7 Michigan players landed in Mel Kipers latest 2023 draft board
Of course I am far more invested in the pending CFP, but here is Mel Kiper's latest draft board. No real surprises...
Olu #2 Center
Zinter #3 Guard
Morris #3 OLB (I thought this was odd. I see him more of a DE but ok...)
Corum #5 RB (Ha Ha, some team is going to get a real gem in the 3rd/4th round. HINT HINT Lions)
Mazi #5 DT
Moody #4 Specialist
Robbins #10 Specialist
Mel also noted 3 Wolverines that "just missed the cut"
Hayes, Turner, and Okie...
Link for anyone interested in the article....
December 11th, 2022 at 12:05 PM ^
I agree about Okie, but I think with another year of development in our program, he could go very highly.
Does Sainristil have any eligibility left after this year?
December 11th, 2022 at 12:42 PM ^
Sainristil recently indicated that he'll be returning, which is great.
I think he has played four seasons, but he'll be using the COVID freebie to play another.
December 11th, 2022 at 12:13 PM ^
Well, I would imagine Kiper might like to see him play more than one team with a QB and WRs.
December 11th, 2022 at 12:29 PM ^
Fair point, although a bit exaggerated, I think. We should know more after TCU.
December 11th, 2022 at 2:56 PM ^
Maybe, but more context is important here. He is the 3rd, maybe 4th best CB on Michigan. So not seeing him listed in the top 10 for the country should not be a surprise. At CB, you could be the 15th best player and still be in the 3rd or 4th round. This is not a position like QB where being ranked 7th means you go undrafted.
but being the 3rd CB on a Big Ten team means you saw very little talent to play against. Especially if you play on Michigan, since we are one of the very few teams with WR depth.
December 11th, 2022 at 12:14 PM ^
The NFL draft grade will be tough for Sainristil since he's small (listed at 5'10" but probably shorter) and not particularly fast (probably around a 4.5)
December 11th, 2022 at 12:34 PM ^
I can see he's short, and I've presumed he's not particularly fast. But he has some freaky agility that helps him close on receivers. He also seems to have some preternatural ability to take good angles for tackling, and maybe that's just not a factor for the NFL.
December 11th, 2022 at 1:14 PM ^
Oh yea he definitely has positive attributes, and as you mentioned earlier, the trajectory is really encouraging with him being a first year defensive player.
The NFL is ridiculously competitive though. Jourdan Lewis is only a nickel in the NFL, as he's not big and fast enough to play on the outside. I think the NFL will want to see more coverage skills from Sainristil (NFL WRs line up all over the place, so nickels will have to deal with a wide variety of players in the slot, including TEs on occasion).
December 11th, 2022 at 3:10 PM ^
Okie has the athleticism and would test well at the combine I’d bet. His gaps are in technique and scheme knowledge. I think with another year here he could round into an Ojabo type
December 11th, 2022 at 12:02 PM ^
"" Morris #3 OLB (I thought this was odd. I see him more of a DE but ok...)"
Yeah it's super weird Hutchinson and Ojabo were listed as linebackers on the official umich website too.
I guess enough OLB blitz sometimes and DE drop into zone they become interchangeable? Still seems like a pretty obvious difference between players like Hutchinson and Morris whom you wouldn't want covering a RB/TE route but they also can stuff a run play much better than a typical OLB.
December 11th, 2022 at 12:07 PM ^
They aren't really DEs in a 3-4 scheme, especially Ojabo. I think Morris can, and obviously Hutch can too, but in a 3-4 they're definitely OLBS, a la RaGary when he was drafted.
December 11th, 2022 at 12:07 PM ^
Bad news is this hurts the chances of Zinter staying. Good new is it could help with Keegan staying.
December 11th, 2022 at 1:17 PM ^
Was Zinter ever really staying? It seems like all we heard from supposed insiders was that he was definitely going to the NFL ASAP.
December 12th, 2022 at 5:40 AM ^
December 11th, 2022 at 12:08 PM ^
Hayes, Turner, and Okie still have eligibility? If so, they should come back. Mel says so.
