Karan Higdon considering the NFL Draft?
Obviously, a player needs to weigh all options, but it would really suck for Michigan if Higdon declares. He was one of the few bright spots in this anemic offense. In reading the rest of the article, it sounds like he'll be back but I was surprised he was even considering it to begin with.
http://www.heraldtribune.com/sports/20180101/college-football-michigans…
January 1st, 2018 at 11:21 PM ^
He's not ready for that. No way.
January 1st, 2018 at 11:41 PM ^
He averaged 6ypc behind this OLine. Why wait to see if you survive behind next year's? Better alive in the NFL than paralyzed or maimed and still in school.
January 1st, 2018 at 11:52 PM ^
Because it's not just his decision, it's the NFL's too.
January 2nd, 2018 at 8:33 AM ^
He’s a rb, the chance of injury is insanely high and he knows what our oline situation is, if he gets a draft grade above the 6th round id go if I was in his shoes
January 2nd, 2018 at 7:18 AM ^
That's incredibly misleading. He had nearly 2/3 of his season yardage against IU, Rutgers, and Minnesota; against everyone else he averaged a shade under 4.5 yards on not a lot of carries. Good luck to him if he goes, but a smaller back with not otherwordly athleticism isn't a recipe for draft success.
January 2nd, 2018 at 9:53 AM ^
Draft success? Here I thought it was all about actually making a team and playing. Brady did not have much “draft success.” If he is worried about getting drafted in day 1 or 2, he should stay, because Bama and Georgia have four of top 10 backs. RB is loaded this year, with Barkley and Love, too. Higdon is good enough to make a team, but he won’t have leeway with any mistakes.
As long as Walker stays and gets an actual opportunity to play, I would be okay with losing his talent. Yet, he’s a good player and we shouldn’t disparage our leading rusher every year.
January 2nd, 2018 at 12:50 PM ^
Maybe he thinks he'll get better coaching if he goes to the NFL. The head coach at Michigan did promote his own son to be the RB coach, maybe Higdon doesn't think he is getting the best coaching he can get.
January 2nd, 2018 at 12:55 PM ^
I'm not disparaing the leading rusher - I'm pointing out that a guy who got 2/3 of his yards against bad defenses and struggled at times holding onto the ball, isn't particularly big or uber-athletic, and has another year of eligiblity might not want to throw his name into the draft so that he's likely not selected and then has to go the FA route.
And stop it with the "Brady didn't have draft success" line. People have this one major outlier and they assume it applies to everyone. I'd love to be wrong, but Higdon going pro is likely not going to end with him even sticking to a roster.
January 2nd, 2018 at 9:53 AM ^
Draft success? Here I thought it was all about actually making a team and playing. Brady did not have much “draft success.” If he is worried about getting drafted in day 1 or 2, he should stay, because Bama and Georgia have four of top 10 backs. RB is loaded this year, with Barkley and Love, too. Higdon is good enough to make a team, but he won’t have leeway with any mistakes.
As long as Walker stays and gets an actual opportunity to play, I would be okay with losing his talent. Yet, he’s a good player and we shouldn’t disparage our leading rusher every year.
January 2nd, 2018 at 6:50 AM ^
Surely another year under this coaching scheme and o line will get him nfl ready
January 2nd, 2018 at 11:18 AM ^
gave you a +1 assuming sarcastic
January 2nd, 2018 at 9:48 AM ^
I think he’s “ready” but I don’t think it’s the best for him in terms of draft stock/money. I don’t think he’d go undrafted though. I don’t know his personal family situation so I don’t know whether he NEEDS the cash now (if that’s the case I’d understand). I just hope he comes back though, he amazed this season and was one of the few bright spots on the O.
January 2nd, 2018 at 11:06 AM ^
A RB's shelf life in the NFL isn't long so why not? He seems a lot more talented than some of the running backs I thought wouldn't do well in the NFL but stuck around. I think he can do well there. He really needs to work on his blocking ( small sample size, I just paid attention to it yesterday)
January 1st, 2018 at 11:21 PM ^
You flipping kidding me?
January 1st, 2018 at 11:22 PM ^
At best. Terrible idea.
January 2nd, 2018 at 1:01 AM ^
But where might he be drafted next year? He isn't a physical marvel and already has a year and a half of carries under his belt. The shelf-life of running backs in the NFL is short, so he should definitely be considering leaving. I don't know what he values so I am not going to be a snob and say one decision or the other would be correct FOR HIM. But if I were him, I would definitely leave if I was going to be drafted in rounds 4 or 5. Every year he stays in college he is losing millions of potential dollars.
