This Week’s Obsession: Most Desired Breakout Player
You break out or I will. [Bryan Fuller]
The Question:
You get a magic wand to anoint any Michigan player an instant all-Big Ten, except an offensive tackle else we'd all just be naming backup OTs.
Brian: This might be dumb.
Ace: We’re all gonna go with CBs, right?
Brian: I'm going with Quinn Nordin?
Ace: Never mind.
The Responses:
Brian: I mean, #collegekickers, right? And if Nordin can hit them straight you've got four years of NFL range and accuracy plus kickoff returns that amount to "lol no".
Is that crazy?
Adam: I was going with Ron Johnson because please someone anyone D-line depth. and it'd be nice to have a guy that can play SDE and 3T.
Brian: I feel Ron Johnson is an invalid selection since to be All Big Ten you have to have some opportunity to play and TBH he does not.
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| An instantly playable James Hudson could give Michigan a solid two-deep at DL. |
Adam: But who are the backups?
Brian: Dwumfour and Solomon.
Ace: In terms of value added over another position on the roster, Nordin isn’t crazy. Dropoff from his ceiling to the backups is bigger than most any other spot on the roster.
Brian: Yeah, I mean it would be nice if Devin Bush was ABT but I'm not stressed if he isn't.
Adam: I'm going more for the principle than a specific player but I really haven no idea who the backup 3T will be. Marshall? Hudson? DIB?
Ace: I’d guess Hudson. He’s outrageously strong.
David: Maybe Gary if they can find snaps for a freshman at anchor?
Ace: Gary might slide inside on some obvious passing downs but he’d be better utilized on the edge. I think that’s a last resort that won’t be needed.
Seth: Kemp is the backup at anchor. Of all the backup DL that’s the spot I’m least worried about.
[Hit THE JUMP for more of us ignoring the offense because you really cut our legs out with this tackle rule.]
David: I guess I have two (two!) thoughts in this vein. First, Pick a CB. It seems that M has 3 potentially nice options at safety...although one could slide down to VIPER. They can also potentially live with 2 of McCray/Robo/Bush at LB. They also have a great class of freshman LBs coming in. The DL looks like it will still be very good...with maybe a slight bit of depth once the Fall rolls around? While there are many different options at corner -with high ceilings- it is still very much an unknown and we have yet to see any of those options take meaningful snaps. If Long/Hill/Washington/freshman were to be an instant success, this defense could be very, very good again.
What if Drake Harris hit his potential?? All of a sudden this offense could explode! You have a tall burner who can take the top off the defense. This would ease the load of the rest of the younger guys and allow them to find their niches. Obviously, the OL will need to give Wilton Peters time, but an All B10 home run threat would add a dimension to this offense that we haven't seen since probably 2011.
Ace: I’m taking David Long. Aside from offensive tackle, cornerback is the biggest question mark in the lineup. We’ve seen some flashes from Lavert Hill, enough so that there’s reason to be optimistic he’ll be at least a passable starter. They need another, obviously. We haven’t really had the chance to see Long play, to the point that it’s mildly concerning, but he’s got a ton of talent. Living up to that potential early would address one of the biggest concerns on the entire team and give this defense a chance to be as good as last year’s.
Adam: David and Ace took the corners, Brian covered special teams, and I'm not at all concerned about the safeties or LBs/VIPER, so I'm sticking with backup 3T. I'll borrow from Ace and go with James Hudson. NT is in fine shape with Mone and Solomon and, if he rekindles the hype from before he was injured, Dwumfour. At SDE you have Gary and Kemp, and I expect Kemp will be a serviceable backup this year. That leaves WDE and 3T as the perilously thin spots. I think you could make cases for Luiji Vilain or James Hudson; I'm going with Hudson because it'd be real nice to have someone to spell Michigan's best defensive player.
For the lols [Bryan Fuller]
Seth: James Hudson is a good value pick but I'm going totally selfish with this one and taking Josh Uche as a stand-up OLB/DE tweener. Reasons:
- Guy most people weren't talking about in preseason to All-B1G would necessarily mean tons of TFLs, which would be hella fun to watch.
- Young enough and not-built-for-NFL enough that we'd probably get to keep him a long time.
- WDE depth right now is "um, can Vilain play?" while the roster sets up well for Brown's 3-3-5 sets.
- Wheee tiny blitzball edge weapons. I've been wanting one of these in our defense ever since Michigan State was wracking up 17 TFLs with tiny Denicos Allen.
