Tag: Max Bredeson

2025 Season Countdown: #12 Max Bredeson

Name: Max Bredeson
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 250 lbs.
High school: Hartland (WI) Arrowhead
Position: Tight end/Fullback
Class: Fifth year senior
Jersey number: #44
Last year: I ranked Bredeson #17 and said he would be a part-time starting tight end/fullback (LINK). He started six games and caught 3 passes for 24 yards.
TTB Rating: N/A

If you’re an off-ball linebacker on Michigan’s schedule, there’s probably nobody else in the league you would less want to meet face-to-face than Max Bredeson. He’s somewhat of a rarity in modern college football: a fullback.

In modern football coaches use RPOs and RROs to control defenders and make space, but in ye olden days, they used fullbacks to create extra gaps. The advantage of lining up in the I-formation has largely been twofold:

1. You create a good angle for a kickout block.
2. Wherever the fullback goes, you create an extra gap that requires an additional defender to overlap and/or beat their block to stop the ball carrier.

Of course there are other things coaches can do with fullbacks (hand off to them, fake handoffs to them, use them as pass catchers out of the backfield, etc.), but those are historically the main two.

Bredeson was exploring his post-Michigan options this off-season before deciding to come back for year five in a winged helmet, but he ultimately decided to come back and ply his trade for another season. He was a captain in 2024 and will be again in 2025. His expertise can largely get overlooked when Michigan running backs are doing their thing, but if you want to see some slobberknockers against opposing linebackers, safeties, and defensive ends, keep an eye on Bredeson.

This season the Wolverines appear to have a different version of fullback developing behind Bredeson, and that’s former walk-on Jalen Hoffman. Hoffman is less physical and more of a pass catcher, as evidenced by his 88-yard touchdown in the spring game. That gives the Wolverines a variety of skills they can throw out there in different packages, and tight ends coach Steve Casula has talked about having several guys that can go out there and play tight end right now – Bredeson, Hoffman, Marlin Klein, Zack Marshall, and Hogan Hansen.

Prediction: Part-time starting fullback/tight end

2025 Spring Football Preview: Tight End

RETURNING PLAYERS: Max Bredeson (RS Sr.), Marlin Klein (RS Jr.), Jalen Hoffman (RS So.), Zack Marshall (RS So.), Deakon Tonielli (RS So.), Hogan Hansen (So.), Brady Prieskorn (RS Fr.)
NEWCOMERS: Eli Owens (Fr.)
DEPARTURES: Colston Loveland (NFL draft)

OUTLOOK: Michigan had one of the best tight ends in college football in 2024 in the form of Colston Loveland, who should be a first round draft pick in April. Loveland was by far Michigan’s leading receiver (56 catches, 582 yards, 5 touchdowns) despite playing in a subpar passing game, and his numbers were significantly hurt by the fact that the quarterbacks couldn’t get him the ball when he was open downfield.

Marlin Klein caught the fifth most passes on the team in 2024 and filled in for Loveland. Klein isn’t nearly the fluid athlete that Loveland was and doesn’t have as natural of receiving abilities, but he’s a 6’6″, 247 lb. player with good straight-line speed and decent blocking ability. He caught 13 passes for 108 yards and 0 touchdowns a season ago.

The other huge returning contributor is 6’2″, 240 lb. Max Bredeson, who plays a fullback/H-back role. Bredeson caught just 3 passes for 24 yards, but he’s a devastating blocker who sets the physical tone on offense. New offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey may have to adjust some of his schemes to incorporate a heavy dose of Bredeson. I think Lindsey is pretty flexible as a coach, but he seems less inclined to use multiple tight ends as frequently as Jim Harbaugh-type offenses did.

Rising sophomore Hogan Hansen came out of nowhere to catch 7 passes for 78 yards and 1 touchdown in 2024 while playing in ten games. It’s not clear exactly what type of role he’ll play since his body (6’5″, 236) and skills haven’t really developed yet, but what is clear is that the coaching staff likes him and he will probably see a heavier role in 2025.

Walk-on Hoffman is Bredeson’s backup, and both Marshall and Tonielli are going into their third years without playing much. Prieskorn was hurt toward the end of the season, and my guess is he will not participate fully in spring ball. The lone freshman in the class is Eli Owens, who was listed at 6’1″ and 243 lbs. coming out of high school before enrolling early. He has mentioned how much he wants to fill the role of Bredeson down the road, so he may end up battling Hoffman for playing time this spring after enrolling early.

Overall, Michigan has a solid group of tight ends, but no real stars in the receiving game. Bredeson may prove to be the best of the bunch because of his blocking ability, but there’s still some intriguing potential with Klein’s athleticism, Hansen’s early flashes, etc. One to watch may be Tonielli, who got some buzz last spring but never got an opportunity on Saturdays. It should be a good overall unit, but the crew overall is a bit of an unknown.

