UM=OLU? PFF states Michigan has most OL in NFL
https://x.com/PFF_College/status/1787469110756196571
Per X post, PFF states that two time Joe Moore winner has most linemen in the NFL, and it’s not close. It’s amazing considering the state of the OL back in the early and even late 2010s for Michigan, and the lack of production in the league from that unit.
OLU, yes, but also Olu Oluwatimi
Isn’t that some Carnival or euro soccer song? OLUUUU, Olu, Olu, OLUUUU
OLU was pretty good during his time here.
Came to post this, so you get the +1 instead.
What is a bit fascinating is the recruitment rankings, which I don't believe M has dominated on the OL during this span. To what extent does coaching in college transform players and turn them into NFL caliber? Perhaps one of our beloved mods could put together some sort of analysis. I know (from what I've read here) ratings of high school OL is less reliable than most any other position. And the difference physically between a 17 year-old and a 22 year-old are enormous. Can coaching make the man? Or has Michigan simply recruited smarter?
I suspect that the coaches who are best at developing OL talent are the same ones who are best at identifying it.
I don't care what an OL is rated. If Sherrone Moore offers him, he's probably a good recruit. The inverse of this was the Hoke years.
On the flip side, Hoke could take a couple of kids in a trenchcoat and turn it into a decent rotational DL piece.
Recruiting rankings tend to favor the large athletic freaks that project as pure tackles. Michigan has excelled at getting guys on the interior and developing them into absolute maulers.
I think coaching plays a major role in OL development. Hoke recruited pretty well in the trenches iirc, but it didn’t show on the field. Harbaugh’s first few OL didn’t pan out so much either. It was when Moore got the OL gig that things fell into place.
Hoke did recruit well for the DL (and coached 'em up), but the OL recruiting/development was hit or miss.
I would have expected Alabama to be ahead of some of the others. They had some really good lines.
That Bama OL that we went up against in Arlington in 2012 was amazing.
Left to right, that line went Cyrus Kouandjio (2nd round), Chance Warmack (1st round), Barrett Jones (4th round), Anthony Steen (undrafted), DJ Fluker (1st round).
And they were backed up by C Ryan Kelly (1st round), OG Arie Kouandjio (4th round), and OT Austin Shepherd (7th round).
Both Jones and Kelly won the Rimington Trophy for being the nation's best center.
Saw your projected depth chart, which has Tuttle and Persi starting. Was that an error ?
Indeed, per SI.
"Being big, athletic, aggressive, smart and in a winged helmet along the offensive line has proven to be a smart career decision in recent years."
Perhaps this article should be forwarded to parents of the OL considering different schools - and, might have Michigan on their radar.
OR - part of a small set of reading material as they fly into DTW for a visit.
That’s pretty amazing since it seems like in most years, our top tackle choices go to Bama or Georgia (Stanford had a run also) and ND snags the guards.
Better coaching. Period.
I love that Michigan does such a great job of developing offensive line players.
When I teach, I consider my primary task not simply to convey information but to develop habits of thought and encourage curiosity that enables students to develop themselves.
What subject do you teach?
Ass kicking
Plus, Michigan running a pro style offense sets these players up for an easy transition to the NFL. No relearning a new system is necessary with Michigan’s approach.
Tbh, NFL doesn't run a pro-style. It's an antiqued term from the 90s and early 00s. NFL has taken in on more high school/college concepts. The blocking scheme is pretty similar across the board like Pin/Pull, Power, Trap, Counter, Wham, etc.
What sets Michigan OL apart is they recieved good coaching and developed well. OL recruiting matters little in the overall grand scheme of things because it's so hard to project HS players as a OL since they usually come in undersized and need college S&C to get bigger and stronger.
By definition, isn’t whatever the NFL runs “pro-style”?
Technically, yes, but NFL runs a lot of college concepts borrowing from Air Raid, Run and Shoot, Pistol, etc. So pro style doesn't really mean anything anymore
This doesn’t surprise me too much.
