Tag: Jabrill Peppers

Spring Practice Bits and Pieces

Drake Harris

In the throes of spring practice, bits and pieces are leaking out. Here are some things to note that you may or may not have heard already.

The quarterbacks are a mixed bag. Various reports have suggested various things. Some people will tell you that Shane Morris looks the best. However, there’s more chatter about Wilton Speight and Alex Malzone. The buzz on Malzone is that he’s picking things up very quickly, which is impressive for a freshman early enrollee.

Jabrill Peppers is good and loud. Peppers is playing safety, and he has been raved about with regard to his athleticism and leadership. There will probably be growing pains, but Michigan hasn’t had a great athlete at safety in a while. Furthermore, senior linebacker Joe Bolden says that Peppers screams the defensive calls louder than necessary. The kid is high-energy and loves the game of football. Michigan has the potential for their best safety combination in a long time with senior Jarrod Wilson and Peppers back there.

Chase Winovich is working at fullback/tight end. The redshirt freshman, who is listed at 6’3″ and 230 lbs., has reportedly been playing some fullback and tight end this spring after being recruited as a linebacker. You may remember that he was a very effective running quarterback in high school, in addition to his defensive exploits. With the Wolverines failing to reel in Chris Clark (UCLA) in the 2015 class, the tight end position is a little thin. And with senior fullback Sione Houma missing spring practice due to injury, the team is limited there, too. Add in the fact that both of Michigan’s experienced fullbacks – Houma and Joe Kerridge – are seniors, and maybe Winovich’s move to offense will become permanent. He has supposedly been wearing #44, which is a change from his defensive number of #58. The catch here is that it thins the linebacking corps, which has four players with senior eligibility in 2015 (Desmond Morgan, James Ross III, Joe Bolden, Royce Jenkins-Stone) and needs bodies in the coming years. If Winovich sticks on offense, that might take away a key option for the 2016 season.

Brady Pallante is also a fullback. This was addressed last week. He’s a 6’0″, 276 lb. fullback wearing #45.

Everybody is a fullback. Except Terry Richardson.

The guys are bigger. Pretty much across the board, players have added weight. In particular, defensive tackle Willie Henry is up to 311 lbs. and Bryan Mone is up to 325 lbs. Those are not typically the numbers you look for in a penetrating, 3-tech defensive tackle. I would look for those two guys to be playing some nose tackle. Furthermore, there are some other size improvements with offensive tackle Logan Tuley-Tillman up to 309 lbs. and guard Graham Glasgow reaching 303 lbs. Tuley-Tillman was over 330 lbs. in high school, trimmed down to 285 at one point, and is now back up over the 300 lb. threshold. Linebackers Mike McCray II (242 lbs.), Ben Gedeon (241 lbs.), and Royce Jenkins-Stone (240 lbs.) are all larger than the typical Michigan linebacker over the last few years.

Practice tempo has increased. The practice tactic that’s en vogue these days is to maximize reps. Reports have said that Michigan has two lineups going in practice, and a play is being run every 25-35 seconds. Rather than making corrections on the field, corrections are made in film. This has been made easier in recent years with film able to be disseminated over the internet through Hudl and the like. It’s especially big for spread teams who like to run hurry-up, anyway. It’s not surprising that Harbaugh is adopting spread strategies even though he won’t run a typical spread offense; he seems to be the type of coach who is always looking for an edge.

Running back is still a question mark. While I believe the running game will improve this season, a number of factors go into that – coaching, experience on the offensive line, experience at running back, and the addition of Ty Isaac. However, Isaac has reportedly been limited due to a cast on his hand, and none of the running backs are sticking out right now. Of course, early practices are always dominated by the defense, so this doesn’t necessarily mean much. Personally, I believe Isaac will come out on top at some point.

