EGDs Michigan Football Preview - 2015

EGDs Michigan Football Preview - 2015

About five or so years ago now, a tall, Fonzarelli-looking kid from Warren, Michigan, earned himself a coveted five-star recruiting ranking by showing off his high-powered left arm and a little bit of giddy-up at various summer camps, 7-on-7 tournaments, and high school football games. [Shane] Morris possesses one of the bigger arms this class has to offer and is capable of driving the ball to any area of the field, an ESPN analyst wrote of him. Short and intermediate arm strength is present with very good zip and RPMs to fit the ball into tight spots shows good ability changing ball speeds and displays touch and timing on fade and corner routes.

Morris was hardly the dynamic athlete whod been Michigans starting quarterbackindeed, the entire foundation of its offenseat the time he committed to the Wolverines. By the time Denard Shoelace Robinson completed his UM career, hed compiled well over 10,000 yards of total offensethe most of any Wolverine ever. Hed done much of his damage on the ground, however, including an NCAA-record 4,495 rushing yards and 42 rushing TDs from the quarterback position. But Brady Hoke was in charge at Michigan now, and Hoke wanted a quarterback to would work his magic through the air.

Possesses terrific feet, the ESPN report continued. [P]ocket movement, awareness. Morris rarely forces throws and doesn't take many risks with the ball. He works through progressions nicely, can check down and work from the first option to the next.

Maybe that pocket-presence and decision-making ability were what Hoke and his staff saw in that skinny kid from Warren De La Salle. Maybe it was just that arm strength. Maybe it was something else. But whatever they saw must have deeply impressed them, because after Morris pledged to the Wolverines in May 2011, Hoke did not sign a quarterback for the 2012 recruiting cyclethis, after signing only the very-limited Russell Bellomy the prior year. While the supremely gifted Devin Gardner had two seasons of eligibility remaining, for the future all eggs were in the Shane Morris basket.

But then, why not? [S]et-up and drop speed are all very good and consistent, that ESPN evaluation said. [M]aintains balance and width in his stance to deliver the ball at a moment's notice very smooth and compact deliveryespecially for a left-hander. Could be the next Elvis Grbak. Could be the next Tom Brady.Shane Morris at the 2011 Elite 11 quarterback camp.

Perhaps the Shane Morris who committed to Michigan might well have developed like a past Blue star. But in fall 2012, Morris contracted mononucleosismissing the second half of his senior football season and setting him months behind on his training regimen. Morris had a late-bloomer's frame with significant physical upside to add bulk and strength and likely an inch, the ESPN analyst had observed. Now, Morrisdowngraded to four-star recruitwould train simply to regain what hed lost, before he could set about building his high school body into that of a bona fide college athlete. And as strong as Morriss arm was, he couldnt get the ball where it needed to be consistently enough. The biggest issue or potential negative with Morris is his accuracy, warned ESPN. His completion percentage is nowhere near where it should be given his tools and this is an area in need of significant improvement.

Michigan had hoped to redshirt Morris in 2013, and give him a chance to catch up on his conditioning deficit and put those accuracy issues to rest. But an inexperienced offensive line could not protect Devin Gardner in 2013; after a sustained beating that lasted through most of the regular season, a weary Gardner showed up to the annual post-season Football Bust on crutches and was declared unavailable for Michigans doomed appearance in the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl. The start fell to Morris. Morris was 24/36 for 196 yards and 1 INT in the 2014 Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl.

It wasnt terrible. In his first sustained action as a college player, the true freshman posted a respectable passing line (24/38, 196 yards, INT) and looked reasonably credible running the offense. Still, Morris never seriously threatened to drive Michigan into Kansas States end zone, and his paltry 5.2 yards-per-attempt average was largely built on screen passes and other short, safe throws. It was something to build on, a plausible hope for the futurea future that was hopefully a long way off.

In fact, Morris looked far enough from front-line material in that BW3 Bowl that many argued for Hoke to adopt the unusual strategy of redshirting Morris as a sophomore. With Gardner the unquestioned starter heading into 2015, only an injury that would sideline him for a prolonged duration would necessitate Morris insertion. Bellomy could surely handle any mop-up duties or emergency dings that might arise. And they might as well try it; Morris could still practice like the true back-up, and go in on a moments notice if need be. But if Gardner could remain healthy, the need might never ariseand Michigan could steal back Morris lost redshirt season.

