Tag: Ex-Wolverines

Ex-Wolverine Updates: Week 15

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FORMER PLAYERS

WR Tarik Black (Texas): Texas’s regular season is over. Black had 10 catches for 240 yards and 1 touchdown.

WR Kekoa Crawford (Cal): Cal’s (1-3) regular season is over. Crawford led the team in receptions (19), receiving yards (232), and yards per catch (12.2), and he was tied for the lead in touchdowns (2).

DT Michael Dwumfour (Rutgers): Dwumfour did not play in the season finale for Rutgers (3-6) against Nebraska. Dwumfour finished the year with 25 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, 0.5 sacks, and 2 quarterback hurries.

Hit the jump for more.

Ex-Wolverines: Class of 2014

I like to put a little bow on each recruiting class after those players finish their college careers, so here’s a step toward reflecting on the 2014 class. Michigan had six players transfer out of the program from the class, and four of them ended up starting at other FBS schools. Only one player decommitted, which is unlikely to happen again in the current recruiting climate (for example, Michigan suffered four decommitments in the 2021 class).

Hit the jump for a look back.

Christian Turner, Ex-Wolverine

Redshirt sophomore running back Christian Turner announced on Saturday that he was entering the NCAA transfer portal.

Turner came to Michigan from Buford (GA) Buford in 2018. He was a 3-star, the #22 running back, and #508 overall. He notched 20 carries for 95 yards and 1 catch for 16 yards as a freshman; then he had 44 carries for 171 yards and 1 touchdown, plus 4 catches for 13 yards, in 2019. He initially opted out of the 2020 season due to COVID concerns but then re-joined the team, though he was relegated to special teams.

I gave Turner a TTB Rating out of high school (LINK), but every class since then has included a better prospect. And it doesn’t help that Turner’s classmate, Hassan Haskins, has outplayed his ranking and taken over the primary role at Michigan.

Michigan couldn’t find room for Turner to play in a deep backfield in 2020, and that’s unlikely to change in 2021. Turner will get more of an opportunity to touch the ball somewhere else. Usually, players transfer somewhere closer to home, so I would expect him to resurface somewhere down south, perhaps in the ACC or the Sun Belt.

Here’s the 2021 scholarship count with Turner removed (LINK), as well as Jalen Mayfield (NFL) and Zach Carpenter (transfer).

Will Hart, Ex-Wolverine

Punter Will Hart posted on Twitter that he’s pursuing a grad transfer opportunity elsewhere in 2021. This is very interesting, because Hart was a fifth year senior in 2020, so he’s the first “senior” of any sort for Michigan to indicate that he plans to play college football again in 2021. Of course, because of COVID and the NCAA’s exception for collegiate athletes this year, every player still has eligibility in 2021, including seniors, fifth year seniors, and even sixth year seniors.

Hart had a very weird career at Michigan. A walk-on player, he was a Ray Guy Award semifinalist and first team all-conference player in 2018 after averaging 46.98 yards per punt. He followed that up by averaging 44.24 yards per punt in 2019 and . . . a very disappointing 37.75 yards in 2020. So he steadily regressed, and Brad Robbins took his punting job during the 2020 season. I’m unaware if that was because of injury, a loss of confidence, etc., but regardless, Hart looks to be headed out the door.

This does not really affect Michigan’s roster or scholarship numbers, considering Hart was a walk-on who had lost his starting job. But it does remove a punting option, and Robbins himself has had injury issues. It’s also worth noting that Michigan signed one of the top punters in the 2020 class in Orchard Lake (MI) St. Mary’s specialist Tommy Doman.

Branden Jennings, Ex-Wolverine

Jacksonville (FL) Sandalwood outside linebacker/defensive end Branden Jennings signed with Maryland on Wednesday morning after being committed to Michigan. Jennings had also previously been committed to Florida State.

Jackson is a 4-star, the #7 outside linebacker, and #109 overall. I’ve seen him projected all over the place, and sometimes I have wondered what other people see in him that I don’t see. I think he’s a good prospect – as a weakside end or outside linebacker – but some have intimated that he’s an inside linebacker, and I just don’t get that.

Anyway, Michigan loses some star power from its 2021 class since he’s just outside the top-100. They also lose a potential pass rusher.

Jennings is one of four decommits from the 2021 class, joining WR Markus Allen, LB Casey Phinney, and DE Quinton Somerville (Somerville picked UCLA shortly after Jennings picked Maryland).