2024 Season Countdown: #17 Max Bredeson

Name: Max Bredeson
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 240 lbs.
High school: Hartland (WI) Arrowhead
Position: Tight end/Fullback
Class: Redshirt junior
Jersey number: #44
Last year: I ranked Bredeson #46 and said he would be a backup tight end (LINK). He caught 2 passes for 19 yards.
TTB Rating: N/A

Bredeson was a backup fullback to converted lineman Joel Honigford in 2022, but he still managed to get 233 snaps that year. Last year he started three games but had 238 snaps in fifteen contests, which is a surprisingly small uptick in playing time considering Honigford was out of the picture in 2023. Bredeson ranked as the second-best run blocker on the team with a 78.0 grade, according to Pro Football Focus; the only person ahead of him was tight end A.J. Barner at 81.4. Bredeson’s improvement from 2022 to 2023 is symbolized by going from a 63.4 as a run blocker (#17 on the team) to that 78.0 grade.

Bredeson might end up being Michigan’s highest graded run blocker in 2024 now that Barner is gone, but I have a hard time ranking a fullback higher than #17. Even though Bredeson is now a captain, he’s still not going to be on the field for a majority of snaps. Backup Jalen Hoffman is an unproven commodity, but Michigan can massage its personnel if Bredeson gets hurt to include other tight ends. In other words, the absence of a starting fullback shouldn’t tank Michigan’s offense altogether; they’ll just need to make some adjustments. But when he’s in there, Bredeson can be expected to destroy some defensive ends, linebackers, and an occasional safety, like he did to former Alabama (and current Ohio State) star Caleb Downs.

This is completely random, but here's Max Bredeson absolutely dominating Caleb Downs pic.twitter.com/gvdPEXnP69

— Blue By 90 (@bluebyninety) January 20, 2024

Prediction: Part-time starting fullback/tight end

2024 Spring Football Preview: Tight End

2023 Starters: Colston Loveland, A.J. Barner
Losses: Barner (NFL), Matt Hibner (transfer)
Returning players: Max Bredeson (RS Jr.), Loveland (Jr.), Marlin Klein (RS So.), Zack Marshall (RS Fr.), Deakon Tonielli (RS Fr.)
Newcomer: Brady Prieskorn (Fr.)
Projected starters: Klein, Loveland

The tight end position is the one that has perhaps separated Michigan from so many other teams over the past several years. Not only has Michigan had some quality players in the role, but the number, usage, and motion of the tight ends have become staples of Michigan’s offensive approach.

Probably the best tight end to come along during Jim Harbaugh’s tenure was Colston Loveland (45 catches, 649 yards, 4 touchdowns), a rising junior who has the athleticism of some of the elite tight ends playing in the NFL. He’s good enough that this is probably his last season in Ann Arbor before getting drafted in 2025.

One-time Indiana transfer A.J. Barner (22 catches, 249 yards, 1 touchdown) was an excellent blocker and underrated pass catcher, but he’s headed to the NFL in next month’s draft. It appears the next guy in line to play a bunch of snaps in Barner’s place is Marlin Klein, a 6’6″, 250-pounder who had just 1 catch for 8 yards last fall. He needed to put on some weight early in his career, but he seems to finally be reaching a good playing weight to handle some of the blocking duties.

It’s also important to mention quasi-starting tight end Max Bredeson, who plays more of a fullback position but nonetheless started four games last season. He caught 2 passes for 19 yards altogether, but he’s a bruising blocker. At 6’2″ and 240 lbs., he’s unlikely to move into a true tight end role and will probably carry on as a fullback.

Redshirt freshman Zack Marshall (6’4″, 232) played in two games last year while redshirting, and classmate Deakon Tonielli (6’5″, 251) has some decent size already but did not get any experience. The most likely returning player to step into Klein’s role as the #3 tight end seems to be Marshall, who should be a little bigger this spring (and fall).

One of the most intriguing names, though, is freshman early enrollee Brady Prieskorn (6’6″, 220), who was a 4-star and the #129 overall player in the class of 2024. He’s an all-around tight end somewhat in the mold of Loveland in that he’s a good athlete who’s not afraid of contact. His physical development is going to be key in determining how ready he is to step on the field this fall. But if he’s even borderline ready from a physical standpoint, we could see him begin to emerge this spring as someone who could jump over Marshall and Tonielli to become that #3 tight end.

2022 Season Countdown: #86 Max Bredeson

Name: Max Bredeson
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 222 lbs.
High school: Hartland (WI) Arrowhead
Position: Tight end
Class: Redshirt freshman
Jersey number: #82
Last year: I ranked Bredeson #127 and said he would redshirt (LINK). He played in one game.
TTB Rating: N/A

Bredeson is the younger brother of former Michigan offensive guard Ben Bredeson, who was a 4th round draft pick of the Ravens and is now with the Giants. Max came to Michigan as a preferred walk-on, and to get on the field as a true freshman walk-on – even though it was in a blowout against Northern Illinois – is a pretty cool feat.

Max caught a couple passes in the spring game, and he looks like a decent athlete. The tough part for him is that Michigan has a bunch of quality tight ends, including three seniors (Erick All, Joel Honigford, Luke Schoonmaker) who are going to get a ton of reps. Perhaps the roster will shake out over the next couple years where Bredeson might get more of an opportunity, for right now, he will probably have to just accept the leftover snaps in blowouts.

Prediction: Backup tight end