Earlier: 2010 Official Depth Chart Breakdown: The Offense

While the offensive side of the official depth chart lacked many unexpected moves, its defensive counterpart has some very intriguing — and unforeseen — twists:

The first thing that jumps out to me on the defensive line is the placement of sophomore Will Campbell — third string, a disappointing spot to be in for the former five-star recruit, who showed up to camp overweight at 333 pounds. He is stick behind senior Adam Patterson, who has all of eight career tackles in 25 appearances.

True freshman Jibreel Black earned a spot on the two-deep behind Ryan Van Bergen at defensive end, a very good sign from a player many thought would contribute immediately. The absence of redshirt freshman Anthony LaLota — especially in lieu of redshirt junior Steve Watson, who is on his third position in four years as a Wolverine — might not be a good sign for the former four-star prospect.

Your starting defensive line is redshirt junior Ryan Van Bergen at defensive end, junior Mike Martin at nose tackle, and redshirt senior Greg Banks defensive tackle. That’s a lot of experience along the line — this should be a strong unit up front.

They weren’t kidding about redshirt senior Mark Moundros making a serious run at Obi Ezeh for the middle linebacker spot — the former fullback is listed as a co-starter with Ezeh, who was benched late last season despite making 31 career starts in three seasons. This is a position battle that could very easily continue into the season, especially as Moundros becomes more accustomed to the defensive side of the ball. Sophomore Craig Roh and redshirt senior Jonas Mouton are your other starters. Roh is finally at the proper weight for a player who will spend the majority of his time blitzing, while Mouton has been impressive in fall practices after a disappointing 2009 season.

At cornerback, senior James Rogers gets the nod for now to start across from redshirt sophomore J.T. Floyd. As expected, the backups at corner are all true freshmen — Terrence Talbott and Cullen Christian back up Rogers, and Courtney Avery sits behind Floyd.

The biggest surprise on the depth chart is true freshman Carvin Johnson’s rise to the top of the depth chart at spur. Johnson was an unranked recruit when he first committed to Michigan, but finished as a high-ranked three-star who was creating a lot of buzz on blogs and message boards. He moves ahead of redshirt freshman Thomas Gordon, who most projected as the starter, and walk-on Floyd Simmons. Another true freshman safety, Marvin Robinson, has also landed on the two-deep — he sits behind Jordan Kovacs at bandit.

Redshirt freshman Cameron Gordon stays atop the two-deep at free safety, where is he backed up by another walk-on, redshirt junior Jared Van Slyke. Redshirt freshman Vlad Emilien, who many presumed would at the very least challenge for the starting job, is stuck at third string.

Special Teams:

The battle at placekicker is still ongoing between Brendan Gibbons, Rivals.com’s No. 8 kicker in the class of 2009, and walk-on Seth Broekhuizen, a fellow redshirt freshman. True freshman and Army All-American Will Hagerup will start at punter, with Broekhuizen at backup. It could be an up-and-down year in the kicking department with two freshman handling the specialist duties — keep in mind the team will also have to find a replacement for kickoff specialist Bryan Wright, who transferred to Bowling Green for his fifth year.

Darryl Stonum will once again be Michigan’s top kickoff returner after he averaged 25.7 yards per return in 2009 and set the school record for single-season kickoff return yards with 1,001. He will be backed up by Martavious Odoms, who is one of three receivers vying for the punt return job, along with redshirt freshman Jeremy Gallon and redshirt sophomore Terrence Robinson. Stonum should once again be an excellent return man, and Michigan should at least have a sure-handed player handling punts among the three candidates.

Similar Posts:

• 2010 Official Depth Chart Breakdown: Offense
• An Early Stab at the 2010 Depth Chart: Defense
• Early Guess at the Football Depth Chart: Now Updated for Spring
• Position Threat Levels: Severe
• A (Very) Early Look at the 2010 Defense

The position previews continue with a look at Michigan’s middle and weakside linebackers:

Returning Contributors: Obi Ezeh (RS Sr.), Jonas Mouton (RS Sr.), J.B. Fitzgerald (Jr.), Kenny Demens (RS So.), Mike Jones (So.)
Ready to Contribute: Isaiah Bell (RS Fr.), Mark Moundros (RS Sr. — moved from fullback)
Incoming Freshmen: Jake Ryan
Key Departures: Stevie Brown, Brandon Smith

Returning Player Stats:

The Projected Starters: Perhaps the most embattled player on a team full of them, redshirt senior Obi Ezeh is penciled in as the starter at middle linebacker, but keep those erasers handy — Ezeh will have to hold off a strong push from fullback-turned-linebacker Mark Moundros if he wants to keep the starting job he has held for most of the last three seasons. After leading the team with 98 tackles as a sophomore in 2008, Ezeh appeared to regress last season and was benched late in the year in favor of sophomore J.B. Fitzgerald and walk-on Kevin Leach. At 6-2, 250 pounds, Ezeh has the size and physical tools needed to be a solid middle linebacker, but tentative play marred his junior season and he must now prove he’s the best option in the middle or risk riding the pine in his final year at Michigan.

At weakside linebacker, redshirt senior Jonas Mouton is also coming off a disappointing year, but unlike Ezeh he has managed to keep a strong hold on his starting job. Mouton entered Michigan as a highly-touted safety prospect, but quickly outgrew the position before having a breakout year in 2008. Like Ezeh, Mouton’s issues at linebacker seem to stem more from the mental side than the physical — he is a gifted athlete, but was caught out of position far too often last year and was the main culprit on several big plays allowed by the defense. With defensive coordinator Greg Robinson now coaching the linebackers as well, there is hope that these mental mistakes will become a thing of the past. If they do, Mouton has the potential to be an all-conference player in 2010.

