Tag: Polls

Poll Results: Who will be Michigan’s starting nose tackle against Alabama?

William Campbell (#73) is the frontrunner for the nose tackle position in 2012

William Campbell: 73%
Believe it or not, Campbell is now a senior.  The former 5-star recruit has spent the last three seasons as a backup defensive tackle and offensive guard.  He should have redshirted in 2009 and, in an ideal world, would have two seasons of eligibility left.  Unfortunately, this will be his last hurrah.  Campbell is 6’5″ and around 320 lbs., and when he fires off low, not many offensive linemen stand a chance; however, that’s about a 50/50 proposition.  Last season he made 14 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, and 1 fumble recovery as Mike Martin’s primary backup.  He’ll probably get the first crack at taking Martin’s starting spot

Ondre Pipkins: 17%
Pipkins is a 6’3″, 330 lb. incoming freshman who won’t hit campus until June.  It’s notoriously difficult for true freshmen to play on either side of the line, so he would normally be a huge long shot . . . but the lack of productive depth at the position suggests Pipkins will be in the running for playing time.

Quinton Washington: 5%
The 6’4″, 302 lb. made a bit of a sacrifice a couple seasons ago when he switched positions from offensive guard to defensive tackle.  When I watch him play defense, I see an offensive guard playing defense.  He’s a very strong, stout player, but he’s not athletic enough to be a real playmaker.  I think he lacks the qualities that the coaches are looking for in a starter, but he’s a decent sub and goal line player.

Richard Ash: 2%
Ash will be a redshirt sophomore this fall and has yet to see significant playing time in college.  He did play in three games in 2011, but did not accrue any statistics.  As the voting indicates, I think Ash is the biggest long shot to start at the position.

Other: 0% (3 votes)
I’m not sure who was earning votes here.

Poll Results: Who will be Michigan’s starting left guard?

Redshirt freshman Chris Bryant might be the front-runner for the LG job

Last week I asked the question, “Who will be Michigan’s starting left guard against Alabama?”

This poll is a little obsolete now that it has been announced Rocko Khoury will not return.  Barnum, the leading vote receiver in this poll, is now the front-runner for the center position.  So guess what?  There’s a new poll about the position on the left sidebar.  But here’s how much things can change with the loss of one player:

Ricky Barnum: 29%
The fifth year senior is a 6’3″, 292 lb. guard/center has been about as injury prone as a football player can be throughout his career.  He has appeared in only nine career games and started three (at left guard) in 2011.  The coaches have praised his ability to get out and run, which seems to indicate that he should stay at guard, since centers don’t run very much.  However, insider indications suggest that the coaches want him to win the starting job at center and will give him the first shot to do so. [EDIT: The previous sentence is clearly obsolete now.]

Chris Bryant: 18% (tie)
Bryant is just a redshirt freshman going into 2012, but coaches are reportedly enamored with his abilities, especially as a run blocker.  He appears to be the reason the coaches want Barnum to win the center job, so they can plug Bryant in at left guard.  He was listed at 6’4″ and 341 lbs. as a true freshman, but I would expect him to be a little lighter entering the upcoming season.

Kyle Kalis: 18% (tie)
Going even younger, Kalis is an incoming freshman.  He stands 6’5″ and 305 lbs., which gives him adequate size (Barnum and right guard Patrick Omameh were both less than 300 lbs.).  Kalis is the highest rated offensive line recruit in the freshman class and the odds-on favorite as the most likely of the freshmen to play in the upcoming season.  Due to a lack of linemen in recent classes, at least one true freshman is almost guaranteed to be on the two-deep, unless a walk-on emerges.

Patrick Omameh: 18% (1 fewer vote than the two above players)
Omameh, a redshirt senior, has started for all or parts of the last three seasons at right guard.  It strikes me as surprising that people think he will move to the left guard position, but I guess anything is possible.  Omameh is a 6’4″, 299-pounder who struggled early last season, but seemed to improve late.