It was not to be. Hoke inserted Shane Morris in the dying moments of the 2015 opener against the overmatched (for real this time) Appalachian State Mountaineers, making clear the Wolverines had no designs on stretching out Morris eligibility. Most Blue fans let it slide at the time; chances were, Gardner would go down again eventually, and the early-season reps might do Morris some good for when he did have to go in. Hoke was just being practicaland besides, maybe Morris didnt want to redshirt his sophomore season. Or maybe, as it would appear in retrospect, Hoke never gave the idea a moments though.

Fans couldnt draw much optimism from Morris cameo in that Appalachian State game. He went 3-5 passing with an INT on a play that mgoblog charted as BRX, for Bad Read Extreme. Morris, somewhat ironically, looked a bit better when he entered the Miami (OH) game two weeks later and went 0-2 on his throws. One was a perfect ball to backup tight end Keith Heitzman on a dig route that would have gone for a big gainhad Heitzman not dropped it. The other was a catchable, if a bit short, toss that WR Jehu Chesson dropped on a corner route in the end zone. With help from his receivers, Morris might have been 2-2 with a TD. Virtual Morris wasnt half bad. But the real thing came two weeks later, when Minnesota rolled into to town.

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Devin Gardner, you may recall, had been a five-star quarterback recruit in his own right. Indeed, one would struggle to design a superior QB prospect than Gardner. He had a strong, accurate throwing arm. He was tall and durable. He was fast and highly athletic. He was a smart, gifted leader. And unlike Morris, who had struggled to produce even in garbage time against inferior competition, Gardner had produced. Gardner had lit up top opponents from Notre Dame to South Carolina to even Ohio State.

Yet Gardner had always struggled with something. Hed been plagued by late throws and erratic reads early in his career. By 2013 hed overcome that, only to take on fits of heroball produced some of the most spectacular turnovers the world has seen. In 2014, however, Gardner just seemed brokenin one part spooked by the relentless beating hed taken the previous year, in another part shackled by whatever (new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach) tinkering Doug Nussmeier had done to Gardners mechanics. In truth nothing was working for Michigans offense in 2014not the line, not the backs, not the receivers, but also not Gardner. So Hoke decided to make a change.

I hadnt wanted Hoke back in 2011. Like many, I was frustrated with Rich Rods terrible defenses and recognized that a change might be neededbut only if we could get someone better. There are, quite frankly, not many better head coaches in college football than Rich Rodriguezand Brady Hoke certainly wasnt (or isnt) one of them. So when it happened, I uploaded a mushroom cloud photo to my Facebook page and settled in for the long nuclear winter.

Hoke quickly won over many Michigan fans and alumni by saying things like its Michigan fergodsakes and that hed have walked from San Diego to take the job. That was smart; Rich Rod hadnt said those things, and was mercilessly roasted for it. But I wasnt one of the converted. I didnt care how Hoke talked or even what he said; I was only interested in what he did, and was pretty skeptical in those early days that anything hed do would impress me.

It wasnt that I didnt like Hoke, or even that I didnt respect him. Hoke had somehow managed to go 12-1 at freaking Ball State University, of all places, and then had San Diego State going good. He seemed like a pretty good coach, and hed been successful defensive line coach at Michigan before hed left. But Michigan was a place for the very best the profession had to offernot pretty good coaches whod enjoyed a bit of success at lower levels. So I had a serious problem with the man whod hired HokeMichigan Athletic Director Dave Brandon, a relentless marketing douche who I already didnt like because of his hell-bent determination to monetize and stratify every aspect of Michigans sports programs and his seeming need to always grab the spotlight away from the athletes and coaches.

Nonetheless, it was hardly Hokes fault Brandon had hired him, rather than a more qualified candidate. So I swore to be objective, and had to give due credit when Hoke announced the hiring of vaunted Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Greg Mattison to run the Wolverines defense. Mattison had long been a favorite of mine; hed been the conductor responsible for Michigans greatly under-appreciated 1995 and 1996 defensive units, and considered him the real architect of the defense that claimed the national championship in 1997even though Jim Hermann typically received the credit (with Mattison having departed for Notre-freaking-Dame by then). Maybe Hoke and GMat were old buds, and maybe Mattison had his own reasons for wanting to return to A2. But getting him back was still a coupand I took notice immediately: just a few weeks after Michigans hapless 2010 defense had been bombed for 52 in its low-tier bowl game, I already had a reason to feel some confidence. With GMat in charge, the 2011 defense might actually wind up being pretty good.

