Tag: Jake Ryan

2014 Bednarik Award watch list

Jake Ryan

The 2014 Bednarik Award watch list has been released. The award is given to the most outstanding defensive player in the country. There are several Big Ten and other opponents on the list, and you may want to scan through the list just to see some familiar names from the recruiting trail.

Michael Bennett – DT – Ohio State
Joey Bosa – DE – Ohio State
Shilique Calhoun – DE – Michigan State
Frank Clark – DE – Michigan
Carl Davis – DT – Iowa
Kurtis Drummond – S – Michigan State
Randy Gregory – DE – Nebraska
Jordan Lucas – CB – Penn State
Keivarae Russell – CB – Notre Dame
Jake Ryan – LB – Michigan
Jaylon Smith – LB – Notre Dame
Trae Waynes – CB – Michigan State

Phil Steele’s 2014 All-Big Ten team released

Devin Funchess

Phil Steele released his 2014 All-Big Ten team, and there are several Michigan players on the list.

FIRST TEAM
WR Devin Funchess
LB Jake Ryan
CB Blake Countess

SECOND TEAM
DE Frank Clark
LB Desmond Morgan

THIRD TEAM
P Will Hagerup

FOURTH TEAM
QB Devin Gardner
LB James Ross III

Many of these are interesting picks for various reasons. First of all, Devin Funchess is going into his first year as a full-time wideout, and he will also be without a proven commodity taking attention away from him in the form of Jeremy Gallon. Ryan is switching positions from strongside outside linebacker to middle linebacker in a new base defense. Countess has been rumored to be relegated to a backup role behind sophomore Jourdan Lewis, though Countess will start at slot corner. Morgan is another guy who changes positions, albeit slightly (middle linebacker to weakside linebacker). Gardner might be the most physically talented quarterback in the conference, but he’s behind Braxton Miller (understandable due to winning and good talent), Connor Cook (who came out of nowhere last year), and Christian Hackenberg (who will be without his stud receiver, Allen Robinson). I think there’s a decent chance that Gardner is a First Team or Second Team all-conference quarterback by year’s end. Meanwhile, Ross is in a battle for his position with up-and-comer Royce Jenkins-Stone.

Michigan certainly has a lot of question marks going into 2014, but that’s what happens when you go 8-5 and 7-6 in consecutive years.

Position Change Fallout

Desmond Morgan (#44)

There have been a couple major position changes and a couple minor ones during the offseason. In an attempt to allay some people’s fears, here are my thoughts on how things are developing.

Ross Douglas from CB to RB. Michigan failed to nab a running back in the 2014 class, largely for a lack of trying. There were some candidates out there that the Wolverines simply chose not to pursue, and then rising senior Thomas Rawls chose to transfer to Central Michigan. Michigan needed to add some depth at running back, and Douglas was a pretty good one in high school. I do not think Douglas is in danger of turning into a feature back anytime soon, but he may provide some change-of-pace skills for Michigan’s Thunder Squared combination of Derrick Green and De’Veon Smith. Douglas played some running back on the scout team last year, and I think this switch is likely to stick, at least until Michigan has a chance to bring in more running backs in 2015 or 2016. He could also be a guy who bounces back and forth from offense to defense.

Wyatt Shallman from RB to H-back. I have long believed that Shallman would not make much of an impact on the running back position, except perhaps as a short yardage guy. I think the need for a short yardage back is relatively non-existent with Green and Smith on the team. Additionally, new offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier seems like a guy who’s going to run a lot of single back sets and a lot of spread formations, meaning the fullback will likely be phased out for the next couple years. The 6’3″, 243 lb. Shallman could help out as a blocker and pass catcher out of the backfield, and he has the size to be a second tight end on the field like an Aaron Shea.