Michael Schofield: 13%
Schofield is listed as an offensive tackle, but he started nine games in 2011 as a replacement for the injured Barnum.  With few true threats to replace the departed Mark Huyge at right tackle, it seems unlikely that Schofield will stick at left guard unless there’s a major rejiggering along the offensive line like, say, Omameh to right tackle.  While Kalis and incoming freshman Ben Braden are both expected to begin their careers at right tackle, they seem like long shots to start from Day 1.  At 6’7″ and a listed 299 lbs. (although I have heard Schofield is a bit heavier now), he seems a little tall to remain at guard.

Other: 0% (2 votes)
I would be interested to know which player(s) were being considered with these two votes.

Poll Results: Who will be Michigan’s starting center in 2012?

Rocko Khoury (#63) has a chance to win the starting center job in his final season

Last week I posed the question, “Who will be Michigan’s starting center against Alabama?”  Here are the results of the poll:

Rocko Khoury: 44%
Fifth year senior Khoury has played sparingly in his four years on campus.  He has, however, made two prominent forays into the lineup.  He subbed in for David Molk against Iowa in 2010, when Molk suffered an injury on the first offensive snap of the game; then Khoury filled in for one series in the 2012 Sugar Bowl before the again-injured Molk returned in hobbled form.  Khoury played admirably in the first and questionably in the second.  Khoury has been second on the center depth chart for the last couple seasons, so it makes sense that he would be the heir apparent to Rimgton Award winner Molk.

Ricky Barnum: 28%
Also a fifth year senior, Barnum started a few games at left guard in 2011.  Unfortunately, Barnum has suffered numerous injuries throughout his career.  Whether in spring practice or the regular season, he’s suffered a significant injury ever since he was a redshirt freshman.  Barnum played some center in high school and has taken snaps throughout his college career, although he has yet to snap the ball in a regular season college game.  Early reports are that Barnum will get the first shot to win the starting center job this spring, but that doesn’t necessarily mean much.  Michael Schofield, Barnum’s replacement at guard last season, played well and could slide in as the starter at left guard (or right tackle) if Barnum wins the starting snapper’s job.

Jack Miller: 26%
Miller will be a redshirt freshman in 2012.  Reports from practice have been positive, but the general consensus is that he needs to add weight and strength before playing.  Beating out a couple older and bigger players seems like an insurmountable task to me . . . unless an injury occurs.  And with Barnum ahead of Miller on the depth chart, that seems like a strong possibility.

Other: 0% (1 vote)
I would be interested to know whom this voter had in mind.  No other current player has snapped the ball in a game (in fact, Khoury is the only player with that distinction), and the only other current roster options seem to be redshirt freshman guard Chris Bryant and fifth year senior tackle/guard Elliott Mealer, who has also snapped the ball a bit in practice.  Anyone else would be a true freshman.

Poll Results: Which February 18/19 commit will be best?

If readers of this blog are correct, Chris Fox will be one of the jewels of the class

A couple weekends ago, Michigan got commitments from eight 2013 commits.  Shortly afterward I posted a poll asking which of those eight would have the best career.  Since then Ohio’s Jaron Dukes and Pennsylvania’s Patrick Kugler have committed, too, so the fun never stops.  Here are the results of the poll:

Chris Fox: 20%
The Parker (CO) Ponderosa product could play just about anywhere on the line except center.  For such a thick kid, he’s an athletic kid who doesn’t have a problem staying low and getting leverage on opponents.  The 6’6″, 295 lb. Fox is ranked as high as #46 overall to Rivals.

Kyle Bosch: 19% (tie)
The Wheaton (IL) St. Francis lineman is 6’5″, 286 lbs. and projects to offensive guard for the Wolverines.  247 Sports thinks highly enough of him to rank him the #44 overall player in the country.

Logan Tuley-Tillman: 19% (tie)
The 6’7″, 304 lb. blindside tackle from Peoria (IL) Manual is the #85 overall player to 247 Sports.

Jake Butt: 13%
Butt is a 6’6″, 230 lb. tight end from Pickerington (OH) North.  He’s ranked as high as #96 overall to Rivals.

Taco Charlton: 10%
Charlton is a 6’6″, 240 lb. linebacker/defensive end from Pickerington (OH) Central.  His highest ranking comes from 247 Sports at #99 overall.

