Tag: Jeffrey Persi

Potential Departure Candidates: Offense

With the onslaught of transfer portal entries in college football, it’s inevitable that Michigan will face some more departures this off-season. Three players have already announced their intentions to transfer, and one (Cade McNamara to Iowa) has already found a landing spot. Tight ends Erick All and Louis Hansen are both headed for, ahem, greener pastures.

McNamara and All are both somewhat unique cases of players who played a lot but felt slighted in some way, but Hansen is a more typical case of a player buried on the depth chart who wants to see some light at the end of the tunnel. This post explores several players in similar situations who may find greener pastures elsewhere:

DISCLAIMER: This post is speculative in nature and not intended to encourage/discourage any player from leaving Michigan’s program. The reality is that college football is now a lot like unrestricted free agency from year to year.

RB TAVIERRE DUNLAP
Why he should stay: Every Michigan starting running back during his tenure has turned in a 1,000+ yard season, but they had to wait three or more years to do it. Hassan Haskins and Blake Corum have both turned in star performances after waiting their turn. Dunlap has done well when given a chance, averaging 6.1 yards per carry.
Why he might leave: Opportunities are limited when you’re the third string back or lower, and there’s no reason to expect much of a change in scenery for 2023. While Corum is likely headed to the NFL, Donovan Edwards is a bona fide star in the making and freshman C.J. Stokes already has many more carries (55) in one season than Dunlap has in two (16), and walk-on Isaiah Gash (19 carries, 101 yards, 2 touchdowns) even topped Dunlap in touches. When it came to the Big Ten championship game and Ohio State, Michigan decided to use a big back at times . . . but that back was the 6’2″, 232 lb. backup linebacker Kalel Mullings instead of Dunlap (6’0″, 217).

Hit the jump for more.

2022 Season Countdown: #43 Jeffrey Persi

Name: Jeffrey Persi
Height: 6’7″
Weight: 305 lbs.
High school: Mission Viejo (CA) Junipero Serra
Position: Offensive tackle
Class: Redshirt sophomore
Jersey number: #79
Last year: I ranked Persi #82 and said he would be a backup offensive tackle (LINK). He played in two games.
TTB Rating: 82

When Matt Dudek was Michigan’s recruiting coordinator up through 2020, Persi was the poster boy for staff evaluation. Maybe the recruiting sites didn’t love Persi – he was a low 4-star at #322 overall – but the staff did. But if it’s not plainly obvious that a guy is going to be good right this minute, that guy is probably not going to make an impact as a true freshman. But Persi also didn’t make much of an impact in 2021, playing in just a couple blowouts.

This post predicts quite a leap in 2022, as Persi goes from #82 to #43. Michigan likes to use a sixth lineman as a tight end, like they did in 2021 with Trente Jones. It’s not a coincidence that Jones is penciled as the starting right tackle now that Andrew Stueber is gone. So if Jones is Stueber in 2022, who is Jones in 2022? It probably comes down to Persi or Karsen Barnhart. Barnhart seems to be the #1 backup at a few positions – he started four games at left tackle in 2020 and two games at left guard in 2021 – and the staff will either make him the sixth lineman as the “tight end” or keep him ready at tackle/guard. Either way, I expect Persi to start to see an increased role as the seventh or eighth lineman, whether he enters in certain packages or is just in the two-deep as a backup.

Prediction: Backup offensive tackle

2021 Season Countdown: #82 Jeffrey Persi

Name: Jeffrey Persi
Height: 6’7″
Weight: 302 lbs.
High school: Mission Viejo (CA) Junipero Serra
Position: Offensive tackle
Class: Redshirt freshman
Jersey number: #79
Last year: I ranked Persi #96 and said he would redshirt (LINK). He redshirted.
TTB Rating: 82

I labeled Persi last year as a giant boom-or-bust prospect, and the jury is still out on him. There was very little buzz about him last season and during the off-season, even when Michigan suffered a bunch of offensive line injuries last fall. Persi was a tight end early in his high school career, so it makes sense that he was not ready to play in the Big Ten as a true freshman.

Persi presumably remains unready going into 2021. Michigan returns starter Ryan Hayes at left tackle. The right tackle position is a little uncertain, but Persi does not appear to be in the mix to replace Jalen Mayfield. It could be Andrew Stueber, Trente Jones, or Karsen Barnhart, but no one seems to think it will be Persi out there at right tackle on September 4 against Western Michigan.

Prediction: Backup offensive tackle

2020 Season Countdown: #96 Jeffrey Persi

Name: Jeffrey Persi
Height: 6’7″
Weight: 275 lbs.
High school: Mission Viejo (CA) JSerra Catholic
Position: Offensive tackle
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: N/A
Last year: Persi was a senior in high school (LINK).
TTB Rating: 65 82

I have to admit that Persi is the biggest boom-or-bust prospect in the 2020 class in my mind. I really don’t know what to do with him when it comes to TTB Ratings. He’s very athletic and the coaches love him, so what’s the matter? I have heard multiple coaches and Matt Dudek use Persi as an example of someone the rankings don’t love but the coaches do. So is he kind of a sleeper?

Persi is the kind of guy (long and athletic) I normally love at tackle, but he has a raw quality that makes me wonder. He was a tight end to begin high school, and he has only played tackle during his final two years. So that explains part of the disconnect. When I watch him on film, he does the right thing initially. If you were doing a drill tape against air where you want a guy to kick slide, down block, etc., Persi would be a great candidate.

But then when you watch him react to defenders, he’s a split second late. It’s almost like he’s so preoccupied with performing the correct technique that he forgets to think a step ahead. I also came away from his senior film with the same criticisms I had of his junior film: his feet get too narrow, and he comes up too high. He also does not finish blocks as well as he should, and he can get overpowered.

So as you can see, Persi is a mixed bag. He’s athletic with good bend and initial technique, but he needs to get stronger and doesn’t react well to the changing pictures in front of him. I’m going to go ahead and believe that Ed Warinner can work his magic on Persi, but I think it’s going to take some time.

Prediction: Redshirt

Hit the jump for some of his senior clips.

How does the 2020 class match up with Michigan’s all-time recruits?

Michigan wrapped up a decent recruiting class earlier in February. There are no 5-star recruits, but the Wolverines got a fair share of 4-star guys. For a historical perspective on where they match up with recruits from the past, here’s a look at where they slot in all-time, according to the 247 Composite.

A.J. Henning – WR – Frankfort (IL) Lincoln-Way East
2020 ranking: #101
Historical ranking: #80 all-time at Michigan
Flanked by: RB Kareem Walker (#100 in 2016) and DT Will Johnson (#105 in 2004)
Closest positional comparisons: Toney Clemons (#96 in 2007) and Adrian Arrington (#115 in 2004)

Braiden McGregor – DE – Port Huron (MI) Northern
2020 ranking: #122
Historical ranking: #103
Tied with: WR Tarik Black (#122 in 2017)
Closest positional comparisons: Aidan Hutchinson (#112 in 2018) and Chris Wormley (#129 in 2012)

Hit the jump for more.