- Die in a fire, Urban Meyer offenses.
- Don Brown hybrid edge weapon gives me a year's worth of Neck Sharpies material.
Ace: Last year may have set our expectations for D-line depth unreasonably high. Vilain was edging towards five-star status by the end of the recruiting cycle. He’s probably going to be a plug-and-play guy who’s more than serviceable as a backup on a line where he’ll be surrounded by top-end talent.
That said, I’d still love to see Uche break out. He could be a lot of fun.
Seth: Right? Like envision all those runs where J.T. Barrett gets isolated with a DE and slinks through the crack for 6 yards, except instead he's constantly getting brought down in the backfield then jumping up all like "Who the hell got me?"
On offense, big breakouts that get noticed are skill position players, and we a WR/RB blowing up would help. Walker has expectations really lowered but is the only player on the roster somewhat capable of turning himself into an all-big10 back. We know DPJ, Crawford, and Black are going to play on the outside, but we also need a slot reciever in our offense and we dont have Grant currently - and Martin could show up and blow up there...
On defense, Solomon and Villain are both freshman who could show up and be physically ready to play freshman year, and both could prove to be the next-man-up to be stars of the DLine. Of the CB's, hopefully Long and Hill look solid, but isnt everyone saying Ambry has killer instinct/mindset that sets him apart? I woul be fine with any 2 CB's looking like solid starters...but if i had to bet today on one of them becoming the next JL of our defense - I'd bet on Ambry.
Walker only one that could be a B1G all conference? Isaac and Higdon could do it. Some of Higdon's runs are off the charts explosive. They look like that on my 4K anyway. When he gets loose, no one is close to him. He can move and he is strong. Just wonder why he cant do it more often? Isaac is a good back if he gets his head out of his ass and pass blocks like a man. He has the vision and descent speed to make things happen.
1TAB1G means Mone wasn't injured or inconsistent, and we desperately need that out of our NT this season.
Quinn Nordin. How awesome would it be not to be nervous about the kicking game?
that went 80+ percent in two consecutive seasons of FG kicking. He had the second best all-time kicking percentage in Michigan history. His only bad/painful games in his entire career were against Colorado and Wisconsin last year and neither cost us the game, just made it unnecessarily close/nail-biting at the end. The four total misses in those games accounted for half the missed FGs in his career.
Not sure what the expectations reasonably should be for #collegekickers but if you've been nervous the last couple years, it's probably 2010-induced PTSD that lingers.
Oh, I loved Kenny Allen. Blake O'Neill was great, too. But that doesn't mean I wasn't always nervous when they were out for a kick. I think my point was that if I was granted a magic wand, and I knew a priori that the player I chose was going to be a breakout star, then I'd be champing at the bit to see that kicker take the field. That would be a nice change.
Definitely not complaining about our kickers lately. Go blue #collegekickers!
the "if this player disappears we're fucked" category more than the magic wand all Big !0.
Yes we're thin on both lines, but there are servicable bodies on depth and there are schemes to mask dificiencies.
Lose your kicker? good luck with those XP's, Fg's and kickoffs.
I'd go with Sp8 or Evans for the above reasons as my all B!0 player.
Everyone's ignoring the fact that the other kickers all looked good too. I don't think it's Nordin or bust at kicker, though he might be an all timer.
This kid will win it all one day.
I agree. I believe Peter's skill set is way beyond Speight's...at a difference-maker level. It is going to be most interesting to see how Harbaugh and staff work this out.
must play as one. So that's my pick. A breakout season for the best five on the Oline. Without that all our optimism will be unfulfilled.
Nate Johnson will take off this year and never look back. We have so many good young receivers that we will start receivers at all 11 positions at least once. We saw Johnson throw a pass in the spring game, Wheatley can play OL, and imagine McDoom as a pulling guard.
by end of year ... he will be a Freshman All Big Ten player. To say that means others don't get it done. I'm not saying anything negative but... Cesar has opportunity. That is all you need. We have struggled to replace Molk. No one has owned the center position.
Ruiz. That is my hunch.
Luiji
But I do want the student section to go "WAAA!" whenever Waluigi gets a sack.
I would pick a breakout year from any of the current ?? upperclassmen or the new guys on the OL.
We can pick non-tackle OL right?
We are 1 injury away from that being a disaster and making most of the other positions areas almost moot.
Remember 2 years ago when we could hardly run the ball?
I completely agree and said so above. Yes, the interior OL is less frightening than RT, but it is still unproven.
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