Potential Early Departures: Defense

Tag: potential transfers


16Dec 2022
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Potential Early Departures: Defense

Quinten Johnson (image via MGoBlue)

With the onslaught of transfer portal entries in college football, it’s inevitable that Michigan will face some more departures this off-season. Four players have already announced their intentions to transfer, and two (Cade McNamara and Erick All to Iowa) have already found a landing spot. Quarterback Alan Bowman and tight end Louis Hansen are both headed for, ahem, greener pastures.

McNamara and All are both somewhat unique cases of players who played a lot but felt slighted in some way, but Bowman and Hansen are more typical cases of players buried on the depth chart who want to see some light at the end of the tunnel. This post explores several players in similar situations who may find better situations elsewhere.

You can find the version for the offensive side of the ball here (LINK).

DISCLAIMER: This post is speculative in nature and not intended to encourage/discourage any player from leaving Michigan’s program. The reality is that college football is now a lot like unrestricted free agency from year to year.

LB JOEY VELAZQUEZ
Why he should stay: Velazquez is a solid two-sport athlete who’s having a decent impact on the baseball field with Michigan’s baseball team. His playing time on the field has increased yearly from one game in 2020 to seven games in 2021 to eleven games so far in the 2022 season. He is a steady contributor on special teams and has made a career-high 6 tackles.
Why he might leave: Playing time has been difficult to find on defense, and he has never risen above third string on defense. He was immediately passed by freshman Jimmy Rolder this fall, and the commitment of Ernest Hausmann probably does not bode well for the staff’s faith in Velazquez contributing on defense in 2023. Velazquez only has one season of eligibility remaining, and he may want to go somewhere he can compete for a starting job, which is extremely unlikely in Ann Arbor.

Hit the jump for more.

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9Dec 2022
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Potential Departure Candidates: Offense

Tavierre Dunlap

With the onslaught of transfer portal entries in college football, it’s inevitable that Michigan will face some more departures this off-season. Three players have already announced their intentions to transfer, and one (Cade McNamara to Iowa) has already found a landing spot. Tight ends Erick All and Louis Hansen are both headed for, ahem, greener pastures.

McNamara and All are both somewhat unique cases of players who played a lot but felt slighted in some way, but Hansen is a more typical case of a player buried on the depth chart who wants to see some light at the end of the tunnel. This post explores several players in similar situations who may find greener pastures elsewhere:

DISCLAIMER: This post is speculative in nature and not intended to encourage/discourage any player from leaving Michigan’s program. The reality is that college football is now a lot like unrestricted free agency from year to year.

RB TAVIERRE DUNLAP
Why he should stay: Every Michigan starting running back during his tenure has turned in a 1,000+ yard season, but they had to wait three or more years to do it. Hassan Haskins and Blake Corum have both turned in star performances after waiting their turn. Dunlap has done well when given a chance, averaging 6.1 yards per carry.
Why he might leave: Opportunities are limited when you’re the third string back or lower, and there’s no reason to expect much of a change in scenery for 2023. While Corum is likely headed to the NFL, Donovan Edwards is a bona fide star in the making and freshman C.J. Stokes already has many more carries (55) in one season than Dunlap has in two (16), and walk-on Isaiah Gash (19 carries, 101 yards, 2 touchdowns) even topped Dunlap in touches. When it came to the Big Ten championship game and Ohio State, Michigan decided to use a big back at times . . . but that back was the 6’2″, 232 lb. backup linebacker Kalel Mullings instead of Dunlap (6’0″, 217).

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18Apr 2020
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Mailbag: J.T. Daniels and transfer quarterbacks

J.T. Daniels (image via SI)

Hey, Magnus. I appreciate your comments here and over at MGo. I was wondering what you think about JT Daniels and if Michigan should go after him. I know Michigan recruited him back in high school, but Michigan hasn’t had luck with transfers in the past. Is it worth the risk of chasing off D-Caff, Milton, and potentially JJ McCarthy? I’ll hang up and listen.

Hit the jump for my response.

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12Dec 2015
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Potential Transfer Quarterbacks for 2016

Taysom Hill

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It’s probably no secret at this point that Michigan is considering bringing in competition at the quarterback position for next year. Starting quarterback Jake Rudock had a pretty good regular season, especially during the second half of the year, but he has exhausted his eligibility. That leaves second-stringer Wilton Speight, third-stringer Shane Morris, transfer John O’Korn, incoming freshman Brandon Peters, and totally unproven youngsters Alex Malzone and Zach Gentry. O’Korn is the odds-on favorite of that group to win the job next year, but Michigan is expecting to lose some of those depth players to transfers this winter. Here is a look at at the group of players who are possibilities to end up at Michigan, although candidates may be added to this list down the road. (Players are listed with their 2016 eligibility.)

Hit the jump for the five potential transfer options:

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