damani dent

Michigan probably wasn't going to be able to keep all three of their fantastic safety class last year, and it was no secret which was trending out, but I still hate to see this.

Dent was one half of my 2022 Sleeper of the Year pick (with Amorion Walker) when doing last year's writeups, a great athlete that Courtney Morgan got Michigan out in front for who drew close comparisons to Josh Metellus. Unfortunately Dent never got to show it in Ann Arbor. An injury (and rumored off-field issue) caused Dent to not be with the team for parts of 2022. He did travel for the Fiesta Bowl, and was back wearing #36 on the sideline of the spring game, barely playing, and still reportedly "in the doghouse."

Perhaps he was considering sticking that out, but with classmates Zeke Berry and Keon Sabb already starting to challenge the two-deep, the path to playing time was going to be long indeed.

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Previously: Podcast 14.0A, 14.0B, 14.0C. The Story. Quarterback. Running Back. Wide Receiver. Tight End. Offensive Tackle. Interior OL. Defensive Interior. Edge. Linebacker. Cornerback.

Depth Chart

With Dax Hill and Brad Hawkins off to the NFL, data here is suddenly thin. So is experience. Michigan does not have a scholarship safety with junior eligibility; they have just two guys in their third year on campus. That's a departure from the Hawkins Dynasty, which spanned from 834 to 1160 AD and saw Michigan repulse barbarian encroachment from Manchuria.

Things aren't totally bereft. Michigan started a true freshman in The Game last year and thing went ok; he's back, and so is the guy who started next to Hawkins for the bulk of the year. (Hill was basically a viper/leo/hero spacebacker.) There's a little experienced depth, and Michigan made hay with safety recruits after the OSU breakthrough.

You still wonder about a safety position without so much as a scholarship junior.

SAFETY: TOO YOUNG TO BORE?

RATING: 3

catch the baaaall [Bryan Fuller]

I didn't have much of an opinion on RJ MOTEN last year and it turns out Seth didn't either:

RJ MOTEN

Freshman safeties grading out around zero is fine, especially when the notes indicate that some of the minuses were because he was being asked to do things out of safety purview. Zero-ish means that they're in the right spot to dissuade throws, and that's a year one win. That's also why there are six editions of the world "boring" above, although one is actually "not boring." For the record around here, "boring" is a word of praise for a safety, one born of many exciting times where a Michigan safety would have his own private rumspringa when he was badly needed to tackle someone.

Previously: Last year's summary.

The profiles: S Damani Dent, S/Nk Zeke Berry, S/HSP Keon Sabb, CB Myles Pollard, CB/Nk Kody Jones, CB Will Johnson, LB Deuce Spurlock, LB Jimmy Rolder, DE/LB Micah Pollard, DE Derrick Moore, DT Mason Graham, DT Kenneth Grant, DT Cam Goode, T Andrew Gentry, T/G Connor Jones, G Alessandro Lorenzetti, C Olu Oluwatimi, TE Marlin Klein, TE Colston Loveland, WR Amorion Walker, WR Tyler Morris, WR Darrius Clemons, RB CJ Stokes, QB Jayden Denegal, QB/ATH Alex Orji.

We have made it through the annual summer project. It's my second time doing this, and this year it checked in at 82,596 words, including two transfers. I compared one guy to a cathedral, another guy to a Billie Eilish song, linked to double-digit articles referring to one guy as an extinct Ice Age mammal, and managed to say the words "Rabun Gap-Nacoochee" thirteen times without making things awkward. Let's wrap!

IT IS AN A-MINUS CLASS

Turns out beating Ohio State, winning the conference, and adding a handful of high 4-stars around Early Signing Day is a big deal. That was the difference between this class and the two that preceded it. Look at all the greeeeeeeen!

As is often the case, we're higher on this class than the industry.  A positional rundown:

• QB: C+. They're in the 5-star shadow. Both guys are long-term projects; barring a Tom Brady unicorn, only one has a very high ceiling.
• RB: C-. Hart banked on his scouting, how do you whiff on a thunderback after Haskins?
• WR: A. Two Nicos and a Ronnie Bell.
• TE: A-. Loveland is that star they barely missed in previous cycles, Klein is FAST.
• OL: C- or B- if you include Oluwatimi. Quickly dropped by top targets, Warinner guys. Lucky to get Lorenzetti & Gentry late.
• DT: B+. Graham and Grant would be big gets in any year. Goode should replace Jeter.
• DE: B. Moore is the blue chip we're not excited enough about. Didn't get a real edge-bender.
• LB: B+. Rolder falling in their laps salvaged the class, Spurlock has high upside.
• S: A+. Berry+Sabb+Dent would be a good class at any program.
• CB: A. Needed, got.
• SP: n/a

Late flips due to Harbaugh's program restabilizing itself ameliorated issues that plagued them over the course of the cycle. Getting McCarthy, Edwards, and a pile of promising OL in 2021 make up for (and likely contributed to) weaknesses in this class. But the pressure is on to address those positions in 2023, hence the freakout over Dante Moore (which was *NOT* just an NIL issue). They also need impact players immediately at linebacker and edge, which they failed to get in this class.

The defensive back class is special—I compared them to Marlin Jackson, Tripp Welborne, Rod Moore, Chidobe Awuzie, and Jeremy Clark, and that Rod Moore comp could have easily been Jabrill Peppers. The receiver crop is also incredible. Tyler Morris would have been a top-100 type if not for his injury, which shouldn't affect his career, Amorion Walker was a massive win over Notre Dame, and Clemons was a national prospect. Add the early returns on Andrel Anthony and Michigan is going to be set there for a while.