Jourdan Lewis: 7%
Detroit (MI) Cass Tech cornerback is a 5’11”, 170-pounder.  Rivals likes him best (so far) with his placement at #167 overall on the Rivals 250.

Wyatt Shallman: 5%
Novi (MI) Catholic Central running back Shallman is a 6’3″, 255 lb. athlete.  Rivals thinks he’s the 160th-best player in the nation.

David Dawson: 3%
Detroit (MI) Cass Tech offensive guard/center Dawson is the #199 player to Rivals.  He stands 6’5″ and weighs 305 lbs.

Poll Results: Biggest position need in 2013?

Kenny Demens (#25) and Jordan Kovacs (#32) will both graduate after the 2012 season

A couple weeks ago I posed this question: Which position is Michigan’s biggest need in 2013?

As you can probably tell, a lot of things have happened since that poll was posted.  But here are the results anyway.

WR: 35%
More than a third of the voters picked wide receiver, a position that has begun to be addressed with the recent commitment of Columbus (OH) Marion Franklin’s Jaron Dukes, a 6’5″, 197 lb. possession guy.  The coaches are likely looking for one or two more receivers to complement Dukes, preferably a speedster or two who can stretch the field.

RB: 23%
Last Saturday Michigan received a commitment from jumbo tailback Wyatt Shallman from Novi (MI) Catholic Central.  The 6’3″, 255-pounder needs a smaller, faster tailback to pair with him.  Head coach Brady Hoke has stated that he’ll always take “a couple” running backs because they’re good athletes who can potentially switch positions.

OL: 13%
Again, this position was addressed with the recent commitments of four  offensive linemen.  The first commitment came from Wheaton (IL) St. Francis’s Kyle Bosch.  He was followed by Detroit (MI) Cass Tech guard David Dawson, Parker (CO) Ponderosa tackle/guard Chris Fox, and Peoria (IL) Manual tackle Logan Tuley-Tillman.

DT: 9%
Michigan grabbed two defensive tackles in the 2012 class to replenish the ranks, but Will Campbell is a senior and Quinton Washington is a redshirt junior.  The coaches have only offered eight defensive tackles thus far, which tells me they’re not panicking about any kind of lack of depth at the position.  They likely believe/realize that at least one of Michigan’s defensive end commits from 2012 will move inside to tackle.

QB: 7%
Michigan has one commitment in 2013, from potential 5-star Shane Morris out of Warren (MI) De La Salle.  After taking one quarterback in the class of 2011 and zero in 2012, Michigan might be putting itself in a precarious position by only taking Morris in 2013.  The 2012 class ended a streak of 14 consecutive recruiting cycles where Michigan took at least  one quarterback.

TE: 2%
At the time the poll was posted, Detroit (MI) Crockett U-back Khalid Hill was committed.  This past weekend the Wolverines also got a verbal from Pickerington (OH) North Y-back Jake Butt.  Both tight end positions have been addressed, but I would not be entirely surprised if the coaches took a third tight end by the end of the class.  The coaches wanted a third tight end in 2012, so at this point, they have addressed 2012’s missing tight end and the graduation of Brandon Moore.

DE: 0% (tie)
Michigan took four defensive ends in the class of 2012, and the only defensive end scheduled to graduate is Craig Roh.  The position was addressed on Saturday with the commitment of Pickerington (OH) Central’s Taco Charlton, a 6’6″, 240-pounder.

S: 0% (tie)
Three safeties committed to Michigan in 2012, and only one graduates after 2012 (Jordan Kovacs).  The Wolverines already have Alliance (OH) Marlington strong safety Dymonte Thomas in the fold for 2013, so that gives Michigan four safeties over two classes.

LB: 0% (zero votes)
Only one linebacker graduates after the 2012 season (middle linebacker Kenny Demens), and the Wolverines just took four linebackers in the most recent class.  The coaches are pursuing a significant number of linebackers in the 2013 class, which tells me a) they’re not happy with their depth and b) they might be expecting some attrition.  Isaiah Bell has yet to see the field in college, Mike Jones has seen the field very little, and Brandin Hawthorne was passed up by a freshman last season; all three might be candidates not to return for a fifth year in 2013.