Defensive Tackle U. Michigan is putting together a nice crew of defensive tackles, and the least heralded one is the guy making plays most consistently, it seems. Sophomore Mason Graham made 5 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, and 0.5 sacks against UNLV, eating up the interior offensive line repeatedly. The Rebels ended the game with 61 rushing yards on 31 attempts, which includes sacks, but still . . . the middle was stuffed up all day. Kris Jenkins made 5 tackles and 0.5 sacks and Kenneth Grant made 4 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, and 1 pass breakup. The title of this section is a little facetious, but the defensive tackle play has been terrific.
Let’s see more of this guy on offense . . . Trente Jones. I really like the way Trente Jones plays football. On Saturday he was used mostly as an extra lineman or a tight end, reprising his primary role from 2021. But he just bullies people in the run game and does a great job with his body positioning. I think his pass protection might be a little questionable at tackle, but I think he deserves to be on the field more.
Let’s see less of this guy on offense . . . Myles Hinton. Hinton earned the start in game one even though Jim Harbaugh suggested that he would start a different set of tackles in week two, presumably La’Darius Henderson at left tackle and Jones on the right side. Hinton is a mammoth at 6’6″ and 340 lbs., but he appeared to make several mental mistakes on Saturday, especially in the run game. He said in the post-game that he did not play well. I do still think he can be a good player, but perhaps he needs a little more time to adjust to Michigan’s scheme.
Football is back! All is right in the world when it’s football season. In another few days, the NFL season will be back and we can all enjoy Heaven for a few months. It has been a long off-season for me on an individual level, and this is also a chance to break away from the 2023 Season Countdown and get back into a groove with writing about various topics.
This was a boring matchup. I like seeing different opponents, but with East Carolina, there were no storylines. It’s not a geographical matchup. When I looked through the roster and coaching staff, there was no crossover. East Carolina doesn’t recruit in the state of Michigan. No transfers or ex-staffers from Michigan. There was no angle. The most interesting aspect going into the opener, aside from seeing who starts for Michigan, was . . .
. . . Peacock. The Peacock stream sucked. I signed up for Peacock on Friday because there’s really no other reason to do so earlier. And I don’t really care about the expense. I’ll pay $5.99 to watch a Michigan game. But when I’m paying for it, I expect a good product. When I paid for cable, I expected ESPN and FS1 and BTN to give me a good product. Otherwise, I’ll just turn off the volume and think through it myself. I don’t need Mike Tirico and one of the Simms brothers to tell me what’s happening on the game. Peacock actually complied – presumably on accident – when there was just no audio for several minutes. The fourth quarter feed got blurry, too, but maybe that had something to do with my local internet. But Peacock also cut out a play, there was no pregame show, the halftime show was boring, and oh yeah . . . the Simms kid isn’t exactly top-notch. If I wanted crappy analysis, I would watch some of the ex-Buckeye talking heads like Josh Perry and Joey Galloway.
Name: Myles Hinton Height: 6’6″ Weight: 340 lbs. High school: Norcross (GA) Greater Atlanta Christian Position: Offensive tackle Class: Senior Jersey number: #78 Last year: Hinton started seven games at right tackle for Stanford. TTB Rating: N/A
Hinton was in the class of 2020 and ranked as a 4-star, the #6 offensive tackle, and #74 overall in that class. He’s the son of former Northwestern and NFL offensive tackle Chris Hinton and the brother of former Michigan defensive tackle Chris Hinton, Jr. Myles spent the past couple seasons starting most of the games for Stanford, with 16 starts and some injury issues in that span. Pro Football Focus gave him some pretty terrible grades, but he played for a pretty terrible Stanford team, so maybe that had something to do with it. On film Hinton has a lot of potential, but that doesn’t mean he always executed his assignments.
I don’t expect Hinton, who will be eligible through 2024, to be a starter in 2023. He’s a pure tackle, and Michigan has three starter-quality players at tackle already with Arizona State transfer La’Darius Henderson and returnees Trente Jones and Karsen Barnhart. All three of those guys could be gone after this season, and Hinton could very well be in line to start next year. But for now, I think Hinton is probably one of the best backup tackles in the Big Ten, at least. And I know I’m getting ahead of myself, but I would not be surprised if he’s an All-Big Ten player in 2024.
REASON FOR THE GRADE: Despite losing just two players to the NFL, the starting offensive line appeared to be in pretty good shape going into 2023. Of course, having a good offensive line is typically predicated on experience, so we have to look at what players are behind them and how ready they will be in 2024 and beyond. Michigan’s numbers were solid enough that they didn’t have to snag too many linemen in the class of 2023 to maintain a healthy overall number at the position (~15), but they hit it out of the park in the transfer portal, if not the high school ranks.
Starting with the transfer portal guys, Michigan landed Arizona State offensive guard/tackle LaDarius Henderson, Stanford center Drake Nugent, and Stanford right tackle Myles Hinton. All three are starters, and in particular, Henderson was a captain and Nugent was a Rimington Award finalist. While offensive guards Trevor Keegan and Zak Zinter return, Henderson could end up playing left or right tackle, depending on who steps up at those positions. Nugent should slot in as the starting center, and Hinton will probably be in a battle to start at one of the tackle spots, as injuries and inconsistency have hampered him a little bit so far. However, Hinton was a top-100 prospect and has great potential if he can put everything together.
Link improved as a senior to the point where I think he can be a solid player at the next level, especially in the run game; he has limited pass pro reps on his senior highlights, but there’s potential if he can stay consistent with his technique. Efobi still plays too high for my liking, and he doesn’t really win enough blocks even on his highlights. Meanwhile, interior lineman Herring could play guard or center – some think center is his best spot because of a lack of height – and is the type of kid who should be a good locker room presence while he waits for his opportunity for a few years, and he could step in as an upperclassman and start for a couple years.
Overall, Michigan did a good job of not only plugging a hole at center, but creating immediate competition at the tackle positions. Link, Herring, and Efobi are all guys with potential down the road, though I don’t think any of them are headed for stardom in college. If the Wolverines can maintain their solid offensive line play and use the transfer portal to their advantage on a yearly basis, this could be a recipe for great annual success even if the high school recruiting is so-so.