Keith Heitzman from DE to TE. Heitzman was the starter at strongside end to begin last season, but a hand injury combined with competition from other players bumped him down in the lineup. With other guys emerging at strongside end (Brennen Beyer, Taco Charlton, Chris Wormley), Michigan has the flexibility to put Heitzman at tight end to shore up the position after Jake Butt’s ACL injury. Butt might be back by week three, but Heitzman could be a long-term solution as a blocking tight end, since junior A.J. Williams has struggled in his first two seasons. Heitzman played tight end in high school, and while he probably won’t run away from anyone or dazzle people with his moves, he should be a quality in-line blocker and has the potential to catch a pass here or there.

Jake Ryan from SAM to MIKE. Royce Jenkins-Stone from MIKE to SAM. James Ross from WILL to SAM. Desmond Morgan from MIKE to WILL. Did I catch all the moves? I think so. A couple of the younger inside linebackers are staying inside, so I won’t bother analyzing that. The new starting lineup will look a lot like the old starting lineup, except Morgan will be on the weak side, Ryan will be in the middle, and Ross will be on the strong side. Head coach Brady Hoke announced that Michigan would be running more Over looks in 2014, which means that the protected linebacker (formerly WILL James Ross) will now be middle linebacker Jake Ryan. This also likely changes Michigan’s front seven slightly, from a “hold your gap” defense to more of a penetrating unit. Against base 12 personnel previously, Michigan had six defenders from tight end to tackle (four defensive linemen, the WILL, and the MIKE). In an Over look, the defensive front will have seven defenders inside that box (four defensive linemen and all three linebackers). This should allow Ryan to roam from sideline to sideline while keeping Ross relatively clean, and Morgan will still be the guy who has to take on lead blocks from fullbacks, which he does fairly well.

Jake Ryan will be a middle linebacker and other news

This is my favorite picture of Jake Ryan.

Jake Ryan continues to amaze. Now that he’s shown himself to be a pretty good outside linebacker, Ryan’s next trick will be to show the world that he can play MIKE. Brady Hoke announced on WTKA Friday morning that Ryan will be moving to the middle, and since Ryan isn’t a guy you move to shore up depth, I think we can assume that he will be installed as the new starter there. Back in January of 2010, here’s part of what I said in his commitment post:

Regardless, I think Ryan is best suited for middle linebacker. He seems to do a good job of diagnosing plays and taking good angles toward the ballcarrier. He has a solid frame and could easily play at 240 or 245.

There are a couple other things in that article that turned out to be inaccurate (for example, he has turned out to be a sure tackler, though his high school wrist injury may have been a reason for questioning that area), but I generally agree with this move. Ryan has the body of an excellent middle linebacker, and while taking on lead blocks from a fullback might be a question mark, he has shown an ability to evade blockers on the edge.

The biggest thing this does for Michigan’s defense is putting the Wolverines’ best front seven player (and perhaps best defender overall) in the middle of the field always and forever. Spread teams or even just a spread formation would put Ryan on the edge covering a slot receiver whenever the offense wanted him out there. That took away chances for him to blitz, and it took away chances for him to help in the run game unless the offense attacked his side. Now he can be utilized as an inside rusher – which he has done well on the rare occasion he lined up there at SAM – and he can play the run from sideline to sideline.

What does the depth chart look like now? A lot of this is speculation, of course, since the coaches aren’t going to release a depth chart right now or go through all 100+ players on the roster. There are two ways to look at this, in my opinion.

1. We like our philosophy, but Jake Ryan is a playmaker and needs to be in the middle.
2. Our philosophy needs to be tweaked, so we’ll put bigger guys in the middle and hybrid types at SAM.

Number one only makes sense if there’s a viable Ryan clone on the outside, who can both set the edge and still make plays in space against spread teams. For some reason, I find #1 unlikely because that would suggest that someone is ready to do what Ryan has been doing for the past few seasons. If that person exists on Michigan’s roster, he’s been hiding on the sideline or in redshirt land.