The Competition: It’s hard to believe that a former walk-on fullback would push to start at middle linebacker after switching sides of the ball before his fifth year in the program, but that’s exactly what Mark Moundros has done since moving to MLB in the spring. Moundros was very impressive in last weekend’s scrimmage, diagnosing plays quickly and delivering solid hits when he got to the football. Whether it’s feasible for him to absorb the defensive playbook, not to mention the intricacies of playing middle linebacker, well enough to start this year is a question only the coaching staff can answer, but those of us who scoffed when reports of Moundros getting time with the first team first surfaced may be eating our words come September 4.

Moundros isn’t the only backup looking to unseat one of the seniors; junior J.B. Fitzgerald and redshirt sophomore Kenny Demens are both former four-star prospects who should make a push to see the field this fall. Fitzgerald saw action at middle linebacker when Ezeh was benched late last season, and although he was caught out of position at times, he also showed flashes of playmaking ability in recording four tackles for loss (for comparison, Ezeh had five all season, while Mouton recorded just three). Fitzgerald has seen time at both inside linebacker positions and Craig Roh’s hybrid spot, and could be the team’s top backup at all three positions this fall. Demens, meanwhile, is a very solid athlete and hard hitter who has thus far only seen special teams action as a Wolverine — he appears to be behind Fitzgerald and Moundros in the linebacker pecking order, and might reprise his special teams role for another season before Ezeh and Mouton graduate in 2011.

Others: Sophomore Mike Jones enrolled early last season and proceeded to burn his redshirt for seven games of special teams action. At 6-2, 208 pounds, Jones still needs to add some size before he competes for time at linebacker, and he’ll likely see more time on special teams this year while he waits his turn.

Redshirt freshman Isaiah Bell went from high school safety to 6-1, 245-pound inside linebacker in his time at Michigan — like Jones, he will probably play mostly on special teams until the logjam ahead of him at linebacker clears up next season. True freshman Jake Ryan is an intriguing prospect with one of the best highlight tapes in the 2010 class, but he is a lock to redshirt unless the coaches want to make his this year’s version of Mike Jones.

It is worth noting that while Kevin Leach filled in at middle linebacker last year, the 6-1, 205-pound former walk-on is now practicing at spur and is unlikely to see time at his old position.

Outlook: Linebacker was the team’s most disappointing position group in 2009, but with Greg Robinson taking over coaching the position and with two redshirt seniors (tentatively) holding down starting spots, we should see improvement from this group in 2010. How much the unit improves will likely hinge on the progression of Ezeh and the coaching of Robinson — if he can get the linebackers to be in the right place at the right time, they have all the physical tools needed to make plays.

Previous Position Previews: Quarterback, Running Back, Outside Receiver, Slot Receiver, Tight End, Offensive Tackle, Interior Offensive Line, Defensive Tackle, Defensive End

For every position preview, click here or hit the “2010 Position Previews” tag at the bottom of the post.

Similar Posts:

• 2010 Official Depth Chart Breakdown: Defense/Special Teams
• An Early Stab at the 2010 Depth Chart: Defense
• Five Players With the Most to Gain in Spring Practice
• Position Threat Levels: High
• A (Very) Early Look at the 2010 Defense

Fall camp opens TODAY — hallelujah! — and Michigan has released its official roster. I’m sure you’re all curious to see what numbers the true freshmen will be wearing in the fall (as well as their official listed positions, heights, and weights), so here’s the full list, including early enrollees:

[end_columns]
Some thoughts on the freshmen and other players whose positions or weights have made big changes:

• DT Richard Ash, who weighed in at a robust 320 pounds, had better be prepared for the School of Mike Barwis’s Will Campbell Program. Reports over the summer said Ash wasn’t in the best of shape, and he was listed at 263 pounds in his Rivals profile — it’s safe to say he needs to cut a lot of weight, and I’d be very surprised if he didn’t redshirt and focus on conditioning this season.
• On the opposite end of the spectrum, CBs Courtney Avery and Terrence Talbott, LB Davion Rogers, WR D.J. Williamson, DE Jordan Paskorz, and DT Terry Talbott are all going to need to add some muscle before they see the field (especially Rogers, who at 6-6 and just 200 pounds might have the ability to slip under doorcracks). You could throw SR Drew Dileo in there too, but even at just 171 pounds I’m guessing he’ll be thrown right in the mix at punt returner — he wasn’t expected to see the field as a receiver this year regardless.
• At 6-2, 200 pounds, safety Marvin Robinson could conceivably play strong or free safety — concerns that he would blow up to linebacker size are mitigated, at least for now. With little depth and a lot of question marks in the secondary, expect Robinson to push for a starting spot and see the field in some capacity this fall.
• After enrolling early in the spring, C Christian Pace has added an impressive 21 pounds, up to 280 from a very-undersized 259. Even though he’s a lock to redshirt, it’s great to see those kind of gains in the weight room — now he can focus on learning the offense and working on technique instead of worrying about getting overpowered at the college level. Mike Barwis works wonders, people.
• Moving on to the rest of the roster: DT Will Campbell is up to 333 pounds after weighing in at 324 in the spring. Big Will made huge strides to get in shape over the course of the last year, and I’m hoping that’s more added muscle — otherwise, he might take a little while to play his way into shape. If that is in fact muscle, watch out.
• Now listed at an impressive 6-8, 294 pounds, tackle Taylor Lewan continues to morph into a prototype in the Jake Long mold. The concerns about him being physically ready to play as a redshirt freshman are likely gone, and now we’ll see if he has picked up enough technique (remember, he started playing O-line in his senior year of high school) to unseat Perry Dorrestein at left tackle. I think he’ll be protecting Denard Robinson’s blind side on September 4th.
• Fellow redshirt freshman tackle Michael Schofield also is up to a good weight, and at 6-7, 293 pounds, he should be in the mix for at least a backup spot on the depth chart. I’m excited at the potential of Lewan and Schofield bookending the Michigan line down the road — those two could be special.
• Despite rehabbing his torn ACL, Vincent Smith has managed to bulk up to a solid 180 pounds (up from 169), which sounds small for a tailback until you remember he’s only 5-6. We’ll have to wait and see if he is limited at all by the injury and the added bulk, but the weight should help him stay durable throughout the course of the season.
• Obi Ezeh and Kenny Demens, who will battle for the starting middle linebacker spot, are both up to 250 pounds. I’m not sure how this will affect Ezeh, but I like the added weight on Demens, who is a very gifted athlete and should have no problem maintaining that athleticism. This will be a very interesting competition to watch throughout the fall. The linebackers in general are big — Jonas Mouton is 240, Isaiah Bell is 245, and J.B. Fitzgerald is 244. Kevin Leach still weighs just 205 pounds, which I have to guess will hurt his chances of seeing the field.

