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

[Programming note: I'm headed to Rock the Bells, a ridiculously awesome one-day hip hop music festival, in New York City this weekend. I will be in a car all day on Friday and Sunday and spending all of Saturday at the show. If anything breaks, I'll do my best to put something up when I have some downtime, but this will likely be the only post of the weekend -- if I find some spare time, I might try to squeeze in a special teams preview, but I make no promises. I'll be back with much more season preview material on Monday.]

Returning Contributors: Jordan Kovacs (RS So.), Kevin Leach (RS Jr.), Mike Williams (RS Jr.), Brandin Hawthorne (So.), Vlad Emilien (So.), Floyd Simmons (RS So.), Jared Van Slyke (RS Jr.), Zac Johnson (RS Jr.)
Ready to Contribute: Cameron Gordon (RS Fr.), Thomas Gordon (RS Fr.)
Incoming Freshmen: Josh Furman, Carvin Johnson, Marvin Robinson, Ray Vinopal
Key Departures: Stevie Brown

Returning Player Stats:

The Projected Starters: Redshirt sophomore and former walk-on Jordan Kovacs will line up at bandit — essentially what Michigan called the strong safety last year — after starting eight games and finishing second on the team in tackles in 2009. Kovacs surprisingly emerged when safety Michael Williams was benched for poor play last year and surpassed all expectations for a guy who made the team in open tryouts, showing a great nose for the football, solid hitting ability, and good discipline. Kovacs is somewhat limited physically, however, and his lack of top-end speed was exploited on a couple big plays last season. He probably won’t make any all-conference teams, but Kovacs is a steady player who won’t find himself out of position often, which is all the team can really ask from their safeties right now.

At spur — think Stevie Brown’s linebacker/safety hybrid position from last year — the competition is still ongoing for the starting spot, although it appeared heading into fall camp that redshirt freshman Thomas Gordon had grabbed the top spot on the depth chart. Gordon was a high school quarterback at Cass Tech (where he played alongside classmates Will Campbell and Teric Jones) who only started playing on defense as a senior, so he’s relatively inexperienced at the position. Nicknamed “Prison Abs” by Rich Rodriguez as a recruit, Gordon has the physical tools required to be a solid safety, but understandably needed to work on technique coming out of high school — we’ll see how much progress he has made in that regard this fall.

Redshirt freshman Cameron Gordon (no relation) appears to have locked down the free safety position after an outstanding spring followed a position change from wide receiver, where he practiced in 2009. At 6-3, 207 pounds, Gordon is a physical presence in the middle and has earned a reputation as a hard hitter in practice, although he struggled with his tackling during last weekend’s scrimmage. As a former receiver, Gordon should make some plays with the ball in the air, but there are legitimate questions about whether he has the fluid athleticism needed to be a solid cover guy in center field. Since neither Gordon has ever played a down of college football, we will have to wait until the fall to see how they’ll hold up in game conditions.

The Competition: While Kovacs and Cameron Gordon look to have put a stranglehold on their respective positions, there is still a lot of competition at Thomas Gordon’s spur position. Redshirt junior Kevin Leach is a former walk-on linebacker who moved to spur in the spring, and he has game experience after recording 46 tackles in 2009. Like Kovacs, Leach is pretty limited physically in comparison to his scholarship counterparts, but he makes solid decisions on the field, which could give him the chance to play a big role again this fall.

Also competing to start at spur are two highly-touted freshmen, Josh Furman and Marvin Robinson, who each possess tremendous athletic ability. Furman is a speedster who played running back and linebacker in high school, and at 6-2, 207 pounds he has the size to be a physical presence at safety. He was regarded as a raw prospect in need of a lot of coaching, however, which could limit his playing time, especially early in the season. Robinson lacks Furman’s top-end speed, but otherwise is a very good athlete and a strong physical presence. He could see time at any of the three safety spots, and I expect he’ll see the field a fair amount this fall. Redshirt junior walk-on Floyd Simmons brief time at linebacker while mostly contributing on special teams in 2009, and he is also in the mix at spur, although I’d be surprised if Rodriguez decided to go with two walk-ons for the box safety positions.

Another true freshman, Carvin Johnson, could also see the field at safety or potentially cornerback, where he has seen some practice time recently. Johnson was an unknown recruit when he committed to Michigan, but the recruiting buzz around him picked up significantly afterward — it appears Rich Rodriguez and his staff did very well in unearthing Johnson from Louisiana. He was known as a ball-hawking safety who was very strong in run support in high school, but like so may other safeties on the roster he may not have the elite speed necessary to be strong in deep coverage — like MGoBrian, I thought he was ticketed for a spot at spur or bandit until practice reports indicated otherwise. Again, we’ll have to see where he ends up.