December 11th, 2022 at 12:13 PM ^
Mel just says they’re not top 10 at their position. Doesn’t mean NFL GMs feel the same. And guys just outside the top 10 OT, CB and DE are still picked in rounds 3-5
December 11th, 2022 at 12:15 PM ^
Hayes is gone (accepted Senior Bowl invite)
Turner is still deciding.
Okie said he'd be back after the OSU game, but I wouldn't be surprised to see him reconsider based on his draft grade.
December 11th, 2022 at 2:47 PM ^
I think Okie is definitely back. Reports are he realizes he needs another year to work on technique, strength and conditioning, and more experience.
That's being said, I think he could be a game wrecker next year. Throw in another year of development for McGregor, Moore, and Harrell and potential transfers and the DLine looks stacked (please come back Jenkins 🙏)
December 12th, 2022 at 3:17 AM ^
I would be excited about a Jenkins-Graham-Grant-Benny rotation at DT.
December 11th, 2022 at 12:09 PM ^
Hayes, Turner, Okie come back for another year
December 11th, 2022 at 12:23 PM ^
Equivalent draft grades (based on results from last year's draft):
- Olusegun Oluwatimi: 2nd round
- Zak Zinter: mid-late 1st round
- Mike Morris: 2nd round. Would be 1st round if he's the #3 DE
- Blake Corum: 3rd-4th round
- Mazi Smith: 3rd-4th round
- Jake Moody: 6th round
- Brad Robbins: UDFA
- Ryan Hayes: 5th-6th round
- DJ Turner: 3rd-4th round
- Eyabi Okie: 3rd round
December 11th, 2022 at 12:23 PM ^
This is great for recruiting.
December 11th, 2022 at 12:41 PM ^
OLB is often used as a fill in for edge rusher.
December 11th, 2022 at 1:09 PM ^
I know this feels like a settled question, but is there ANY chance Corum returns?
December 11th, 2022 at 1:38 PM ^
There's always a chance until it's official.
December 11th, 2022 at 2:58 PM ^
What is the expected salary of a 4th round pick × the probability of making/staying on a roster to collect? Maybe $1M/year x 50% the first year, then 30% and 15% in years 2 and 3. So $500k the 1st year. Add in agent fees insurance, etc and maybe it's $300k. You want to go as early as you can to get the 2nd contract as early as possible, but not so early you don't stay on a roster.
NIL can be influential here. Let's say $200k plus a free master's degree is probably enough to get many mid and later round picks to stay. It delays that 2nd contract, but if you assume you are unlikely to get it and the miles don't diminish probability:
Go: $500k + $300k + $150k + $50k (reg job)= $1000k
Stay: $200k + $500k + $300k + $150k = $1150k
These are probably pretty close if I did a time value of money comparison which rewards Going.
Not related to Corum, but an athlete probably needs $200k + in NIL to financially justify staying.
December 11th, 2022 at 1:54 PM ^
Mel also has Schoonmaker as #10 ranked TE
December 11th, 2022 at 3:21 PM ^
Hopefully it means DJ and Okie return. Not sure if Hayes is out of eligibility or not.
Corum (as long as the knee is OK) definitely looks like a steal in the 4th round. This year he proved he can get a yard or two after contact.
I could see someone taking a late round flyer on Blake. Robbins has had a bit of an offyear (worst average) relative to last year. But glad he came back.
December 12th, 2022 at 5:42 AM ^
Hayes accepted a Senior bowl invite. He's gone.
December 11th, 2022 at 4:47 PM ^
Mel Kiper is essentially an old ranting man in a nursing home.
December 12th, 2022 at 12:04 AM ^
Are there 4 better DTs than Mazi? I do believe there are, but man if those guys are better than Mazi they must be animals. Also see morris as a DE not OLB, hard to imagine him dropping in coverage
December 12th, 2022 at 10:10 AM ^
There is a tendency among fans (myself included) to overrate our guys in a relative sense to peers. We see them play every game and on top of that we have detailed breakdowns, including film clips from the UFRs. We see a bit of other Big Ten players, and even less of national guys outside of the conference. We're watching all of the big games but generally are focused on the skill positions, and even then may only see the players 2-5 times.
This might explain why we can't figure out why our guys aren't rated higher- we just aren't getting the exposure to the guys rated ahead of them.