This is the year where a few seasons under Mike Barwis really has appeared to take hold of the roster — weights are generally up across the board, especially along both lines, which should greatly benefit a team that got overpowered on both sides of the ball at times last year. With all the talk about quarterbacks, scheme changes, and personnel battles, the team’s overall fitness can easily get overlooked, but I expect we’ll see a big difference on the field this year because of the work this team has done in the weight room.

The projected football depth chart page has been updated to reflect the changes in the new roster.

Similar Posts:

• Justin Turner Leaves Michigan
• Position Preview: Defensive Tackle
• Position Preview: Defensive End
• 2010 Official Depth Chart Breakdown: Defense/Special Teams
• An Early Stab at the 2010 Depth Chart: Defense

Remember the Homeland Security Department’s biggest PR move, the terrorist threat level indicator? You know, this thing. Well, I decided — in a desperate attempt to figure out what type of content to post during the slow summer months — to apply these threat levels (minus the whole, you know, terrorist thing) to Michigan’s position groups. In other words, which groups are the Wolverines comfortably stocked at, and which ones have you buying mass quantities of bottled water and canned foods to prepare for the football apocalypse? Over the next week, I’ll be placing each of the position groups into one of the above categories. So far, I have covered the “Low”,  “Guarded”, and “Elevated” threat categories, and today, we move on to the positions that fall under the “High” category. Ladies and gentlemen, buckle your seatbelts.

Outside Receiver: Simply put, Michigan just hasn’t been getting the production it needs out of its outside receivers so far in the Rodriguez era. Some of that blame can probably be placed on the quarterback play, but it’s time for guys like Darryl Stonum and Junior Hemingway to step up, or else be replaced by younger talent. Stonum and Hemingway, your likely starters at outside receiver, combined for just 29 catches and three touchdowns last season.

Stonum, a former four-star with great athletic ability, needs to show that he can adjust to the ball in the air — he often makes what should be simple catches unnecessarily difficult on himself. If he can do that, he could break out this year and begin to live up to his lofty recruiting hype. Hemingway has burst out of the gate the past two season openers only to have his season derailed by injuries and subsequent ineffectiveness. He showed against Western Michigan that he can be a dangerous deep threat, but he’ll have to stay healthy if he wants to hold on to his starting spot.

If Stonum and Hemingway prove ineffective, there are several young players who could see the field in their place. Sophomore Je’Ron Stokes is another top-100 level recruit, and he’ll likely be the third wide receiver after playing sparingly as a freshman. Jerald Robinson, Ricardo Miller, and Jeremy Jackson all enrolled early in preparation for their true freshman seasons — Robinson appears most likely to be an immediate contributor, though Miller probably has the highest ceiling and Jackson the best hands of the trio. There is also the chance that Roy Roundtree moves between the slot and outside — I’d prefer for him to work out of the slot, where he seems most effective, but if the starters aren’t producing he may be needed to shore up the position, especially with the depth at slot.

If Michigan hopes to take its offense to the next level, they will have to get more production from their outside receivers. Unfortunately, the depth behind the prospective starters is very young, and the starters have yet to prove they can consistently make plays at the collegiate level. This position is probably the biggest question mark the offense has, and could be the difference between Michigan boasting a juggernaut offense and struggling to consistently move the ball.

Linebacker: The picture to your right pretty much sums up Michigan’s linebacker play from last season — Obi Ezeh is on the ground, having been taken out of the play, and Jonas Mouton appears to have lost contain as the back breaks into the open field. Usually, a team would be very comfortable with returning two senior starters (and multi-year starters at that) at linebacker, but the lack of progression from Ezeh and the apparent regression from Mouton has left Wolverine fans very concerned with the heart of their defense.

The good news is that, despite a slight scheme change, Michigan will finally have the same man at defensive coordinator for two years in a row, and with Greg Robinson personally handling the inside linebackers, there should be improvement from the position. How much the linebackers improve will depend. Can Ezeh hold off redshirt sophomore Kenny Demens in the middle? If he does, can he show greater aggressiveness on the field? Can Mouton return to the form he showed in the latter half of 2008? There are a lot of questions here, and few answers will be given until the team hits the field in the fall.

The aforementioned Demens appears to be the most likely candidate to supplant the incumbent starters if one proved ineffective, although J.B. Fitzgerald actually saw more playing time last year when Ezeh was benched, and he could very well start if given the opportunity. Former walk-on Kevin Leach also saw action last year, but wasn’t particularly effective when he played. Redshirt freshman Isaiah Bell provides depth, but he’ll likely need a year or two of learning the position after coming to Ann Arbor as a safety.