At free safety, sophomore and former four-star recruit Vlad Emilien is Cameron Gordon’s closest competition. Emilien burned his redshirt to make one special teams tackle last season after missing his entire senior year of high school with a torn ACL — one day, someone will have to explain why college coaches routinely burn redshirts on players who make a few appearances on special teams. Anyways, Emilien is now a sophomore, but there are still concerns about that senior year injury and its lingering effects after Emilien has been victimized on big plays in each of the last two spring games — he may not have the speed needed to cover deep center field in this defense. With no film on him at safety from the past two years, Emilien is yet another unknown quantity at the safety position.

Others: Redshirt junior Michael Williams is a former Army All-American recruit who saw a lot of playing time at free safety last season, but despite recording 56 tackles he was benched for routinely being out of position and allowing big plays. Williams was supposed to be in the mix to start at spur this year, but reports from spring and fall camps have indicated that he has fallen behind the competition. He has all the physical tools needed to be the answer at any of the safety positions, but it appears he still hasn’t put it together enough mentally to earn the coaching staff’s trust.

Sophomore Brandin Hawthorne somehow managed to use up his redshirt with even less of an impact than Emilien, appearing on special teams in four games last season without recording a tackle. Hawthorne was a wiry linebacker in high school who was initially expected to compete for time at one of the strong safety positions, but when Emilien went down with an injury in the spring he backed up Cameron Gordon at free safety. Wherever he ends up, he’ll have to pass several players on the depth chart before he sees the field in any role beyond special teams in 2010.

A pair of walk-ons, Jared Van Slyke and Zac Johnson, have contributed on special teams, but neither is expected to see the field much on defense this season. True freshman Ray Vinopal was the lowest-rated recruit in the 2010 class — he might have a promising future, but I’d be very surprised if he saw anything more than mop-up and special teams duty this fall.

Outlook: Much like at cornerback, there is a lot of uncertainty surrounding the safety position for Michigan heading into the fall. Kovacs should be a solid, but unspectacular, presence at bandit, while the two Gordons appear physically ready to make an impact at the collegiate level but lack real game experience. There is so much unknown here that it seems fruitless to even try forecasting how this unit will perform, but it’s safe to assume that there will be some growing pains with so much inexperience on the field, especially as the coaches look for the right combination of players in the secondary. How the players and the staff adjust to those bumps in the road will play a huge role in Michigan’s success in 2010.

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

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

Similar Posts:

• The Foundation: A Look at the 2009 Recruiting Class
• Position Preview: Linebacker
• 2010 Official Depth Chart Breakdown: Defense/Special Teams
• Early Guess at the Football Depth Chart: Now Updated for Spring
• Position Threat Levels: Severe

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

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

I have nothing against Kevin Leach personally, but he is everything that is wrong with Michigan’s program.

Let me explain. It is not so much Leach himself that is the issue (in fact, not really at all), but his presence in the starting lineup for the Wolverines that says so much about the team’s ills this season. Leach started at middle linebacker over Obi Ezeh, a former freshman All-American and three-yard starter who appears to have regressed this season, like several other Michigan players. Leach is a redshirt sophomore walk-on, weighs just 206 pounds, and showed up to Saturday’s game in what appeared to be a replica Steven Threet jersey with no name on the back.

Meanwhile, Ezeh sat on the sidelines, along with J.B. Fitzgerald and Kenny Demens, four-star linebackers who can’t crack the lineup of the nation’s 81st-ranked defense.

What makes this situation even worse? Leach was one of the better Wolverines on the field Saturday, tallying 11 tackles and a sack.

It’s tough for me to get truly pissed off at Rich Rodriguez when this is what the team has to work with. Jay Hopson? Well, that’s another story, but if you really think that firing a position coach or two is going to change the direction of this program, I have some volcano insurance to sell you.

Yes, the offense sputtered terribly, but this is still an outfit being run by a true freshman quarterback, standing behind a makeshift line that lost its best player, handing the ball off to two senior running backs who can’t stay healthy and throwing the ball to a group of receivers that can’t stretch the field vertically. I don’t see much in that situation that falls on the shoulders of the head coach.

The defense sucks, plain and simple. The defense also now starts two walk-ons (underclassmen walk-ons at that), has just two senior starters, and has such little depth at every position that the defense is designed to need no situational substitutions (whether that is coincidence or not, I don’t know, but it sure as hell is necessary). Does the blame for that situation fall on a second-year head coach who has all of 1 1/2 recruiting classes under his belt? I don’t think so.

Who we blame at this point is largely irrelevant — firing Rich Rodriguez would only serve to set the program back a few more seasons, and I still think he’s the man to turn this program around; Lloyd Carr is retired; Bill Martin is a year away from joining Carr; the players are all college students. What is relevant is the need for patience. Programs don’t turn around overnight, and regardless of your thoughts on Rodriguez, this team was going to be in trouble no matter who took over for Carr — yes, Rodriguez’s style of play accentuated the team’s shortcomings, but those shortcomings were still present before he took over.

I’m just going to blame number 10 in white — not Kevin Leach, just number 10 in white.

Similar Posts:

• Position Preview: Linebacker
• Criticism is a Two-Way Street
• Position Threat Levels: High
• What About Lloyd?
• Bill Martin to Retire as AD in 2010