Scouting Guide: Offensive Tackle

Tag: Mason Cole


3Mar 2017
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Scouting Guide: Offensive Tackle

Jake Long (image via The Michigan Daily)

There’s been a lot of talk in the last year or so about the offensive tackle position, largely because Michigan has seemingly struggled to recruit elite tackles. Devery Hamilton flipped to Stanford, Isaiah Wilson brushed aside Michigan for greener pastures in Georgia, and Kai-Leon Herbert stayed home in Florida. That’s not to say the Wolverines have whiffed entirely on tackle prospects – Grant Newsome, Ben Bredeson, Chuck Filiaga, Joel Honigford, Andrew Stueber, and others all would disagree – but those surefire left tackle prospects have been fleeting.

There are certain things I look for when evaluating offensive tackle prospects – not only their skill level, but whether they will have to move to an interior position. The three main categories I look for are below:

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28Dec 2016
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Orange Bowl Preview: Michigan Offensive Line vs. Florida State Defensive Line

DeMarcus Walker (image via Jacksonville )

MICHIGAN

Starters:

  • LT: Fifth year senior Ben Braden (6’6″, 335 lbs.)
  • LG: Freshman Ben Bredeson (6’5″, 310 lbs.)
  • C: Junior Mason Cole (6’5″, 305 lbs.)
  • RG: Fifth year senior Kyle Kalis (6’5″, 305 lbs.)
  • RT: Fifth year senior Erik Magnuson (6’6″, 305 lbs.)

After suffering a mid-season injury at left tackle, the offensive line was in flux for a while after trying a few different combinations. The players above played the several games together, and they did . . . okay. Michigan is #49 in Adjusted Line Yards and #41 in Power Success Rate, but #114 in Passing Down Line Yards and #80 in Opportunity Rate. They fare better in the passing game (#27 in Adjusted Sack Rate, #26 in sacks allowed), but it’s just a mediocre line altogether. Magnuson was named the team’s lineman of the year by the coaching staff, and Kalis earned some post-season accolades, but that might be more of a lifetime achievement award. Most of the time, the linemen block the right people and stay engaged, but they don’t get a lot of push in the running game and lack some athleticism at the tackle spots.

Key backups: The Wolverines have found a couple solid blocking tight ends in Tyrone Wheatley, Jr. and Devin Asiasi, so the need isn’t there quite as often to play six or seven offensive linemen at a time. However, redshirt junior center/guard Patrick Kugler (6’5″, 303 lbs.) and redshirt sophomore tackle Juwann Bushell-Beatty (6’6″, 311 lbs.) are the primary backups, and Bushell-Beatty has donned an eligible number at times to play a jumbo tight end position.

Hit the jump for a look at Florida State’s defensive line.

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1Sep 2016
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2016 Season Countdown: #3 Mason Cole

10/11/14 The University of Michigan football team defeats Penn State, 18-15, at Michigan Stadium.

Mason Cole

Name: Mason Cole
Height: 6’5″
Weight: 305 lbs.
High school: Tarpon Springs (FL) East Lake
Position: Center
Class: Junior
Jersey number: #52
Last year: I ranked Cole #8 and said he would be the starting left tackle (LINK). He started all thirteen games at left tackle.

Cole has been eligible to play in 25 Michigan games over his two seasons, and he started every one at left tackle. He was a lightweight as a freshman in 2014, but he held his own. He was a little heavier in 2015, and he was good enough to be Honorable Mention All-Big Ten. His best quality was his ability to block on the edge and in space, but he was occasionally overpowered by bigger, stronger guys since Cole was only about 287 lbs. Still he was a solid player, and the offensive coaching staff favored the left side in crunch time. Combined with mammoth left guard Ben Braden and center Graham Glasgow, the left side got the job done pretty well.

With Glasgow graduated and playing for the Detroit Lions, Michigan needed a new center and moved Cole there in the off-season. They gave him a taste of center in the spring of 2015 in anticipation of Glasgow’s departure, so this isn’t brand new. There were some issues with shotgun snaps in the spring game, and it’s always a concern when a player moves to center because they have to get acclimated to calling protections, snapping under pressure, etc. Cole is arguably Michigan’s best blocker, and he’s the most suited to center because of his quickness. He was always unlikely to stick at left tackle because he lacks prototypical bulk and length, so center and guard seem more fitting. His primary backup is redshirt junior Patrick Kugler, who has looked overmatched in limited time. If Cole were to get hurt, it would create a void in the middle that would be difficult to overcome. Cole has a chance to be an all-conference player and set himself up as an NFL draft pick for 2018.

Prediction: Starting center; Second Team All-Big Ten

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1Apr 2016
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5 Offensive Players to Watch in Michigan’s Spring Game

Ty Isaac 805x

Ty Isaac

Yesterday I posted about what to look for from Michigan’s defensive players (LINK), and now here’s a look at the offense. The spring game is at 6:00 p.m. tonight at Michigan Stadium. Admission is free. If you’re watching on TV, it will be broadcast live on BTN from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. and on BTN2Go after that. Then it will be re-aired in its entirety at 9:30 p.m. on the Big Ten Network.

QB Wilton Speight

We saw Speight play a little bit last year. If we’re being honest, it was mostly bad. If not for one crunch-time, game-winning drive and a touchdown pass to beat Minnesota, it would have been downright ugly. The 6’6″, 239 lb. Speight went 9/25 (36%) for 73 yards, 1 TD, and 1 INT. However, the coaching staff has stated that the quarterback job is open, and Speight has reportedly inched past John O’Korn. Last Saturday at the Ford Field open practice, Speight was the first guy getting reps. He appears to be more of a game manager, but it would be nice to have a quarterback who can push the ball down the field a little bit.

Hit the jump for four more offensive players to watch.

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26Feb 2016
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Spring Football Preview: Offensive Line

Mason Cole 934x

Mason Cole

Projected starters: LT Grant Newsome (So.), LG Ben Braden (RS Sr.), C Mason Cole (Jr.), RG Kyle Kalis (RS Sr.), RT Erik Magnuson (RS Sr.). Newsome was the sixth lineman by the end of the season. Jim Harbaugh said recently that Cole would start getting snaps at center as soon as spring practices starts, those two developments seem to be related. Braden, Kalis, and Magnuson all started at those respective positions for the entirety of 2015.

Hit the jump for the rest of the offensive line preview.

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