With a strong front four and a shaky secondary, Michigan’s defense will need the linebackers to elevate their level of play in 2010. As fifth-year seniors, Ezeh and Mouton should be up to the task, but you could have said the same thing about them last year. Their experience keeps me from placing the linebackers in the “Severe” category, but they will need to step up their play on the field in a big way, or the defense could be spinning its wheels instead of moving forward from last season’s debacle.

Similar Posts:

• Position Preview: Outside Receivers
• Position Preview: Linebacker
• Five Players With the Most to Lose in Spring Practice
• Position Threat Levels: Low
• Position Threat Levels: Elevated

Over the next couple weeks, I’ll be examining the foundation for the 2010 Michigan Wolverines: the five recruiting classes, from 2006 to 2010, that comprise the team. So far, I’ve examined the class of 2006 and the class of 2007. Today, I move on to this year’s juniors and redshirt sophomores from the class of 2008:

Class of 2008 (Sorted by Rivals.com Ranking):

Who’s Left?

16 of the 25 prospects from the 2008 class still remain in Ann Arbor, and while many of the blue-chip players from the class are gone, there are several solid contributors remaining: Darryl Stonum, Michael Shaw, Kevin Koger, Mike Martin, Roy Roundtree, Martavious Odoms, J.T. Floyd, and Patrick Omameh have all seen starts for the Wolverines, and players like J.B. Fitzgerald, Ricky Barnum, Elliott Mealer, Kenny Demens, and Mike Cox are either pushing for playing time or in line to compete for a starting spot down the road.

Martin, Odoms, and Roundtree have all shown all-conference potential so far in their careers, and Omameh could soon join them on that list after locking down a starting guard spot as a redshirt freshman last season. Given the sheer depth of talent in this class, however, it’s hard not to be somewhat disappointed in the production they have given so far. A lot of the reason for that has to do with…

Who’s Gone?

While the class of 2008, at least percentage-wise, hasn’t seen the sheer attrition of the previous class (2007 has just 11 of the 20 recruits remaining), the losses here have been both high-profile and critical to the performance of the team. Marcus Witherspoon and Taylor Hill, two four-star linebacker recruits, never qualified and moved on to other schools before their freshman year, leaving Michigan very thin at a critical position, something from which they’re still feeling the effects. Sam McGuffie and Boubacar Cissoko were both extremely talented players who, for different reasons, were not able to play out their careers at Michigan despite earning starting roles early in their careers. Dann O’Neill, Kurt Wermers, and Justin Feagin were all potential contributors who transferred (O’Neill and Wermers) or were booted for major legal issues (Feagin). And does anybody else think that Brandon Smith would have been perfect for one of the box safety positions in the 3-3-5? Unfortunately, we won’t find out, as he transferred as well.

The Upshot:

This is the third consecutive class that didn’t come close to living up to its lofty ranking, at least so far. Obviously, with 2-3 years of eligibility remaining, there is still a lot of time for this class to change that perception, especially with talents like Martin, Roundtree, Odoms, and Omameh (just to name a few) still on the roster. Regardless of future potential, however, this class has still played a large role in the disappointment of the last couple seasons — it’s tough to blame a group of true freshmen for 2008′s 3-9 season, but a class this deep should have had more guys ready to make major contributions as sophomores last season, when the team was very short on upperclassmen. The next couple seasons will be what truly cements the legacy of this class, but they will have to make great strides as a team to be thought of as anything but a disappointment, especially if they get lumped in with the previous two classes.

Similar Posts:

• The Foundation: A Look at the 2006 Recruiting Class
• The Foundation: A Look at the 2007 Recruiting Class
• Early Guess at the Football Depth Chart: Now Updated for Spring
• A (Very) Early Look at the 2010 Offense
• The 2008 Recruiting Class, Now 17 Strong

With spring practice kicking off this week, I went over the players with the most to gain from a good spring performance yesterday. Today, I take a look at the flip side of that coin: the players who, for one reason or another, will be fighting to hold on their role with this team. Here are the players who are at risk of seeing a diminished role if they don’t come through with a big spring performance:

1. Obi Ezeh, RS Sr. LB: Ezeh is listed first for a reason — no other established starter has come under as much fire as Ezeh because of a lack of performance, and the criticism that has followed Ezeh for the past couple years hasn’t been entirely undeserved. Simply put, this team expected a lot more from Ezeh in 2009, when he was entering his third year starting in the middle, and his disappointing season has opened the door for somebody like J.B. Fitzgerald to ascend to a starting role. By all accounts, Ezeh is a great person and tremendous leader on and off the field, but he will have to bring his on-field performance up to a higher standard if he doesn’t want to be unseated by the fall.
2. Kelvin Grady, RS Jr. Slot: Ironically enough, it was a big-time spring performance that earned Grady a big role to start out the 2009 season, but issues with route-running, knowledge of the offense, and the emergence of Roy Roundtree combined to decrease Grady’s playing time by the end of the season. Now Grady is fighting for playing time with a host of talented youngsters — including Jeremy Gallon, Terrence Robinson, and incoming freshmen Drew Dileo and D.J. Williamson — while Roundtree and Martavious Odoms eat up the lion’s share of the playing time in the slot. If Grady doesn’t make big strides with his football IQ (which is very possible — we forget he was playing basketball a little over a year ago), he could be caught in a logjam and surpassed by younger players.
3. Kevin Koger, Jr. TE: Koger was another player who saw his role diminish as the 2009 season progressed, and now he may be fighting for not only his survival in the starting lineup, but the survival of the tight end position under Rich Rodriguez. Unlike the other players listed here, Koger isn’t facing a ton of competition from his own position group — Martell Webb and Brandon Moore are the only other tight ends on the roster, and neither has shown enough to make me think they’ll unseat Koger — but instead he has to convince the coaches that it’s worth keeping a tight end on the field instead of moving to more four- and five-receiver sets. For Koger, the issue is simple: catch the ball, and it will be hard to keep such a big (6-4, 251 lbs.), skilled talent off the field. If he can’t cure his issues with dropping the ball, however, we could see Roundtree and Odoms both lining up as starters in the fall.
4. Michael Shaw, Jr. RB: It doesn’t seem like that long ago that Shaw was the “next big thing” at running back, but now he finds himself entering his junior season surrounded by questions about his durability and without much of a track record to show that he’s a better option than the plethora of younger backs on the roster. Shaw has to show that he can stay healthy this spring, or the coaching staff may never be willing to trust him as a back who can handle more than 10-15 touches a game. With Vincent Smith slated to return healthy in the fall, Michael Cox and Fitzgerald Toussaint both looking to grab starter’s touches, and two true freshmen already enrolled (Austin White and Stephen Hopkins), Shaw will have to prove that he can be the explosive, home-run threat that everyone expected him to be when he came to Ann Arbor as a freshman. Otherwise, he could find himself fighting an uphill battle against a host of younger players.
5. Darryl Stonum, Jr. WR: Michigan has received very disappointing production from its outside receivers under Rich Rodriguez, and part of the blame could certainly fall on Stonum, who hasn’t lived up to his blue-chip billing in his first two seasons despite getting ample opportunity to show off his talent. Even though Stonum will get the first crack to retain his starting spot, he will have to fend off competition from sophomore Je’Ron Stokes and early enrollees Ricardo Miller, Jeremy Jackson, and Jerald Robinson in the spring and fall. It’s time for Stonum to start producing like a top-100 high school prospect, and if he can’t do that, Michigan has several players waiting in the wings to prove that they can.

That’s all for this week. Enjoy the (already incredible) opening weekend of the NCAA tournament.

Similar Posts:

• Five Players With the Most to Lose in Fall Practice
• An Early Stab at the 2010 Depth Chart: Offense
• Five Players With the Most to Gain in Spring Practice
• Position Threat Levels: Elevated
• A (Very) Early Look at the 2010 Offense

Despite returning 18 players who saw time as a starter last season, Michigan heads into the spring with a lot of uncertainty throughout their depth chart. Here are five players who I think stand to gain the most if they can perform well in spring ball:

1. Je’Ron Stokes, Soph. WR: Michigan may have a logjam at slot receiver, but on the outside the competitions is wide open. With the departure of Greg Mathews and the disappointing production last year from returners Junior Hemingway and Darryl Stonum, there will be ample opportunity for the younger wideouts on the Wolverines to earn playing time, and possibly even a starting role, this season. Stokes may be the most likely of Michigan’s underclassmen receivers to take advantage of that opportunity — he saw sporadic playing time as a true freshman last season and was Rivals.com’s 104th-ranked player overall in the class of 2009. Stokes has the speed to be the deep threat Michigan has been missing since the departure of Mario Manningham, and if he can live up to his blue-chip recruit status, he could be a three-year starter for the Wolverines.
2. Brandin Hawthorne, Soph. LB/S: With Michigan moving to more of a 4-2-5 look on defense this season, Hawthorne could be the guy to replace Stevie Brown at a linebacker/safety hybrid position. Hawthorne played linebacker in high school, but came into Michigan last season undersized even by safety standards. Now, at 6-0, 202 pounds, Hawthorne can play the boundary safety role, and will most likely compete with Mike Williams and Jordan Kovacs at the position. Williams was perhaps the biggest disappointment on a very disappointing defense last year, and Kovacs is still limited athletically, so there is definitely an opportunity for Hawthorne to step in and take a starting spot with a strong spring performance.
3. Michael Cox, RS Soph. RB: With Vincent Smith sitting out spring practice while he recovers from a torn ACL, the running back position is wide open. Junior Michael Shaw, redshirt freshman Fitzgerald Toussaint, and early enrollees Austin White and Stephen Hopkins will all compete for playing time, but don’t overlook the potential for Cox to see ample snaps with the first team this spring. At 6-0, 210 pounds and with ideal athleticism for a running back (and without the injury history of Shaw or Toussaint), the former three-star prospect could vault himself from seldom-used backup to starting tailback if he can translate that athleticism and size to the football field.
4. J.B. Fitzgerald, Jr. LB: Even though Michigan returns two fifth-year seniors at inside linebacker, the position is far from stable — Obi Ezeh and Jonas Mouton both struggled mightily last season, opening up the possibility for one of Michigan’s younger linebackers to prove themselves worthy of a starting spot. Fitzgerald showed flashes of potential last season when filling in for Ezeh, displaying an aggression that the Wolverines have lacked with Ezeh at middle linebacker. If he can harness that aggression and cut down on his mistakes, Fitzgerald could leave Michigan with little choice but to unseat Ezeh and give the junior a shot to solidify Michigan’s linebacker group.
5. Greg Banks, RS Sr. DT/DE: With the departure of Brandon Graham, playing time has opened up along the defensive line as well. Banks has yet to capitalize on his chances to see extended snaps in his Michigan career, but at 6-4, 274 pounds, he could add a lot of versatility to the line this year. Rich Rodriguez mentioned Banks as a candidate to see time at Graham’s vacated end spot, and Banks is already listed on the roster as a defensive tackle, where he could see time at Ryan Van Bergen’s old position (assuming that Van Bergen slides over to DE) as well. I still expect Michigan to roll out a starting line of Mike Martin, Will Campbell, and Van Bergen, but Banks could earn himself a role as a valuable contributor if he proves himself in his final season.