Number two is more likely, and Webb has said this move means former weakside linebacker James Ross will be playing SAM. This means more of a change in philosophy to *gulp* the ways of Greg Robinson. Robinson, of course, turned safety Stevie Brown into a pretty good outside linebacker in 2009. Ross’s frame can’t handle much more weight, so we appear to be looking at a guy who’s going to have to set the edge with his quickness and not brute strength. Operating under the assumption that #2 is what Michigan’s coaches are thinking, here’s a mix of what I’ve heard and what I surmise:

• SAM linebacker: James Ross, Allen Gant
• MIKE linebacker: Jake Ryan, Desmond Morgan
• WILL linebacker: Joe Bolden, Ben Gedeon

Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl Preview: Linebackers

Blake Slaughter (#53) helped seal a win against TCU with an interception and 39-yard return

MICHIGAN
Starters: Sophomore weakside linebacker James Ross III (6’1″, 220 lbs.) leads the unit in tackles and is tied for the team lead despite missing the last 1.5 games with an injury; he has 81 stops, 5 tackles for loss, and 1.5 sacks. Quick and decisive, Ross makes plays by beating blockers to the point of attack, but he’s listed as “questionable” for the bowl game. Junior middle linebacker Desmond Morgan (6’1″, 227 lbs.) is a thumper despite not being particularly big, and he has 73 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, 1 sack, and 1 highlight-reel interception this season. Morgan isn’t the fastest linebacker around, but he can hold his ground in the run game. The “star” of the group is actually redshirt junior outside linebacker Jake Ryan (6’3″, 240 lbs.), who has just 26 tackles and 4 tackles for loss; he tore his ACL in the spring and returned halfway through the season, so he has flashed his old athleticism but hasn’t performed up to the standard he set in 2012.
Backups: Sophomore Joe Bolden

(6’3″, 225 lbs.) is fourth on the team with 50 tackles, along with 3 tackles for loss and 1 sack. He will likely be Ross’s replacement if the starter can’t go. Bolden has been the top sub at both inside linebacker positions all year in what was mostly a three-man rotation, thus the high tackle total. Freshman Ben Gedeon

(6’3″, 236 lbs.) took over Bolden’s substitute role with Ross out, so he might see a significant amount of playing time; he made 14 tackles and 1 sack in limited duty. The other notable player is fifth year senior Cam Gordon (6’3″, 237 lbs.), a fast and strong athlete who’s been pushed to the side by Ryan’s return despite having 38 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, and 4 sacks on the season.

KANSAS STATE
Starters: Fifth year senior Blake Slaughter (5’10”, 227 lbs.) is the team leader in tackles with 103 and was honorable mention all-conference; he also had 6 tackles for loss, 3 sacks, and 1 interception. Despite being a little stouter than fellow inside linebacker Jonathan Truman (5’11”, 219 lbs.), Slaughter’s the one who bounces outside the box against trips formations and slot receivers. Slaughter was a little used linebacker in 2009-2011 and then redshirted in 2012 in order to help the team in 2013, which was part of the reason he was voted team captain this year. Truman has 85 tackles and 4 tackles for loss to his credit. He’s a redshirt sophomore former walk-on.
Backups: Senior Tre Walker (6’3″, 225 lbs.) is the outside linebacker when Kansas State is in a 4-3 look, and he has 26 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss this season. Redshirt freshman Will Davis (6’0″, 223 lbs.) has 16 tackles this season but doesn’t see a lot of playing time.

THE TAKEAWAY
Michigan has had solid play from its linebackers for most of the year, and they generally tend to be technically sound. The Wolverines basically have five guys capable of starting (Ross, Morgan, Ryan, Bolden, and Gordon) with Gedeon as a pretty good fourth inside linebacker. The inside guys won’t blitz often, but Ryan and Gordon can threaten the quarterback off the edge. In an admittedly limited study of Kansas State, I think Slaughter, Truman, and Walker are exploitable. Kansas State runs a lot of a 4-2-5 look, meaning their opponents are running at a six-man core that includes two linebackers who are the same weight as Michigan’s linebackers but don’t play quite as stout, in my opinion. They try to run around blocks and they have trouble disengaging. They are fairly quick, which might suit them well against some of the wide-open offenses in the Big 12 (Oregon State, Oklahoma, Baylor, etc.), but they might struggle against a straight-ahead running team that has power running backs in 240 lb. Derrick Green and 224 lb. De’Veon Smith.

ADVANTAGE: Michigan