Wide receivers have promise. Most of the buzz has been about redshirt freshman Maurice Ways, Jr., whose body is ready for playing at this level. One question mark about Ways has always been his hands, so that will be something to watch. Regardless, he might have the best combination of receiving qualities at this point – size, leaping ability, speed, etc. As I’ve mentioned before, he has some of those same traits that we saw in some of the greats of yesteryear (Marquis Walker, David Terrell, Braylon Edwards). That’s not to say Ways will add his name to that list, but he at least has a chance, in my opinion. Fellow redshirt freshman Drake Harris has also been impressive at times. Harris has missed most of the past two seasons due to injuries, and he’s listed at just 174 lbs. People express concern about his size, but I am not worried about that facet of his game. If he’s as good as his high school hype when it comes to speed and leaping ability, playing under weight won’t hamper him from having an effect on the team. Wide receiver size is overrated. It might be the one spot on the field where you find successful guys ranging from 5’8″ to 6’5″, and you have skinny guys (Roy Roundtree, Tavon Austin, DeSean Jackson) doing well just like big guys (Calvin Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Devin Funchess). If Harris is 6’4″, 174 lbs., and can ball, the most important part of that is the third part.

Video: Jabrill Peppers interview

Michigan vs. Ohio State Awards

Drake Johnson (#20) scored two touchdowns in Saturday’s rivalry game against Ohio State

Let’s see more of this guy on offense next year . . . Dennis Norfleet. Michigan is lacking big-play threats, and while Norfleet has yet to break a truly big play, he is one of those guys who can gain yards in chunks. He ended the OSU game with 3 carries for 10 yards and 1 catch for 9 yards, but at least one decent run was called back for an Amara Darboh hold (Darboh was called for two holding penalties in the game). Norfleet’s final carry of the day lost 3 yards when he tried to run outside of his block, but he at least threatens to make people miss. Virtually every other receiver and running back is very likely to be brought down by the first guy.

Let’s see less of this guy on offense next year . . . De’Veon Smith. Smith was essentially forced into action late in the year when Derrick Green went down with a broken collarbone. Smith was the starter essentially by default, and he responded with just one solid game (18 carries, 121 yards, 1 touchdown against Northwestern). Drake Johnson started against Ohio State and did well, and then Smith stepped in with 3 carries for 4 yards when Johnson got hurt. Smith is too slow to be a full-time back, and he doesn’t break as many tackles as an ideal short-yardage back should. It’s not Smith’s fault that he got so much playing time, but Michigan can do better. Johnson passed him up late in the year, starter Derrick Green will return in 2015, and the Wolverines will also have the services of USC transfer Ty Isaac. Barring injuries or transfers, I think Smith should be no higher than #4 on the depth chart next year.

Let’s see more of this guy on defense next year . . . Ben Gedeon. It will be interesting to see how the linebacker positions shake out next year. With a potential coaching change coming, the scheme may also change. However, Michigan should once again be deep at the linebacker position. The sophomore Gedeon would be a starter on some Big Ten teams, but he was stuck behind Butkus Award finalist Jake Ryan at middle linebacker. Next year weakside starter and #2 tackler on the team Joe Bolden will return, and former starting inside linebacker Desmond Morgan will come back from his shoulder injury that caused him to redshirt this year. Furthermore, part-time starter at strongside linebacker James Ross III will be back. It would almost be a shame for Gedeon to have to wait until his senior year to start, but that’s a possibility with Bolden, Morgan, and Ross returning, all three of whom will be seniors in 2015.

Let’s see more of this guy on defense next year . . . Jabrill Peppers. Peppers, the 5-star cornerback who took a medical redshirt, is needed in the secondary. Michigan should be solid at the very least with everyone but Raymon Taylor returning, but Peppers’ playmaking potential is desperately needed. Michigan got just 2 interceptions from defensive backs this season, both of which came from sophomore Jourdan Lewis. Peppers could play safety, but his tackling ability is a good fit at slot corner, too; he or Blake Countess could start on the outside, with the other guy playing in the slot.

Play of the game . . . Devin Gardner’s touchdown pass to Freddy Canteen. It was only a 3-yarder and Michigan’s fate was essentially already sealed, but Gardner rolled right to find Canteen in the endzone near the sideline. Canteen – who showed flashes of promise in the spring but was quiet all season – made an excellent diving catch, getting a foot down before sliding out of bounds.