I should mention a few guys who could just as easily have made this list: Toussaint, Mike Jones, Isaiah Bell, Vlad Emilien, Justin Turner, J.T. Floyd, Cameron Gordon, Quinton Washington, Ricky Barnum, Patrick Omameh, and Taylor Lewan are all fighting for their first shot to become full-time starters, and players like White, Hopkins, Jeremy Gallon, and Anthony LaLota are looking to contribute in the fall as well.

Tomorrow, I’ll look at the five players who have the most to lose this spring. With so many position battles and fresh faces, it should be a very interesting spring.

Similar Posts:

• The Foundation: A Look at the 2009 Recruiting Class
• An Early Stab at the 2010 Depth Chart: Defense
• Spring Football: Five Players I’ll Be Watching
• Five Players With the Most to Lose in Spring Practice
• Early Guess at the Football Depth Chart: Now Updated for Spring

Spring practice starts this afternoon for Michigan football, and somehow the athletic department decided it’d be a good idea to let me in. Who knows what they were thinking, but I’ll be at this afternoon’s practice trying to absorb as much information as possible about next year’s team. Here are five players I’ll be keeping a close eye on throughout the spring:

1. Devin Gardner, QB: Okay, I’m not exactly going out on a limb here, but any Michigan fan who says they’re not interested in seeing what Gardner will bring to the table this year is lying to themselves. I still hope Gardner is afforded the luxury of a redshirt year, both for his sake (those mechanics need work) and Michigan’s (no more true freshman starters, please), but if Gardner can show the ability to contribute immediately it makes this team that much more stable: who knows how healthy Tate Forcier will be this season?
2. Justin Turner, DB: Turner, one of the top prospects in Michigan’s 2009 recruiting class, is a redshirt freshman who could hold the key to the secondary’s success this season. If he can show the type of ability that made him a can’t-miss prospect, and locks down one of the starting spots at either cornerback or safety, that’s one fewer question mark for Michigan’s struggling secondary in 2010. My hope is he’ll lock down one of the starting corner spots and allow Troy Woolfolk to play at safety come fall.
3. J.B. Fitzgerald, LB: If someone is going to unseat Obi Ezeh at middle linebacker, it’s Fitzgerald, who saw some playing time when Ezeh was benched in the latter half of the 2009 season. With a year of playing experience under his belt, Fitzgerald can now make a serious push for a starting role. Whether he gets one or not, the competition should help the inside linebackers improve after taking a big step back last season.
4. Fitzgerald Toussaint, RB: Another redshirt freshman, Toussaint was a standout on the scout team last year and could be in line for a lot of carries with Vincent Smith sitting out spring practice with a torn ACL. Toussaint put up ridiculous numbers in high school and has a ton of talent, and even when Smith returns he could be the guy getting the majority of the carries this fall. With the numbers of competing players at tailback, however, Toussaint could just as easily be sitting third- or fourth-string in 2010, so performing well in spring practice is as important to him as it is to anyone on this team. With Brandon Minor and Carlos Brown gone, the tailback position is there for the taking — someone just needs to step up and perform.
5. Taylor Lewan, OT: Yup, another redshirt freshman. Lewan has drawn comparisons to Jake Long since the four-star prospect signed with Michigan in 2009, and if he adds enough size and strength to his huge frame (he’s listed on the spring roster at 6-8, 283), he could follow in Long’s footsteps and have a starting tackle spot as a redshirt frosh. It may be a year or two too early for Lewan, who didn’t start playing on the offensive line until his senior year of high school, but the competition for both tackle spots will be wide open. If Lewan has the strength, he may be the most talented lineman on the roster, and he has “prototype left tackle” written all over him.

I’ll check back in after practice with my initial impressions, an update on the new spring roster, and hopefully some pictures from the first day of spring ball.

Similar Posts:

• The Foundation: A Look at the 2009 Recruiting Class
• Five Players With the Most to Gain in Fall Practice
• Impressions from the First Spring Practice
• Five Players With the Most to Gain in Spring Practice
• Early Guess at the Football Depth Chart: Now Updated for Spring

With the recruiting class of 2010 signed, Michigan football fans can officially turn their attention to spring practice, and ultimately how the team will look come fall. With some assistance from MGoBlog’s depth chart by class and the resources available at The Wolverine (including Michael Spath’s very early look at the 2011 depth chart and Matt Pargoff’s in-depth look at this year’s recruiting class), I’ve done my best to project how the depth chart will look like this fall. Yesterday, I took a look at the offense. Today, it’s the defense’s turn.

I’ve tried to include every notable scholarship player, including all the true freshmen. Because of this, and the uncertainty of many player’s positions heading into spring practice, I recommend taking the positions listed below with a grain of salt, especially along the offensive line and defensive secondary — at this point, it’s far too early to know who will be playing where. Instead, I wanted to do this to get a feel for the talent and depth of the team, and also be able to use this as a reference for player eligibility. For player eligibility, I’m using what MGoBlog has listed, and for player heights and weights I’m referring to last year’s official roster or Rivals’ recruiting data — I’ll do my best to note if a player has made reported weight gains or losses where applicable. Without further ado, let’s check out the depth chart:

Defensive Line: Despite the loss of Brandon Graham, the defensive line should be the best unit for the Michigan defense in 2010. The key will be the development of sophomore Will Campbell, who has the size and talent to be a very good nose tackle. With Campbell eating space in the middle, junior Mike Martin can slide over the DT position played by Ryan Van Bergen last season, which is more suitable for a player of his size and skill set. Van Bergen, a natural end, should have no problem moving to Graham’s vacated DE spot. Throw in a full offseason of weight training for sophomore Craig Roh, who started at the Quick position last season despite not enrolling early, and a unit that was noticeably undersized in 2009 should be athletic and big in 2010. As for the backups, redshirt freshman Anthony LaLota will be a player to watch at defensive end, while senior Renaldo Sagesse will likely be the primary backup at both tackle positions. There is a lot of talent among the incoming freshmen, but the rotation could be tough to crack for players who are a little undersized (Wilkins, Black, Talbott) or out of shape (Ash, who is rumored to currently weigh over 300 pounds). Seniors Adam Patterson and Greg Banks will provide depth, but given their careers to date, I wouldn’t expect much more than that from them.