I think it is ridiculous to say that a player shouldn't leave college when he could be making millions of dollars by leaving. He can always go back to college and get his degree when he also has millions of dollars in his bank account.
But as a running back who has a very slight chance of increasing his draft stock(and also a slight chance of getting an injury that depreciates his draft stock), it would definitely be in his best interest to at least consider going pro. It seems very disingenuous and selfish for a UM fan to say that a player shouldn't leave early to maximize their earning potential when they can provide us fans with a better chance at a better season. His decision should be made in his best interest, not for the University which has already made money off of him with a small compensation, nor the best interest of us fans.
Sorry that take disgusts me and I think you should have a more informed take before commenting here on Mgoblog.
January 2nd, 2018 at 7:20 AM ^
May not make a roster. Certainly won't make generational type money with his first contract, and the load on our tailbacks is pretty light right now. If he were C. Perry or Ty Wheatly getting mashed 25 times a game then yeah... Higdon will be part of a rotation and have another year to get bigger and stronger and learn pass pro.
January 2nd, 2018 at 8:56 AM ^
You missed his point! Regardless if Higdon decides to come back, he will never be Chubb or Barkley. He has physical limitations that those guys do not. If he can make 4th or 5th rd. money this season why wait go back to school get more wear and tear and still go in the same spots next year. We also act like he cannot learn to be a better pass protector in the league as well. There he can focus on his craft 24/7 and not have to worry about practice limitations or general college life getting in the way. I would love to have him back, but that’s totally speaking from a selfish place. If he can get drafted go for it. Also, getting drafted late just effects money. If he plays well in camp he’ll find himself on a roster. The potential rookie of the year in the NFL this season, was a 3rd rd. pick from a MAC school who no one pegged as a starter coming into the preseason.
January 1st, 2018 at 11:22 PM ^
Lots of young talent. Good for Karan if he leaves and gets drafted. Him staying will be a bonus for next season.
January 1st, 2018 at 11:35 PM ^
Huh? What bright spots?
Besides Evans and Higdon who have just been above average, nobody else stands out unless you think Walker's 2 carries this year were fantastic indicators of future performance or Samuels who we haven't seen or Taylor who was on the verge of being processed out of Michigan's recruiting class last year.
Go look at UGA's RB roster if you want to see bright spots.
Those are gamechangers who get drafted in the top 3 rounds. Karan Higdon is not like Chubb, Swift or Michel.
January 1st, 2018 at 11:39 PM ^
Haters hated on Thomas Rawls too
January 1st, 2018 at 11:42 PM ^
Well, we have three more RB’s coming in next year. Plus Evans will be back and we know he’s good. Have a feeling VanSummeren could surprise us by playing a few different positions next year as well.
January 2nd, 2018 at 12:02 AM ^
Van Summeren looks like his value will be in providing FB depth, not in carrying the ball. Or so one would hope. And Turner and Haskins don't exactly figure to be the types who will break into the rotation immediately as true freshmen.
January 2nd, 2018 at 8:59 AM ^
VanSummeren has about as a good a shot at seeing carries as Shallman did. Wyatt came from a bigger school and played against better competition in HS and he rarely saw the field as a TB, so why do you think this kid will?
January 1st, 2018 at 11:56 PM ^
Well 20 carries but I truly did think Walker looked promising in his very limited time running the ball. Seemed to decisively pick his lane and go. Maybe not a bright spot, but an intriguing piece perhaps? Hope whatever off the field drama is up now is resolved favorably. There's room for 3 backs.
January 2nd, 2018 at 12:30 AM ^
I mean, Higdon ran for about 1000 yards at 6ypc. Not sure about his draft grade, but I'm damn sure that was a bright spot of the season.
January 2nd, 2018 at 11:11 AM ^
He ran for almost 1k yards and didn't get a lot of carries the first few games or the last few games because of injury.
January 1st, 2018 at 11:22 PM ^
Can't fault a guy, especially a RB, for weighing his options. RBs don't usually have very long careers, so make the money while you're still able-bodied.
I love the way Higdon runs. I remember his first couple carries as a wolverine. You could tell that there was something there just by how hard he hit the hole, but always seemed to be tripped up by the slimmest of margins.
Been fun watching him progress into the physical runner he has become. One of my favorite Wolverines on the team.
January 2nd, 2018 at 12:54 AM ^
His draft position won't reflect how talented he is. Would love to see another year, maybe with Anthony Thomas level stats and a 200-yard game against State.
January 1st, 2018 at 11:22 PM ^
That would be my strong preference.
