The ninth annual Polynesian Bowl will be played in Honolulu, HI, in January of 2025. Here are the Michigan participants over the years:
2024
Micah Ka’apana, RB – Las Vegas, NV
Deyvid Palepale, DT – Lancaster, PA
2023
Enow Etta, DE – Colleyville, TX
Amir Herring, C – West Bloomfield, MI
2022
Zeke Berry, S – Concord, CA
Mason Graham, DT – Anaheim, CA
Hit the jump for more.
read more
The 2022 NFL Draft has wrapped, and here are the Michigan-related results:
Defensive end Aidan Hutchinson was taken in the 1st round (#2 overall) by the Detroit Lions.
Safety Daxton Hill was taken in the 1st round (#31 overall) by the AFC champion Cincinnati Bengals.
Outside linebacker David Ojabo was picked in the 2nd round (#45 overall) by John Harbaugh and the Baltimore Ravens. Ojabo would almost certainly have been a 1st round pick if not for a torn Achilles suffered at Michigan’s pro day.
Running back Hassan Haskins was drafted in the 4th round (#131 overall) by the Tennessee Titans, where he will have a chance to run behind former Michigan offensive tackle Taylor Lewan.
Offensive tackle Andrew Stueber went to the New England Patriots in the 7th round (#245 overall), joining former Wolverine Michael Onwenu on the offensive line. Outside linebacker Joshua Uche and inside linebacker Cam McGrone are also with the Patriots.
Undrafted free agent signings include:
It’s NFL Draft time! The draft starts tomorrow night at 7:00 p.m. EST. Here is a look at the various Michigan players eligible for the draft.
Aidan Hutchinson, DE
Captain and all-time season sacks leader Aidan Hutchinson will be the first Wolverine off the board. At 6’7″ and 260 pounds, Hutchinson showed off good (not great) speed with a 4.75 forty at the Combine and also has elite quickness with a 4.15-second 20-yard shuttle. His arms are considered to be a little short (32 1/8″), but that doesn’t seem to be limiting his draft stock. In general, he’s considered to be nearly a lock to go in the top two to the Jaguars or Lions.
Projected round: 1st
Daxton Hill, S
At 6’0″ and 191 pounds, Hill is a little bit small for a traditional safety role. However, his speed (4.38 in the forty) and athleticism (10’1″ broad jump) are tantalizing and he’s a willing and able tackler in the open field. He could be a starter from day one, especially as a nickel corner. Scouts seem to like his man coverage abilities, and he could also be a major asset on special teams. Most projections seem to have in the bottom half of the first round, and he’s battling with Notre Dame’s Kyle Hamilton to be the first safety off the board.
Projected round: 1st
Hit the jump for more.
read more
There are eight Michigan players who have been invited to perform at the NFL Combine:
A few draft-eligible players were not invited, including WR Daylen Baldwin, S Brad Hawkins, and C Andrew Vastardis. I guess this is my time to reiterate how weird it is for Baldwin to have declared for the draft, since he did not factor much into the Michigan attack this past season. It’s also interesting that Hawkins was not invited despite being literally the most experienced player in Michigan history (by games played).
Michigan football news was overwhelmed this week with guys announcing they were either transferring or leaving for the NFL – oh, and the Jim Harbaugh-to-the-NFL drama – so yours truly just had no chance of keeping up with all those developments.
Posts on each one of these guys will be coming down the road to summarize their careers, but I wanted to address each one here and now.
DE Aidan Hutchinson: Hutchinson played four years at Michigan and could have returned for a fifth. He was the Heisman runner-up and set the school record for sacks with 14. He has nothing else to prove and will likely be a top-5 pick in the draft, so this was the right decision for him.
Draft projection: 1st round
OLB David Ojabo: Ojabo had 11 sacks rushing the quarterback opposite Hutchinson one year after making 1 total tackle. As a redshirt sophomore, he could have come back for a couple more seasons, but he’s striking while the iron is hot. Hutchinson and Ojabo surely helped each other out, and there would be a risk in returning for 2022, considering there’s no proven pass rusher on the opposite side. He could very well have returned and put up mediocre sack numbers, hindering his draft stock. Even though Ojabo is not a good run defender, he does have outstanding athleticism and could be a year one pass rusher for an NFL team.
Draft projection: 1st round
Hit the jump for more.
read more