On the heels of Will Johnson’s pick-six last Saturday night against Fresno State, here’s a look at the longest interception returns in program history:
94 yards – Brandon Herron (2011 vs. Western Michigan)
92 yards – Thomas Darden (1971 vs. UCLA)
88 yards – Ernest Shazor (2004 vs. Miami-OH)
86 yards – Will Johnson (2024 vs. Fresno State)
81 yards – Mike Rotunno (1955 vs. Missouri)
81 yards – Mike Sainristil (2023 vs. Washington)
80 yards – David Long, Jr. (2017 vs. Maryland)
73 yards – Josh Metellus (2018 vs. SMU)
72 yards – Blake Countess (2013 vs. Minnesota)
72 yards – Mike Sainristil (2023 vs. Michigan State)
Let’s see more of this guy on offense . . . C.J. Charleston. The Youngstown State transfer receiver only played 6 snaps on Saturday night, but I would like to see him play more. I think he’s more of a receiving threat than Peyton O’Leary, and while maybe there’s a small difference in run blocking, the receiving threat and big-play ability of Charleston is worth playing him more. Michigan needs better options in the passing game.
Name: Will Johnson Height: 6’2″ Weight: 202 lbs. High school: Grosse Pointe (MI) South Position: Cornerback Class: Junior Jersey number: #2 Last year: I ranked Johnson #2 and said he would be a starting cornerback with 50 tackles and 4 interceptions (LINK). He made 27 tackles, 1 tackle, 4 interceptions (for 80 yards and 1 touchdown), and 8 pass breakups. TTB Rating: 91
Johnson went ahead in year two and staked his claim for being one of the top cornerbacks in Michigan history. He was a First Team All-Big Ten corner and an All-American, helping to slow down some of the best receivers in the country. The 6’2″, 202-pounder limited Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison, Jr. to 5 catches for 98 yards when matched up over the past two seasons, and top-10 pick Rome Odunze for Washington had 5 total catches for 87 yards and 0 touchdowns in the national championship game.
Some of Johnson’s highlights include jumping a Harrison slant route for an interception and returning an interception for a touchdown against Minnesota. He’s been making highlight-worthy plays since the second half of his freshman year, including a mostly stellar game against Purdue in the Big Ten Championship Game in 2022. Every player is going to get beaten sometimes, but it seems like challenging Johnson is almost always a poor choice.
I had a tough time picking a #1 player this season. It came down to DT Mason Graham (who was #3), TE Colston Loveland (who was #2), and Johnson. I was recently listening to the Move the Sticks podcast with Daniel Jeremiah, who talked about a study that came out comparing defensive performance between pass rush or coverage. The results of the study showed that good coverage helps out the pass rush more than a good pass rush helps out coverage. On top of that, Michigan has decent backups on the defensive line (T.J. Guy at edge, Rayshaun Benny at DT), but even Michigan’s #2 corner Jyaire Hill is unproven. If Johnson were to go down, it would likely be up to Hill and FCS transfer Aamir Hall to hold down the corner spots. Ultimately, if Johnson were to get hurt, games against Texas’s Quinn Ewers, Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel, and the wide receiver talent of Ohio State look a whole lot more difficult.
Michigan dominated the all-conference selections in 2023, which is to be somewhat expected with a 12-0 record.
FIRST TEAM QB J.J. McCarthy (Coaches, Media) RB Blake Corum (Coaches, Media) OL La’Darius Henderson (Coaches) OL Zak Zinter (Coaches, Media) C Drake Nugent (Coaches, Media) TE Colston Loveland (Coaches) DL Mason Graham (Coaches) DB Will Johnson (Coaches, Media) DB Mike Sainristil (Media)
SECOND TEAM WR Roman Wilson (Coaches, Media) TE Colston Loveland (Media) OL Karsen Barnhart (Coaches) OL La’Darius Henderson (Media) OL Trevor Keegan (Coaches, Media) DL Kenneth Grant (Coaches) DL Kris Jenkins, Jr. (Coaches, Media) LB Junior Colson (Coaches, Media) DB Mike Sainristil (Coaches) K James Turner (Coaches)
THIRD TEAM OL Karsen Barnhart (Media) DL Mason Graham (Media) DL Kenneth Grant (Media) LB Michael Barrett (Coaches) DB Rod Moore (Coaches) P Tommy Doman (Media)
HONORABLE MENTION WR Cornelius Johnson (Media) TE A.J. Barner (Coaches, Media) DL Jaylen Harrell (Coaches, Media) DL Braiden McGregor (Coaches, Media) DL Derrick Moore (Coaches, Media) DL Josaiah Stewart (Coaches) LB Michael Barrett (Media) DB Rod Moore (Media) DB Makari Paige (Coaches) DB Josh Wallace (Coaches, Media) K James Turner (Media) P Tommy Doman (Media) RET Semaj Morgan (Coaches, Media)
I believe every single Michigan starter is represented here except FB/TE Max Bredeson (1 start), OL Trente Jones (2 starts), WR Tyler Morris (2 starts), safety Keon Sabb (4 starts). Even a full-time backup in Derrick Moore – who has yet to start a single game – was named Honorable Mention by both the coaches and the media.
Do you see any snubs?
Personally, I think Mike Sainristil should have been 1st team to both coaches/media. Meanwhile, I’m surprised Barnhart was valued so highly since he struggled in pass protection so much, especially over the last three weeks of the season.
I was a little nervous. Something was gnawing at my brain going into this game, and that was whether Michigan would look sloppy against the Boilermakers in the midst of Sign-gate. I was never nervous about the outcome of the game, but just about whether it would be a tight contest. Maybe something like a 14-10 contest at halftime. Or 17-13 in the third quarter before pulling away. The distraction of Sign-gate combined with the rustiness of coming off a bye week concerned me. So I was glad to see Michigan jump out to a 17-0 lead almost immediately. But the second quarter was boring for Michigan. Michigan was outgained by Purdue, as well as outscored 6-3, sending it to halftime at 20-6.
