Tag: Kareem Walker

Ford Field Open Practice: Offense, Injuries, Walk-ons

Wilton Speight

Happy Easter Sunday, everybody! Along with a few thousand other fans, I made my way to Ford Field on Saturday. I sat in the stands, ate a hot dog, and watched Captain Khaki run practice. I chose not to live tweet it because, well, it was nice to sit back, relax, and watch a well run practice. Below are my thoughts on some roster news and the various positions:

ROSTER NEWS

• WR/CB Freddy Canteen is not on the roster and his status is unclear.
• WR Jehu Chesson was doing work on the sideline and on the bike, wearing a brace on his knee.
• RB Kingston Davis was in shorts without a helmet and running steps. Lots and lots of steps.
• OG David Dawson was wearing a sling on his left arm and did not participate.
• CB Reon Dawson and WR Jaron Dukes have left the football program and are exploring medical scholarships.
• DT Ryan Glasgow was in shorts and a helmet going through some non-contact drills, but then ran steps with Davis for a big chunk of practice.
• RB Karan Higdon was in street clothes. No injury was apparent.
• DE Shelton Johnson was not visible to me. I looked for him extensively and never saw him. Sam Webb tweeted that he was on the sideline in street clothes.

Hit the jump for a position-by-position breakdown of the offense.

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Spring Football Preview: Running Backs and Fullbacks

De’Veon Smith

Projected RB starter: Senior De’Veon Smith. Smith is not the most dynamic back, but he does possess the toughness Jim Harbaugh wants in a running back. Last season he led the team in rushing yards (753) and touchdowns (6), despite having the lowest yards per carry on the team (4.18). However, he did end the season on a strong note with 25 carries for 109 yards against a pretty good Florida defense.

Departures: Rising senior Derrick Green decided to transfer, although his destination is not yet known. Florida is one possibility, where former Michigan offensive coordinator holds the same position. Green was the team’s sixth-leading rusher last season. Redshirt junior Ross Taylor-Douglas managed just 1.8 yards/carry last year and announced that he would be transferring to Rutgers.

Hit the jump for more.

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2016 Recruiting Grade: Running Back

Kareem Walker (image via Maxpreps)

Previously: Quarterbacks

RUNNING BACKS (3):
Kingston Davis – Prattville (AL) Prattville: 3-star, #1 FB, #739 overall
Chris Evans – Indianapolis (IN) Ben Davis: 4-star, #9 APB, #332 overall
Kareem Walker – Wayne (NJ) DePaul Catholic: 4-star, #4 RB, #100 overall

Hit the jump for the rundown on Michigan’s 2016 recruiting efforts at the running back position.

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Rivals 250 for 2016 finalized

Dylan Crawford is the #129 player in the country

Rivals released its final top 100 on Monday (LINK). Here’s the final 250 (LINK). Here’s what it looked like back in December (LINK).

Movement for Michigan commits:

• Dylan Crawford fell from #115 to #129
• Ahmir Mitchell fell from #111 to #139
• Michael Onwenu jumped from #157 to #147
• Brandon Peters fell from #140 to #158
• Kareem Walker fell from #41 to #181
• Devin Bush, Jr. moved up from #184 to #182
• Carlo Kemp remained at #215
• Erik Swenson fell from #223 to #227 (UPDATE: Shortly after I posted this, Swenson confirmed the rumors that had been swirling and officially decommitted from Michigan. I’ll leave him here, though.)
• Brad Hawkins, Jr. fell from #231 to #235

Below the jump are the rest of Michigan’s targets.

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Rivals 100 for 2016 finalized

Ben Bredeson (#74) is Michigan’s top-ranked recruit for 2016

Rivals released its final list of top 100 prospects for the 2016 cycle (LINK). Here’s what it looked like back in December (LINK). Michigan has just one prospect on the list at this point.

• Ben Bredeson moved up from #65 to #60
• Kareem Walker fell from #41 to off the list

Hit the jump for the rest of the top 100.

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