Tag: Karmello English

Karmello English, Ex-Wolverine

Rising sophomore wide receiver Karmello English is no longer a part of Michigan’s football program and is headed to the transfer portal. English played in six games last season. He caught 1 pass for a 4-yard touchdown and returned 1 punt for 8 yards.

English was a 4-star, the #26 wide receiver, and #189 overall in the class of 2023. I gave him a TTB Rating of 82 (LINK).

English was the highest rated of Michigan’s three wide receivers in 2023 (four if you include QB-turned-WR Kendrick Bell), but he was very clearly the lowest on the depth chart (except for Bell). Fellow freshman Semaj Morgan became a key component of the offense down the stretch, and classmate Frederick Moore played quite a bit as well. Meanwhile, English played in just six games, none of them after October. Perhaps the depth chart was an issue, and perhaps English just wants to play closer to home.

Michigan lost two receivers to the NFL this off-season (Roman Wilson and Cornelius Johnson) and isn’t bringing in any game-ready prospects in 2024, so I assume the Wolverines will be in the market for a receiver or two via the transfer portal. Channing Goodwin and I’Marion Stewart are both solid prospects, but neither one is expected to be an immediate star. While Tyler Morris and Morgan have both shown promise, the receiving corps is made up of mostly small wideouts who are short and intermediate targets, but the downfield speed and size are somewhat lacking with this roster.

English is the second member of the 2023 class to depart, following cornerback Cam Calhoun, who transferred to Utah.

2024 Spring Football Preview: Wide Receiver

2023 Starters: Cornelius Johnson, Roman Wilson
Losses: Darrius Clemons (Oregon State), Johnson (NFL), Wilson (NFL)
Returning players: Eamonn Dennis (RS Sr.), Peyton O’Leary (RS Jr.), Tyler Morris (RS So.), Karmello English (So.), Frederick Moore (So.), Semaj Morgan (So.), Kendrick Bell (RS Fr.)
Newcomer: Channing Goodwin (Fr.)
Projected starters: Morris, Morgan

For some teams who play three and four wide receivers on every down, losing two senior wide receivers might not seem like a huge deal. So in the context of college football, the departures of Cornelius Johnson (47 catches, 604 yards, 1 touchdown) and Roman Wilson (48, 789, 12) might not seem like a huge deal. Johnson was the large-ish possession receiver, and Wilson was the speedy deep and intermediate threat. And then there were usually a couple tight ends roaming all over the place. Altogether, Michigan got just 47 other receptions from receivers not named Johnson or Wilson, and 3 of those came from Clemons, who is now plying his trade for the Beavers.

Based on playing time and targets last season, the two front-runners for starting roles in 2024 should be Morris and Morgan. Morris started four games – so he’s kind of a returning starter, I guess – and made 13 catches for 197 yards and 1 touchdown. But that one touchdown was a huge, key play when he got matched up against a linebacker against Alabama in the Rose Bowl and caught a crossing route for a 38-yard touchdown. Meanwhile, Morgan caught 22 passes for 204 yards and 2 touchdowns, and he also had an 87-yard punt return against Iowa in the Big Ten Championship game. He showed some downfield receiving chops in high school, but so far he’s been more of a catch-and-run guy with jitterbug moves – witness his screen catch for a TD against Washington – and adding in 4 carries for 67 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Last year’s spring game star was walk-on Peyton O’Leary (2 catches, 13 yards, 1 touchdown), who could factor in more this season if Michigan needs a big possession guy at 6’4″ and 190 lbs. Frederick Moore (4 catches, 32 yards) and Karmello English (1 catch, 6 yards, 1 touchdown) will also factor in somehow. Some people think Moore could be the fastest player on the team.

Players with less of a chance to make an impact include fifth year senior Eamonn Dennis (who has yet to make a catch in his career but plays a lot of special teams), Kendrick Bell (who was a high school quarterback until making the position switch last year), and early enrollee freshman Channing Goodwin. Bell’s brother Ronnie is now a wide receiver in the NFL with the 49ers, and Goodwin has some good bloodlines, as his father was a lineman for Michigan and in the NFL. But it’s unlikely that any of them play a huge role in 2024.

Michigan 52, Indiana 7

Run the damn ball. Coming into the game, Indiana was ranked #91 in rushing defense. And it was raining. So naturally, Michigan decided to come out throwing, with four pass plays and two rushes in the first six plays. Two of those pass plays resulted in sacks, and one was a drop by Colston Loveland. Meanwhile, the two carries by Corum averaged 4.5 yards per rush. Michigan wasn’t necessarily going to obliterate Indiana on the ground with huge runs, but they could have just taken over the game physically instead of trying to throw in those conditions.

Hit the jump for more.

2023 Season Countdown: #88 Karmello English

Name: Karmello English
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 185 lbs.
High school: Phenix City (AL) Central
Position: Wide receiver
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: N/A
Last year: English was a senior in high school (LINK). He caught 75 passes for 850 yards and 11 touchdowns, adding 2 rushing touchdowns.
TTB Rating: 82

English was a nice cherry on top for a 2023 class that was generally lacking pizzazz. It was a decent class, if underperforming based on Michigan’s on-field success the past two years. But the lack of playmakers outside of local 4-star running back Cole Cabana was a bit concerning. In stepped English, who was ranked as a 4-star, the #26 wide receiver, and #181 overall. (Fun fact: English’s high school coach was Patrick Nix, the former Auburn quarterback and the father of Auburn/Oregon quarterback Bo Nix.)

English is the highest ranked receiver in Michigan’s class, and he might end up being the best one. But both Semaj Morgan and Fredrick Moore enrolled back in January and had spring practice to start to build a rapport with Michigan’s quarterbacks. English is a summer enrollee who will be playing a little from behind. I think the team will have to use one or two freshman receivers on the field this season because of a little bit of a lack of depth, and English might be the odd man out for now.

Prediction: Redshirt

Under Armour All-American Game Participants: Michigan

Karmello English

The 2024 Under Armour All-American Game will be played in January of 2024.  The following participants have committed to or signed a Letter of Intent to play for Michigan:

2023
Karmello English, WR – Phenix City, AL
Amir Herring, C – West Bloomfield, MI

2022
Will Johnson, CB – Grosse Pointe, MI
Derrick Moore, DE – Baltimore, MD
Keon Sabb, S – Bradenton, FL
Amorion Walker, WR – Ponchatoula, LA

2021
Giovanni El-Hadi, OT – Sterling Heights, MI
Jaydon Hood, LB – Ft. Lauderdale, FL

2020
Blake Corum, RB – Baltimore, MD
Micah Mazzccua, OT – Baltimore, MD
Braiden McGregor, DE – Port Huron, MI#
Andre Seldon, Jr., CB – Belleville, MI

2019
Zach Charbonnet, RB – Thousand Oaks, CA
Quinten Johnson, S – Washington, DC
Trente Jones, OT – Loganville, GA
Nolan Rumler, OG – Akron, OH
Mazi Smith, DT – East Kentwood, MI
Anthony Solomon, LB – Fort Lauderdale, FL

2018
Mustapha Muhammad, TE – Missouri City, TX
Myles Sims, CB – Atlanta, GA

2017
Jaylen Kelly-Powell, S – Detroit, MI
Kwity Paye, DE – Warwick, RI
Cesar Ruiz, C – Bradenton, FL
Luiji Vilain, DE – Alexandria, VA

Hit the jump for more.

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