Micah Hannemann (7) of Brigham Young  defending during NCAA football in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2015.

Amara Darboh (image via KSL)

Projected starters: Fifth year senior Amara Darboh was Michigan’s leading receiver for most of last season, and he finished with 58 catches (#1 on the team), 727 yards (#2), and 5 TDs (#2). He returns with a spot virtually locked down, and he should be ready to go when spring begins. The latter cannot be said for fifth year senior Jehu Chesson, who had 50 catches (#3), 764 yards (#1), and 9 TDs (#1). Chesson was injured in Michigan’s bowl game and will likely miss spring ball while recovering from that undisclosed injury. Michigan did not get much production from the wide receivers behind them, but redshirt sophomore Maurice Ways, Jr. earned more playing time as the season went along, finishing with 3 catches for 40 yards total. If we’re going by trajectory, he would be the starter opposite Darboh this spring.

Hit the jump for more on the wide receiver position.

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20Mar 2015
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Spring Practice Rumblings

Mason Cole might not be blocking many edge rushers this season

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Based on recent developments and leaks, I’ll toss out some of the recent rumblings from practice, which you can feel free to dissect/discuss.

Quarterback: Different sources will say different things. I don’t really have much to add to that, except it seems like Shane Morris is mentioned most often as looking the best.

Running back: Ty Isaac had questions about his toughness coming out of high school, but he has played through some things this spring; however, he has been suffering from hand and hamstring injuries, so he is limited. Derrick Green has also been injured, and Drake Johnson is coming off that ACL tear. The one constant has been De’Veon Smith, who has been earning praise for his vision and attitude. It’s not really a secret that Smith can have a sullen disposition at times.

Fullback: With Sione Houma out due to injury, it’s still Joe Kerridge, Brady Pallante, and Chase Winovich getting reps at this spot.

Hit the jump for the rest of the positions.


Wide receiver: The hype about Drake Harris persists. He’s listed at 6’4″, 174 lbs. but there are reports that say he’s actually 185 now. That’s still not very big, but either way, I think the only thing that will keep him off the field this fall is the nagging injuries. He might not start, but I think he will play. Otherwise, there has not been much buzz about the receivers.

Tight end: Jake Butt has been looking pretty darn good, and Ian Bunting has shown promise as a pass receiving tight end. Henry Poggi has flipped from defensive end to tight end in an attempt to boost the numbers. I have not heard many positive things about A.J. Williams, who is a senior and still struggles to block people. Khalid Hill is still out recovering from his own ACL injury.

Offensive line: The lineup at a recent practice was (left to right) Logan Tuley-Tillman, Erik Magnuson, Mason Cole, Kyle Kalis, and Ben Braden. Cole – who was the starting left tackle last year – projected to the interior offensive line coming out of high school, so while I expected him to be a guard in college, center still fits him, in my opinion. That is if he can handle snapping, the calls, etc. It hurt that fifth year senior Jack Miller called it quits, and it hurt even more when Graham Glasgow prolonged his idiocy streak and disobeyed his probation. I have not heard good things about Patrick Kugler or Blake Bars, who were #3 and #4 at center, respectively, coming into the spring.

Defensive line: It sounds as if Michigan is going to be running more of a 3-4 look this year. I have heard positive things about Chris Wormley at strongside end, and Greg Mattison says the nose tackles have stood out. With Poggi playing offense for now, that makes Michigan pretty thin on the defensive line. They have a lot of tackle types and not much in the way of ends, at least until a couple freshmen arrive this summer.

Linebacker: The four starting linebackers in the 3-4 look have reportedly been Mario Ojemudia (who has an undisclosed injury), Desmond Morgan, Joe Bolden, and James Ross. Royce Jenkins-Stone has been filling in for Ojemudia, and Lawrence Marshall has also made a positive impression. The backups on the inside are Ben Gedeon and Mike McCray. McCray and Allen Gant were both shown in video from yesterday wearing yellow non-contact jerseys, so their status is questionable.

Cornerback: The cornerback jobs are Jourdan Lewis’s and Blake Countess’s to lose. Nobody’s challenging them, and the depth is thin, anyway. Channing Stribling is the next option, but I haven’t heard any buzz about him really pushing for playing time.

Safety: Michigan is running a bunch of guys out there at safety. The buzz about Jabrill Peppers is non-stop; he’s playing free safety and moving down into the slot in nickel situations. Jarrod Wilson is bound to start at strong safety. Dymonte Thomas has also been dealing with an injury, but he seemed to have been doing better and rotating in for nickel packages. Delano Hill also may have turned a corner, and he looks pretty good athletically in the limited film I’ve seen; that has always been the book on him, that he’s a very good athlete who struggled to put it all together.

8Jun 2014
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2014 Season Countdown: #71 Drake Harris

Drake Harris (#1) with Michael Ferns III (#10) and Wilton Speight

Name: Drake Harris
Height: 6’4″
Weight: 180 lbs.
High school: Grand Rapids (MI) Christian
Position: Wide receiver
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: #14
Last year: Harris was a senior in high school. He was a 247 Composite 4-star, the #8 wide receiver, and #67 overall.

Harris had a bit of a roller coaster ride in high school. Originally considered to be a potential two-sport athlete, he committed to Michigan State, mainly for basketball purposes. However, his higher upside on the gridiron made him reconsider, at which point he flipped to the Wolverines. Maybe the universe was punishing him for his indecision because he suffered a hamstring injury in August of 2013 and didn’t play football at all during his senior year. That was a good thing for his opponents, considering he had a record-setting junior season (91 catches, 2016 yards, 23 touchdowns).

Harris enrolled at Michigan in January, but his hamstring issues persisted through the spring. He has reportedly been lifting weights and added some noticeable bulk during his recovery, but it’s unclear how long the injury problem will last. Hamstrings can be touchy. The Wolverines have a decent group of receivers, and freshman Freddy Canteen got a lot of hype in the spring. While there is room for someone else to step up behind top target Devin Funchess, Harris will probably not be that guy, at least not this year. Redshirt sophomore Jehu Chesson got a lot of playing time last year, and redshirt sophomore Amara Darboh was ahead of Chesson on the depth chart until a foot injury sidelined him for the 2013 season. The prudent thing would seem to be a redshirt so Harris can continue getting physically ready for the college game.

Prediction: Redshirt