Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Tarik Black has entered the transfer portal. Depending on whether or not he graduates by the time he departs, he may or may not need to sit out a year in order to play.
Hit the jump for more.
I received some criticism for giving Black a TTB Rating of 79 in my commitment post (LINK), and my player comparison was Tyrece Butler. I bumped him up to an 82 by the end of the recruiting cycle (LINK). He was a 4-star, the #15 wide receiver, and #116 overall in the 247 Composite.
Black burst onto the scene with a long touchdown against Florida in the 2017 season opener, but a broken foot in each of his first two seasons limited his production. The 2019 season has been his best year (25 catches, 323 yards, 1 TD) and he played in a career-high 11 games after playing in just three during each of his first two years. Altogether, Black made 40 catches for 507 yards (12.7 yards/catch) and 2 touchdowns in his career. (Butler made 27 career catches for 333 yards, which is 12.3 yards/catch.)
I was not enthused about what I saw from Black during 2019. There were rumors coming out of practice about his being disgruntled. He ran routes short of first down markers and did not appear to be as effective of a blocker as a 6’3″, 215 lb. receiver should be. All this came after an off-season in which he tweeted about 2019 being his final year of college ball, implying he would be off to the NFL in the 2020 draft. Instead, he was #4 on the team in receptions and yards, and tied for #5 in touchdowns this year.
Michigan has an interesting 2020 coming at the receiver position, depending on what a couple other players do. Sophomore Ronnie Bell will return for his junior year, but juniors Nico Collins and Donovan Peoples-Jones have decisions to make when it comes to the NFL. The fact that Black is departing may indicate that those other two will return, but he could have earned a starting job if they left. If he does indeed follow through with his intentions to transfer, that leaves a receiver room looking like this:
- Nico Collins (Sr.)
- Donovan Peoples-Jones (Sr.)
- Ronnie Bell (Jr.)
- Giles Jackson (So.)
- Cornelius Johnson (So.)
- Mike Sainristil (So.)
- George Johnson III (RS Fr.)
- Eamonn Dennis (Fr.)
- A.J. Henning (Fr.)
- Roman Wilson (Fr.)
Michigan has 90 scholarship players slated to be on the roster in 2020 (LINK), so some departures will have to take place.
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Good luck to Black. I remember on your countdown, I disagreed with your ranking of him. I was wrong, and even ordered young CJohnson over him by the end of the year
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