A series covering Michigan's 2010s. Previously: best blocks, the aughts.

Of course we would be the last to put out our all-2010s team. We meant to start with this episode but in the process of researching the OL a best blocks list was generated and had to be shared immediately.

Since it's a staff effort we decided these together and split the writeups. Then Brian got to 1200 words on Denard alone and we decided to split it into multiple posts. I'll note the author on each. On the methodology: instead of considering careers we will consider individual years, but the rule is we can only use a player once.

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FULLBACK

Khalid "Hammer Panda" Hill (2016)

–BiSB

We're told this inspired an entire Warcraft expansion

25 carries. 39 yards. 10 touchdowns. Simply glorious. The Hammering Panda was one of the most effective goal line and short yardage weapons Michigan has ever deployed. Virtually every Hill carry was a dive out of the I-formation. Everyone knew it was coming. And it was unstoppable. It was a simple matter of physics.

When he wasn’t vulturing touchdowns, he was a surprisingly nimble and sure-handed receiving option. He was also a plus blocker, especially in space—his +56/-10 UFR grade for the season has a lot of running in it, but it's also ten points higher than the next best total by a fullback this decade. His 13 touchdowns from scrimmage tied with Fitz Toussaint (2013) for the most scores in a season during the decade (non-Denard division)… on 41 touches.

Second Team: BEN MASON (2018)

If you were a running back for Michigan in 2018, your key was often pretty straightforward: follow Bench. Mason was a devastating lead blocker whose entire raison d'etre was to smash into things as hard as possible. As a ballcarrier, Mason accumulated a Panda-esque 33 carries for 80 yards and 7 touchdowns. He was occasionally deployed as a feature back in the red zone, a cruel decision that forced defenders to make some real choices about how they wanted to spend their afternoons.

Honorable Mention: 2017 Henry Poggi (+48/-20.5), 2015 Sione Houma (+46/-19.5), 2013 Joe Kerridge (+39/-14, person capable of pass blocking)

[After THE JUMP: Many names, few necks]

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TIGHT END

Jake Butt (2015)

--Seth

I have claimed this land and shall it Butt. [Bryan Fuller]

There's no contest here except which Butt season you put first. We're going with his 2015 effort when he was snubbed for the Mackey Award over his 2016 when they fixed their error by stealing the trophy from a more deserving George Kittle. But you can also make the case that Butt was a much better blocker as a senior, with any drop-off in passing efficiency attributable to a season of Jake Rudock versus one of Wilton Speight, injured Wilton Speight, and John O'Korn.

Year	Player	Targets	Catches	Yards	TD	Yds/Catch	YPT	CR	Tar Rt	Run+	Run-	Tot	Pass-
2015	Jake Butt	76	51	654	3	12.8	8.6	67%	19%	40	31	10	4
2016	Jake Butt	68	47	558	4	11.9	8.2	69%	19%	63	39	15	3

The mind-meld with Rudock was a sight to behold, from the #buttzone touchdown at Utah to the yearbook photo.

The best receiving tight end in the country that year, Butt's uncanny radius turned normally difficult throws into routine catches. In Brian's UFR charting he was a perfect 36/36 on those, 10/12 on challenging ones, and 3/3 on circus attempts. Only eight Butt targets got filed as uncatchable, which means 83% of the time Rudock tried to hit Butt Michigan moved the ball.

Most of that damage was done in the latter half of the season. Adam Schnepp wrote a player profile in Hail to the Victors 2016 wherein Butt explained the apparent preternatural connection between himself and Rudock was the two of them unleashing the option routes they'd been practicing. It was also Rudock finally kenning that the #buttzone really is a magical land with no coverage:

As a blocker he was functional, which progressed to fair the following season.

Second string: Zach Gentry (2018)

Again we're going with a receiver over blocking. The stats: 514 yards, 11.2 (!!) yards per target, 70% catch rate, 14% target rate. Run game charting: +65/-44 and 4 pass pro mistakes. His season was frustrating because Shea rarely made use of that catch radius, because when he did he was sometimes woefully inaccurate, because Michigan rarely brought out the RPOs that were supposed to unleash the matchup nightmare on seam routes, and yes because of a crushing drop in The Game. They also spent huge chunks of the year churning out blowouts on the ground, which won Gentry a lot of +0.5s but few highlights. Lest we forget, however, there were still plenty of stretch five matched on a point guard incidents, and Zentry was underrated at finding the right spot to sit in zones.