Talent identification and development are part of the equation - so, this includes technique. Scheme is another key element - and, IMO Michigan runs schemes that resemble what teams that play on Sunday do.
I also give great credit to the players. Their effort in S&C - along with attention to detail - make a difference.
Rich Rod taking 1 OL in one class and 2 in the next set us back decades, thank you again Harbaugh, for restoring our OL depth!
That's still amazing to read. The incompetence is mind blowing
I railed on this incompetence at the time and quickly wanted him gone for having no one in the pipeline in a power, Big Ten conference. Some defend him and shredded Lloyd due to John Bacon, and his half a story told from the circle of trust point of view and devoid of input from Lloyd side. Which ones in the college football Hall of Fame I forget.
Admittedly, I did want him here initially for an opened up offense Which we only saw from Lloyd against urban xeyer and Florida. His effort did not raise me up.
There were only three in 2009, too, and one of them moved to the D-line. On the plus side, the other two played multiple years in the NFL.
IIRC, Lloyd Carr took 3 in '06 in one class and 1 in '07 class also screwed Rich Rod so OL depth wasn't there at the end of LC tenure all the way up to early Harbaugh tenure. It took years for Harbaugh to restore it.
I'm not going to say that they kept RichRod from succeeding at UM, but Lloyd's '05, '06, and '07 classes weren't very good.
Still, RichRod getting only one OL in '10 seems like an epic disaster, even in context (local press hounding him, etc.).
But he had 12 slot ninjas in every class!
LC didn't set up RR for success with the recent recruiting classes and lack of OL. RR did not do a good job of restocking OL by focusing so much on the skill position players. Hoke did a bad job of identifying and developing talent. It just a bad recruiting job by all three leading up to Harbaugh tenure.
That makes it even more crazy he did not take more Lineman to build and create depth.
Thanks for reminding me (and perhaps others) of the Dark Years... The last three years have been so enjoyable - those years found their way to be buried deep in the "forgotten memory".
We need to keep this up. Winning in the trenches will always give us an edge.
"We view offensive lineman as weapons here"
Wish he would have said that while coaching Michigan...
If you’re looking for evidence establishing how important player development and program culture is to on-field success, look no further than this. We don’t start with 5 star recruits on the OL, but they’re NFL-grade when we get done with them. The Michigan Difference.
Well, used right they are a weapon…or so I have heard.
We need as many as possible to stick this year, and then hold the line going forward, and then we can be called OL U. I don't think we are in lead yet, despite what PFF says.
"two time Joe Moore winner has most linemen in the NFL"
Sherrone is obviously an excellent OL coach, but Glasgow, Onwenu, Ruiz, Mayfield, Runyan, and Bredeson did not have Moore as their OL coach.
The correct statement is: "Michigan, whose head coach Sherrone Moore is a two-time winner of the Joe Moore Award, has the most offensive linemen in the NFL."
Moore was OL coach from Jan 2021-Spring 2023. Were all those guys before 2021? WTH!!!
Also, Michigan won the Joe Moore in the 2021 and 2022 seasons - when Moore was the OL coach.
TCU being tied with Bama and Georgia and ahead of Ohio State is crazy!
OSU’s numbers tell a story.
The fact that Michigan has this number (14) of OL in the NFL is interesting. Why do I say that? One reason is - OL, if they stay healthy - can contribute for "a while" in the League - a decade or more.
ND's number - 11 linemen, doesn't suprise me - since they had (IMO) a very solid OL coach - Harry Hiestand (who a few others on the web site also know) for quite a while. Harry brought NFL experience - focused on fundamentals - and developed those in the position group well.
The Buckeyes number - 9 OL - is a bit of a surprise. With the recruiting they've had over the past "decade plus" - I'd expect that figure to be higher. Perhaps this reflects coaching, S&C, and development.
Regardless - I hope Michigan continues to develop strong offensive lines - players with discipline, technique, and the "right amount of nasty".
Go Blue!
the next step is to have guys be All-pro or pro bowlers. We put a TON of guys in the league, but what has held us back as far as national perception is having top tier elite guys.