Linebacker: Michigan has a lot of experience at linebacker, but you could say the same about last year’s disappointing unit. Seniors Obi Ezeh and Jonas Mouton are your prohibitive favorites to start in the middle and on the weak side, respectively, but their underwhelming performances last season have opened up an opportunity for younger players to earn a starting role. Junior J.B. Fitzgerald saw playing time last season when Ezeh was benched, and with another season of experience he probably has the best shot at unseating one of the senior linebackers, although athletic redshirt sophomore Kenny Demens and former walk-on Kevin Leach will also compete for snaps. The position battle to watch may be over at spinner, where the graduation of Stevie Brown has opened a starting spot. Second-year players Isaiah Bell, Brandin Hawthorne, and Mike Jones all practiced at spinner last year, and all three should get an opportunity to see a lot of playing time in 2010 (although Bell might have grown into the WLB spot — he’s got 15-20 pounds on Hawthorne and Jones). I haven’t seen any of the three since last spring, but I like Hawthorne — the only one of the three to play linebacker in high school, and a great athlete — as the favorite for the spinner position. Of the true freshmen, Josh Furman probably has the best shot of earning playing time, also at the spinner position, while we can expect Antonio Kinard and Jake Ryan to redshirt in 2010.

Secondary: This is where things get crazy. The only guarantee for Michigan’s 2010 secondary is that Troy Woolfolk will start — only we don’t know whether he’ll be starting at cornerback or safety. I think Woolfolk will end up at safety for a couple reasons: (1) the safeties have to make pre-snap checks, something that I trust a senior to do much more than a freshman and (2) cornerback is a much easier position to come in and play immediately as a freshman. I expect Woolfolk to start at strong safety (the deep safety in Michigan’s defense) alongside redshirt freshman Vlad Emilien — a player some thought should have seen the field in 2009 — at free safety. True freshmen Marvin Robinson and Carvin Johnson, redshirt freshman Thomas Gordon, redshirt sophomore Jordan Kovacs and junior Mike Williams will also compete for a spot at safety, but I think Emilien will ultimately win the job (in this case, it might be an advantage to have not played last year).

At corner, I expect redshirt freshman J.T. Turner — one of the highest-rated prospects Michigan brought in last year and a standout on the scout team — to start, and true freshman Demar Dorsey is too talented to keep off the field next season. True freshmen Cullen Christian and Terrence Talbott, as well as redshirt sophomore J.T. Floyd, will also compete for playing time, but I think the pure talent of Turner and Dorsey will be a lot to overcome. If you’re keeping score, that means I think Michigan will start a senior, two redshirt freshmen, and a true freshman in their secondary next year. The talent level and the experience are both scary, but in very different senses of the word.

Punter: True freshman and Army All-American Will Hagerup will have the first shot at the vacated punter position, and I expect he’ll be the guy to take over from the immortal Zoltan Mesko. Kickoff specialist Bryan Wright has a big leg and could be called upon to handle punting duties if, for some reason, Hagerup doesn’t win the job.

Similar Posts:

• 2010 Official Depth Chart Breakdown: Defense/Special Teams
• Brandon Smith Transferring, and Another Look at the 2010 Defense
• Early Guess at the Football Depth Chart: Now Updated for Spring
• Position Threat Levels: Severe
• A (Very) Early Look at the 2010 Defense

Yesterday I took my (very) early look at the 2010 offense. Today, we take a look at the dark side of the moon defense, which should return nine starters from a unit that, well, stunk in 2009. [Note: I will be referring to players by what class they will be in for 2010. For example, Donovan Warren will be referred to as a senior.]

Defensive End: Might as well get this out of the way — Brandon Graham will be sorely missed, no matter how good his replacements are. It’s tough to replace 10.5 sacks and 26 tackles for loss with three guys (which may be what Michigan tries to do), let alone expecting just one player to step and come close to replicating that type of production. Michigan does return starter Ryan Van Bergen, who put up a solid season and could slide over into Graham’s vacated spot. He’s got the size to hold down the strong side of the line, and his five sacks show he has the ability to get to the quarterback. The other DE spot is very much up for grabs — Greg Banks and Adam Patterson are both redshirt seniors who have failed to make much of an impact in their four years in the program, while redshirt freshman Anthony LaLota was an Army All-American who could vault ahead of both seniors based on his prodigious talent. Incoming freshman Ken Wilkins has the frame to be a DE down the road, but at 6-4, 244, he’ll probably take a redshirt year. The hybrid LB/DE spot has a lot fewer questions, as Craig Roh came in the fall and locked down the starting role as a true freshman. If he adds some bulk, he could become a real force as a pass-rusher and speedy playmaker on the edge. Junior Brandon Herron will return as his backup, and incoming freshman Jordan Paskorz will provide depth, although he will likely redshirt as well given the returning players at the positon.