Honorable Mention: 2017 Sean McKeon, 2011 Kevin Koger had the best blocking season of any TE regularly involved in the passing game, 2010 Martell Webb was Rodriguez's secret weapon, 2016 Asiasi had so much promise.

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CENTER

David Molk (2011)

—Seth

[Eric Upchurch]

Brian wrote this with 8 seasons left on the clock at the exact moment Kansas was embarking on their Decided Schematic Advantage Era:

Future centers need not apply for the 2010s All-Decade team, by the way. Your application is as likely to be successful as Charlie Weis getting another head coaching—SKREEEEEEEEETCH

The thing about David Molk's senior season (+130.5/-38.5, –4 pass pro) is it's almost an exact copy of his 2010, except instead of working in the spread 'n shred offense he was born to center, He Who Is Without a Neck was captaining the first Brady Hoke team to that one season with a win over Ohio State that totally happened. That OSU game was one of Molk's best: +10/-1 and no pass minuses despite a blitz-heavy gameplan Fickell used all season to prepare. It didn't help (trash tornado and all) but this was also the season Molk finally figured out State was jumping his snap count. Off the field he held the team together through a dark transition.

After two snaps by Rocko Khoury in the Sugar Bowl resulted in the end of any chance Michigan would play Rocko Khoury again, Molk, with one of his tendons not attached, played the rest of the game anyway.

That season resulted in a Rimington, the only award Molk ever desired because:

“The awards were never anything that I strived to get,” Molk said, before correcting himself.

“I take that back,” he said, laughing. “The only award I wanted was the Rimington mostly because a guy who worked with us, (Michigan assistant strength coach) Dan Mozes, was a Rimington winner at West Virginia. I’d say something, and he’d say, ‘Hey, Molk, shut up. I’ve got an 80-pound trophy and you don’t.’"

Now he has an 80-pound trophy.

Second Team: Graham Glasgow (2015)

Glasgow earned his Order of St. Kovacs pin back in 2013 as a guard, but it was 2015, at center, when every UFR seemed to have another moment of Glasgow doing a really smart thing that previous UFRs either got mad about other guys not doing, or suggested no OL should be expected to have that kind of 5th level awareness. That kick of a Florida blitzer is still one of the best center plays ever.

HM: Mason Cole (2016), Cesar Ruiz (2018) don't worry they both appear further down.

OFFENSIVE TACKLE

Taylor Lewan (2013), Mason Cole (2017)

--Seth

Hit play to experience with sound. [legendary gif by CHUNKUMS]

I meant to choose two tackles, two guards and a center and then this serendipitously lined up in the exact left-to-right disposition I would have them on my hypothetical line. Well done, providence!

Taylor Lewan's 2013 season (+85/-21, –6 pass pro) is frustrating because it should have been so much higher in amplitude. The most underrated of the may reasons to fire Al Borges into the sun is having a senior Taylor Lewan and putting tight ends and extra tackles to that side, or constantly running the other way. Also they made him get rid of Dr Hamlet III.

Lewan wasn't the cleanest guy Michigan fielded, and off-field incidents ranging from scary to disgusting paint him as one of the darker characters to come through the program. Fittingly, his greatest moments came against Dantonio's angels. State fans mostly remember Lewan holding William Gholston's facemask to the turf and Gholston taking a swing at Lewan after (but not Gholston trying to dislocate Lewan's arm, or literally break Denard's neck). What they should remember from the teach tape on Embarrassment to the State University is bitch-ass Gholston's draft stock plunging once they got a look at him versus a standard NFL tackle.

#77 top of the formation

As for Mason Cole, he was a left tackle more out of necessity than build. This occurred immediately; Cole wasn't a fantastic left tackle as a true freshman, but for a true freshman playing out of his natural position it was the best you could ask for. While he did get to spend one season at center, like the high school lines he played on, the best player was otherwise needed outside. There, Cole didn't quite have the length to deal with elite edge rushers, but he had plenty of agility to shut down anyone B+ or lower.

Cole up the difference with crazy blocks in space. It's one thing to get a blocker downfield on a defensive back. It's quite another when the blocker in position is the guy normally used for caving the edge and blasting rushers. Go back to any play you were yelling "McDOOOOOOOOOOOM" and watch #52.