January 1st, 2018 at 11:24 PM ^
We are the worst, dude plays his heart off all year. Averages 6 yards a carry.
January 1st, 2018 at 11:23 PM ^
You don't talk about going pro after a devastating loss when your fumble started the collapse. That's just not smart
January 1st, 2018 at 11:25 PM ^
Cant be fun playing football at Michigan
January 1st, 2018 at 11:24 PM ^
Pile on. Oh, and to all my fellow Wolverines: a very Happy New Year! I didn't see that posted here since around game time.
And the wish is sincere.
January 1st, 2018 at 11:23 PM ^
How can he possibly turn down the opportunity to play another year in this offense?
January 1st, 2018 at 11:26 PM ^
I laughed... then cried...
January 1st, 2018 at 11:29 PM ^
I know you're the board pessimist, but Higdon had ~1000 yards rushing this year while splitting snaps with Evans and even Isaac to some extent. He produced an impressive season behind a bad OL and with little help from the passing game.
If things only slightly improve on the OL next year, he gets a larger work load, or Patterson alleviates the shitty pass game, Higdon could be in for a huge season.
January 1st, 2018 at 11:32 PM ^
Board pessimist? Am I supposed to be singing the praises of this offense? I hope Higdon returns and is rewarded with better QB play, better OL play, and more creative playcalling, but I sure as hell wouldn't blame him if he didn't want to spend next season running into stacked fronts over and over again.
January 2nd, 2018 at 7:41 AM ^
Keep calling them the way you see them SB.
Realty might suck, but it is real.
January 1st, 2018 at 11:24 PM ^
Go my man. OL play isnt gonna get better for you here and as a RB your career is short.
January 1st, 2018 at 11:31 PM ^
Good luck Hig
January 2nd, 2018 at 10:12 AM ^
The o-line has actually improved every year under Harbaugh. Next year, Kugler is gone, Onwenu and Ruiz anchor the middle, Runyan finally gets it all together at RT, Brederson moves to LT or stays at RG and Filiaga takes his redshirt year and wins a spot at LT. Longshott: Grant Newsome comes back and is serviceable backup to start year.
The incessant pessimism about actual player development is ridiculous, especially in a thread about Higdon, who did not simply develop on his own into a 6ypc dude. To discredit the line growth, to discredit Higdon’s growth—and to ignore coaches’s roles in the development is silly.
Offense is harder to play than defense, harder to learn scheme. Defense is reactionary. Learning how to block is harder than learning how to break through or run around.
Peters has one really bad bowl game. He is a freshman. Played five games? He played at end of season against hardest competition. He didn’t get to play against Air Force or a directional, then got a concussion. He still has more skills than those leaving.
January 2nd, 2018 at 11:19 AM ^
Something like 60% of Higdon's yardage came against IU, Rutgers, Maryland, and Minnesota.
Outside of those games he averaged 4.0 yards per carry and only 10.5 carries per game. You'll have to forgive me for not gushing over higdon when the bulk of his production came at the expense of the bottom of the big ten.
January 2nd, 2018 at 3:25 PM ^
I'm not going to disagree with the majority of your post, but I will with the Peters part. This was a bowl game - literally the end of the year. Saying Peters is a freshman ignores that this game was the culmination of 2.5 years with the program (he was an EE).
If that's the best he has, I don't see a third spring and third summer camp drastically changing his decision making or accuracy. Every time pressure came, instead of throwing it away early, he quacked the thing to the sideline while taking a big hit. He was behind and outside too much - guys were open, and he missed them constantly. McCAffrey better be the real deal.
January 1st, 2018 at 11:24 PM ^
Hes small and cant pass protect. He should come back and work on catching out the backfield. But isaying all that i woudlnt come back if drevno is the coach
January 2nd, 2018 at 5:19 AM ^
How can he work on catching out the backfield when we barely throw the ball to the RB? We needed s screens all year long,how many have u seen?
January 1st, 2018 at 11:25 PM ^
Higdon also missed blocks on a couple of pass plays that led to sacks of Michigan quarterback Brandon Peters. However, his most egregious error came during the following series.
With Michigan up 16-3, Higdon was held up by 6-foot-5, 312-pound defensive lineman Ulric Jones and had the ball jarred loose.
Also: 65 yards on 17 carries.
Not exactly an NFL performance.
January 2nd, 2018 at 1:18 AM ^
And he’s going to be a top five pick.
January 2nd, 2018 at 6:59 AM ^
Gordon and Evans have been here long enough where they should not be making so many of these awful plays. Gotta wonder how they're being coached at this point.
January 2nd, 2018 at 9:03 AM ^
Also, he left a few years ago.