MVP of the game . . . Drake Johnson. I would like to pick Gardner (22/32, 233 yards, 2 touchdowns, 1 interception), who made some nice plays as well. But Gardner also gift-wrapped two touchdowns for Ohio State. The first one was an interception on the opening drive, setting up OSU on Michigan’s side of the field. The second was a fumble that was returned for a touchdown by Ohio State linebacker Darron Lee. So I’ll pick Johnson as the MVP. Johnson carried the ball 15 times for 74 yards (4.9 yards/carry) and 2 touchdowns, and he threw a halfback pass to Gardner for 18 yards. When Johnson went down with what I’m guessing is an ACL injury late in the game, Michigan’s running game suffered greatly.

Site News: All-Time Recruit Rankings

Jabrill Peppers

I have added an “All-Time Recruit Rankings” (LINK) page to the top. As you might guess, it’s a database of every Michigan recruit listed in order of class recruiting ranking. I used 247 Sports’ Composite rankings to do the list. It shows, for example, that Jabrill Peppers is Michigan’s top overall recruit since 2006, while Justin Feagin is the lowest ranked recruit, though there are several unranked players who are behind Feagin. If you ever have a question about how Michigan’s recruiting efforts stack up against historical classes, this should be a helpful resource.

Keep in mind that the page is under construction, but if you have any comments, corrections, suggestions, etc., please leave them in the comments.

Thanks for reading!

Michigan vs. Minnesota Awards

Devin Gardner (image via ToledoBlade.com)

Let’s see more of this guy on offense . . . Devin Gardner. Not for one second has Shane Morris given the slightest inkling that he’s a better quarterback than Gardner. Unless he’s hurt – as he was for the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl last season – Gardner should be the starter at Michigan until he runs out of eligibility. Sometimes people can’t accept that a mediocre player can be the best one available. Commenters keep throwing out bizarre questions like “Are we going to win with Gardner at quarterback?” but that’s not even remotely the point. No quarterback can guarantee you victories, particularly behind a mediocre offensive line with a questionable running game. Gardner gives Michigan the best chance to win, and that’s all you can really ask for right now.

Let’s see less of this guy on offense . . . Shane Morris. The kid has a 0-to-5 touchdown-to-interception ratio, and he’s absolutely careless with the football. Gardner fumbles the ball when he’s fighting for extra yardage. Morris fumbles the ball when he’s just standing in the pocket and has nothing better to do. Looking ahead to 2015, Michigan should be exploring transfers and planning an open competition between Morris, Wilton Speight, and even Alex Malzone. The situation is dire.

Let’s see more of this guy on defense . . . Jabrill Peppers. Rumors were circulating that Peppers was hurt. Rumors were circulating that he didn’t play because of a disciplinary issue. Maybe it was a combination of both. I don’t know. What I do know is that Peppers has seen the field very little in his first five weeks as a college football player, and that’s extremely frustrating. There’s nothing the coaches can do about injuries, I guess, but he’s a playmaker on a team largely devoid of playmakers. If the defensive backfield is too jam-packed with veterans and talent, then play Peppers at slot receiver or running back or wideout or wildcat quarterback. The kid needs to be on the field if he’s healthy.

Let’s see less of this guy on defense . . . Dymonte Thomas. Thomas was the one who appeared to blow the coverage on Maxx Williams on Saturday, which led to a touchdown. Against Utah the week before, he blew the coverage that led to a touchdown for Dres Anderson. Opponents keep finding a way to attack him, and he’s not up to the challenge. Maybe Peppers should move ahead of Thomas in the safety rotation.

Play of the game . . . Frank Clark and Taco Charlton’s sack of Mitch Leidner. Give me a break. There are so few good plays to choose from. Clark leaped over a cut block from a running back before charging ahead to sack Leidner for a loss of five yards. Charlton latched on to help take Leidner down. It’s sad when this is the highlight.

MVP of the game . . . Devin Gardner. Again, the pickings are slim. Gardner entered the game with under eight minutes remaining, immediately leading a touchdown drive. He went 3/6 for 39 yards, and he ran the ball 5 times for 23 yards, including a 3-yard touchdown run. Yes, he took a sack, and he almost threw an interception (or took a safety) from his own endzone. However, the team got a spark from his appearance. Any further heroics or shenanigans were thwarted by Brady Hoke’s inexplicable decision to punt with four minutes remaining while down by two scores.