Sometimes that happened against safeties and the resulting physics made for good gifs. Sometimes that happened against the best linebacker in the conference:

And one time he got to play Rutgers.

Second string: Michael Schofield (2013), Erik Magnson (2016)

Schofield wasn't close to Cole's best year but he's also a head above the rest of the tackles. Mags was a bit light for the style of run offense but when you think of pass protection at right tackle since he departed you appreciate why he made the 2nd team. This leaves out Runyan's All-Big Ten season but the battle was close between some obvious and not-so-obvious tackle candidates in raw UFR scoring:

RUNYAN JR 2018:       +91/-31/+53, –27 pass pro
SCHOFIELD 2013:       +70/-19/+51, –10 pass pro
BUSHELL-BEATTY 18: +76/-20/+57, –15 pass pro
MAGNUSON 2016:      +80/-37/+43, –11 pass pro
MARK HUYGE 2011:    +79/-40/+39, –14 pass pro

Runyan's the only guy playing left tackle there but his hardware's from the great end to the season, which began with a –9 pass pro day against Notre Dame. I'll take the guy who kept the quarterback upright and was pretty close in run production.

GUARDS

Michael Onwenu (2019), Patrick Omameh (2010)

—Seth

WHAT DID YOU DO RAY ?

It's hard to complain about losing Michael Onwenu's redshirt now after a 2019 that made NFL scouts take notice. It also was the best season by a Michigan guard since Steve Hutchinson. Onwenu (+124/-36.5, –8 pass pro in our incomplete charting) was as vastly underrated as a pass protector as he was vast. Lost in the Army near-disaster was ol' Grapes of Wrath flinging servicemen in multiple directions, as well as pass-blocking two of them on a crucial overtime 3rd and long. He was also reach-blocking Indiana DTs and depositing Hawkeyes in endzones:

He made PFF's midseason all-American team last year, and had us questioning our sanity when various sites started downgrading him after that because to our numbers he was only getting better.

The guy screwed most by the transition from the Peanut Butter Jelly and a Baseball Bat offense to Power Fergodsakes was Patrick Omameh, whose 2010 (+145/-66.5, –10 pass pro) came to our attention against UConn and national attention when he turned Manti Te'o into burnt onions:

The Te'oification wasn't an outlier; Omameh was the grease that made the Denard offense go. Part of the story of that insane Illinois game was the Illini defense was predicated on Akeem Spence wrecking things inside, usually a fair assumption. Omameh ground him into a Blimpy's Quint.

Watch how the rest of the DL string this play, expecting #94 (third DL from the top) to penetrate, shed, and chase it down from the backside. He never comes because he's getting pickled by Omameh:

And here's Spence being tossed on the grill and smashed and flipped 'till he's cooked through:

Also in 2010 Patrick downed 30 White Castle hamburgers, equivalent to 10 real cheeseburgers from like a Sidetrack's or something, or 20 real sliders from a Greene's or Bates or Hunter House or Telway or Geneva's (RIP) or any official (not actually official) white box, pre-fab, Detroit-style slider joint that makes White Castle burgers taste like they were cooked in the dishwasher. Kind of how like 2011 and 2012 Omameh under Darrell Funk and Al Borges were a cheap knockoff of the Real Omameh we remember.

Second string: Ben Bredeson (2018), Cesar Ruiz (2018)

The 2019 versions of Bredeson and Ruiz were just as good—PFF's numbers for Ruiz last year differ from ours because Brian blamed Cesar for leaving for the second level too early and PFF apparently was putting those on Onwenu. Either year from either guy ranks up there among the All-Big Ten road graders Bo churned out. I give the nod to 2018 because Michigan spent most of that season running behind these guys, particularly that part when they were caving people with Down G by having Bredeson kick out the edge on a short pull and Ruiz reach block a DT. Ruiz was a great center, but I like him at guard if we're building this team.

Honorable Mention: Honestly Onwenu, Bredeson, and Omameh stand out so much from the pack the others are barely worth mentioning. Kalis (+89.5/-47, –16 pass) as a senior had the next-best season by UFR. Graham and Ruiz both belong in the top tier so pick one to be your guard and let's go.