Defensive Tackle: There’s a lot of promise at DT for the Wolverines, with talented junior Mike Martin returning along with senior Renaldo Sagesse and sophomore (and former five-star recruit) Will Campbell. Martin struggled a bit as he adapted to playing the nose tackle in Greg Robinson’s hybrid defense, but was still one of the Wolverines’ most consistent performers on defense. Both Sagesse and Campbell showed solid improvement as the season wore on, and should get solid playing time in 2010. One possibility that has been thrown around by Michigan fans is for Martin to slide over to Van Bergen’s position, with Van Bergen taking Graham’s DE spot and Sagesse or Campbell taking over at nose tackle. If Sagesse or Campbell can hold their ground at nose tackle, I like this possibility, as it frees up Martin to be more of a threat to penetrate into the backfield (something he did with regularity as a freshman) and gives Michigan more size up front to stop the running game. We’ll have to wait until the spring, at the earliest, to see if this is an option. Michigan has also secured a commitment from DT Terry Talbott, but at 6-4, 255, he’ll probably take a redshirt year to add some weight before he sees the field.

Linebacker: If it wasn’t for the safeties, no position group would scare me as much as the linebackers (and it’s pretty close, anyway). Stevie Brown, who turned into Michigan’s most consistent linebacker in 2009, is gone from the weakside spot, leaving seniors Obi Ezeh and Jonas Mouton as the Wolverines’ returning starters. Ezeh and Mouton both took steps back this fall, struggling to the point of being benched multiple times in the latter half of the season. The Wolverines will need to see more aggressiveness from Ezeh, more discipline from Mouton, and a better understanding of Robinson’s schemes from both if the defense is going to improve substantially next year. Both will face competition, as redshirt junior (and former walk-on) Kevin Leach and juniors J.B. Fitzgerald and Kenny Demens all saw the field last season. Fitzgerald, a former four-star recruit, has the best change to take one of the middle linebacker spots, but don’t sleep on Demens, who saw limited action but is an athletic freak who could emerge as an upperclassman. The competition is even more open for Brown’s old spot, with sophomore Brandin Hawthorne and redshirt freshmen Isaiah Bell and Mike Jones all in the mix, potentially joined by redshirt sophomore Brandon Smith, who bounced between linebacker and safety but looks more promising (in my opinion) as a linebacker candidate. The bad news for Michigan is this position group played very poorly in 2009, and loses their best player. The good news is that there are a lot of talented players vying for just three spots. Hopefully some spirited competition, as well as a year of experience under Robinson, will fuel some better play in 2010.

Cornerback: Despite losing Boubacar Cissoko, and having a revolving door at the second cornerback spot all season, this group actually looks like it will have a lot of depth next season. Senior Donovan Warren has said that he will return next season (he will ask the NFL about his draft status, but unless he gets told he’ll be a first-rounder, he’ll likely be back), giving Michigan a lock-down cornerback on one side of the field. The status of the other corner spot will be determined by senior Troy Woolfolk, and specifically whether he’ll stay at corner or return to safety. If he does stay at corner, he’ll be the man opposite Warren, and his solid performance in 2009 — despite being moved from safety mid-season — gives Michigan a chance to have two very dependable cornerbacks in 2010. Redshirt sophomore J.T. Floyd will be back, and should provide depth or potentially start if Woolfolk is a safety, and sophomore Teric Jones should improve with a full year at cornerback under his belt. Redshirt freshman Justin Turner is the big wild card here — the highly-touted prospect was being hailed as the next great Wolverine corner before academic issues forced a redshirt. He could see the field — and start — at either corner or safety, depending on need and his ability to adapt to the college game. Michigan also has commitments from three cornerback prospects — Courtney Avery, Terrence Talbott, and Adrian Witty (who qualified after sitting out last season and enroll in January) — and are the favorites for Rivals100 prospect Cullen Christian (who will announce his decision tonight) and three-star Tony Grimes. Senior James Rodgers, who has bounced around between receiver and defensive back his whole career, will also provide depth. That’s a lot of bodies at corner, so we could (and probably will) see at least one player switch over to safety. It feels strange to say this, but I’m actually confident that the cornerbacks will be a strong point of the defense in 2010.

Safety: Oh, boy. This position was a total disaster in 2009, with Michigan trying everything from a freshman walk-on (Jordan Kovacs) to a safety-turned-linebacker-turned-safety (Brandon Smith) to just playing Donovan Warren in a deep half from the cornerback position. Michigan does return both starters, Kovacs and Mike Williams, but neither player’s job is remotely safe. Redshirt freshman Vladimir Emilien will have a shot at the starting job, and Woolfolk would be almost guaranteed a spot if he moved over. Justin Turner is also a possibility, as well as Brandon Smith and J.T. Floyd, and even redshirt freshman Thomas Gordon and walk-ons Floyd Simmons and Jared Van Slyke. In fact, you may have a shot as well. It’s that open. I’d be crazy to even begin to guess who will be playing safety when Michigan opens against UConn next fall, so the conjecture ends here. This position group could be anything from the unmitigated disaster it was in 2009 to passably competent, and anywhere in between.

Outlook: Well, the defense certainly can’t be worse than this year’s. Losing Graham will hurt tremendously, but expected improvement across the board for the rest of the defense should mean that this team will be better in 2010. How much better will depend on a wild variety of factors, especially the personnel at linebacker and in the secondary — it’s far too early to guess, and as we found out this year, even the best guesses can be horribly, horribly wrong. We’ll just have to wait and see.

Similar Posts:

• Position Preview: Cornerback
• 2010 Official Depth Chart Breakdown: Defense/Special Teams
• Brandon Smith Transferring, and Another Look at the 2010 Defense
• An Early Stab at the 2010 Depth Chart: Defense
• Early Guess at the Football Depth Chart: Now Updated for Spring