Tag: Renaldo Sagesse

2010 Countdown: #75 Jibreel Black

Name: Jibreel Black
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 253 lbs.
High school: Wyoming High School in Cincinnati, OH
Position: Defensive end
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: N/A
Prediction for 2010: Redshirt

With as much certainty as an outside observer can have, I believe the players listed below Black will redshirt. That includes Christian Pace, Davion Rogers, DJ Williamson, Conelius Jones, Jordan Paskorz, Jake Ryan, Ray Vinopal, Drew Dileo, and Austin White. Their positions and readiness make that a near certainty, in my opinion.

But now we get into the murkier depths of the roster, the guys who have an outside chance to play this season due to a starter or rotation player getting injured, or perhaps due to the coaches wanting to get a guy some reps in preparation for 2011. That’s where Jibreel Black fits. Ideally, he’d probably redshirt in 2010, giving him a chance to add some weight and get stronger. He’s shorter than a prototypical defensive end at only 6’2″, so he’s going to need to make up for that deficiency in the strength department. But I’ve already compared him to Brandon Graham, so I think the kid’s got some talent.

The starter at defensive end will likely be Ryan Van Bergen, who has proven to be pretty durable so far in his career. He’s also pretty good. His rotational backup might be Anthony Lalota, but if Van Bergen does suffer an injury, I’d expect Greg Banks to flip to 5-tech DE with Renaldo Sagesse moving in at Banks’s old spot. That’s a big, fancy way of saying that I hope Van Bergen doesn’t get injured.

Meanwhile, Black is probably the most college-ready DE in the class, and he’s got a chance to contribute. With Banks and Sagesse departing after this season, the coaches might want to season a younger guy with some reps against UMass or Bowling Green. Ultimately, I don’t think Michigan will need Black on the field this season, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see him playing in non-critical moments.

2010 Countdown: #76 Terry Talbott

Terry Talbott, Agent #9, Terrence Talbott, and Braxton Miller

Name: Terry Talbott
Height: 6’4″
Weight: 255 lbs.
High school: Wayne High School in Huber Heights, OH
Position: Defensive tackle
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: N/A
Prediction for 2010: Redshirt

Terry Talbott, the older and larger brother of Terrence, is a quick-footed defensive tackle prospect from the Worst State Ever. He’s got the physical skills to be a dominant high school defensive lineman, but sometimes it’s hard to project guys forward when they need to gain 30 or 40 pounds before they can sniff the playing field. As it stands, Terry has the quickest first step of any defensive tackle Michigan has brought in over the last several years. But as you can see in the picture above, he’s got some filling out to do.

From my perspective, Terry needs at least a year to bulk up. He seems to be headed for the 3-tech DT spot, which means he can probably play at a weight between 280-290 lbs. But it needs to be good weight, not just additional blubber. Michigan has a fair amount of depth at those interior positions with Mike Martin and Greg Banks the likely starters. Renaldo Sagesse, William Campbell, and Adam Patterson will back them up. So as long as nobody gets seriously injured, the freshmen can probably afford to sit and watch for 2011.

Terry Talbott, Wolverine

Late last night GoBlueWolverine.com reported that brothers Terry and Terrence Talbott, from Huber Heights, OH, committed to play for Michigan.

Terry is a defensive lineman whose position is a little blurry. Rivals lists him at 6’4″ and 265 lbs. Scouting Ohio lists him at 6’4″ and 245 lbs. It’s possible that Scouting Ohio is a bit outdated, but on the plus side, at least they agree on his height. The websites list him as a defensive tackle/nose tackle, but I’m not sure that’s the best fit for him. He seems more like a defensive end for Greg Robinson’s 4-3 under defense. Rivals is notorious for having overstated sizes (Anthony Lalota was 6’6″ and 260 lbs. until he got on campus and the spring roster listed him as 6’4″ and 235), so I’m more inclined to trust Scouting Ohio.

Even more so than his size, Terry plays like a defensive end. He uses his quickness off the ball to beat blockers to his gap. He’s long and lean and uses his hands well to fight off blockers. I wouldn’t define him as a speed rusher, but he looks like a 3-4 defensive end to me.

A 3-star prospect to Rivals, Terry chose Michigan over offers from Illinois, MSU, UCLA, and Wisconsin, among others. I expect that Michigan will still pursue at least one true defensive tackle prospect (Sharrif Floyd and Louis Nix, to name a couple). Even though Michigan’s defensive tackles are young, there are only three scholarship players on the roster (Mike Martin, Will Campbell, and Renaldo Sagesse). Perhaps more dire is the defensive end position – Brandon Graham graduates this year, and both Adam Patterson and Greg Banks are redshirt juniors. Anthony Lalota is the only DE behind them.

Scouting Ohio video is here.

Vince Helmuth, ex-Wolverine

Michigan defensive tackle (and former fullback) Vince Helmuth has decided to transfer. Helmuth would have been a junior this year and converted to the defensive line during the 2008 season. He bulked up a little too much for spring practice and Rich Rodriguez called him out during one of his spring practice press conferences.

Despite Helmuth’s additional bulk, he was buried on the defensive tackle depth chart this year. With only one regular DT on the field on most snaps, Helmuth was behind Mike Martin, Renaldo Sagesse, and freshman Will Campbell, all of whom are in the same class or younger. This does hurt the depth chart somewhat, as there are only three scholarship defensive tackles remaining on the roster, but at most he probably would have given Martin an occasional breather and helped out on special teams. (For what it’s worth, he was my #57 most important player on this year’s roster.)

The pain from this transfer is felt threefold:

1) It hurts depth at DT and necessitates landing at least one tackle in the 2010 recruiting class.
2) Helmuth’s transfer – along with all the others – has Michigan falling dangerously close to scary APR levels.
3) Helmuth was a local kid (from Saline High School), meaning many Michigan fans were a smidgen more interested in his success.

Early rumors suggest that Helmuth might join his brother at Eastern Michigan (which is now coached by former Michigan defensive coordinator Ron English).

Picture via MVictors.