Hoke, of course, had never been a coordinator and made it clear from the start that hed be taking a hands-off approach to his teams Xs & Osso hands-off, in fact, we wouldnt even wear a headset on the sidelines during games. But he had Mattison, and he also had journeyman offensive coordinator Al Borges, whose string of high-profile coaching stops and undefeated 2004 season at Auburn suggested some pretty solid chops. It was surely wishful thinking, but the model seemed plausible: Hoke as a CEO head coach, a figurehead who would say the look the part and say the right things to the media, and stay out of the way of his genius coordinators. It was the corporate approachthe one that made perfect sense for a Dave Brandon athletic department. Hoke, with his blue-collar Michigan-ness, was just marketing; the real brains of the operationthe Mattisons and the Borgeseswould handle production behind-the-scenes.Greg Mattison: coaching since the days of B&W TV.

I was skeptical at first. But then Michigan lucked into an 11-2 record for Hokes inaugural season and signed Michigans highest-rated recruiting class in forever, and what had seemed plausible now looked like it was actually happening. Lloyd Carr had always said luck is when preparation meets opportunity, a phrase Id slowly come around to agreeing withat least for good luck. The recruits obviously believed in him. And besides, I figured, one couldnt really hold an 11-2 record and a Sugar Bowl trophy against the man.

The impression held through 2012. Despite an opening game thrashing at the hands of mid-dynasty Alabama, a near loss the following week against Air Force, and then a spectacular turnover implosion at South Bend, the team recovered to knock off Michigan State and contend for the Big Ten Legends Division titleright up to the moment Denard Robinson smashed his ulnar nerve and became unable to play quarterback for the rest of the season. Devin Gardner took over the next week, and the team finished a respectable 8-5 after a shootout loss to South Carolina in the Outback Bowl. Another top recruiting class pledged to the Wolverines in 2013, and as summer gave way to fall the teams prospects looked bright: 10 wins seemed doable, maybe even more. I suppose I was wrong about Hoke, I thought. Michigan can win with this guy.

By the third week of the 2013 season, Hoke had seemingly won over the last of his critics. The Wolverines stood at 2-0, fresh off a thrilling 41-30 defeat of Notre Dame in the first-ever night game at the Big House, and had the lowly Akron Zips coming to town for some risk-free target practice before getting on with the real schedule. Then the rains came.

Michigans victory over Notre Dame could well have been a blowout if not for one early fourth-quarter play. On that play, Devin Gardner dropped back to pass, got pressured, reversed field and dropped further backto the point that three Irish were chasing him into Michigans end zone. Then chucked up a fluttering goat belch of a pass, just as he was about to be tackled for a safety. Instead of ceding two points from a two-touchdown lead, the ball landed in the waiting arms of Irish defensive lineman Stephon Tuitt for a Notre Dame touchdown. It was a fantastic mistake, one that could well have outshined the luster of Gardners otherwise masterly performance that night: 294 yards passing, another 82 yards rushing, and five TDs. But the Wolverines survived, so most fans marked the play down in the live & learn column. No one had counted on seeing practically the same thing happen the very next week against Akron.

This time, Michigan was trying to run a screen that the Zips had dead-to-rights. Under pressure, Gardner whipped a sidearm throw in the general direction of his running backbut found an Akron defender instead, who calmly collected the football and proceeded unabated to the end zone. As in the prior weeks game, the disastrous play occurred in the early fourth quarter with Michigan holding a two-score (21-10, in this case) lead. Now, Michigan was in a 21-17 dogfight in a game most though should have been over by halftime. Michigan stopped Akron on the final play of the game from the 4 yard-line to preserve a 28-24 win.

The problem in the Akron game hadnt just been a stunning Gardner turnover. Rather, most every unit on the team seemed to be malfunctioning. The inexperienced interior offensive line could not keep Zips from penetrating quickly to pressure Gardner or kill running plays in the backfield. New players in the defensive back seven struggled with their zone defense assignmentsbut mostly, a lethargic, ineffectual pass rush enabled Akrons QB Kyle Pohl to look like Aaron Rodgers. Michigan won, 28-24, but only by stopping Akron four yards from the goal line on the games final play. Any notion that the teams struggles against Akron were simply the aberrant result of a ND-hangover were promptly dispelled the next week, when Michigan needed another clutch defensive play to stave off an upset at UConn.

After a bye week the offense rolled out a band-aid tackle over alignment (in which M removed an eligible receiver and added a sixth offensive lineman between star left tackle Taylor Lewan and the left offensive guard) to get by a scuffling Minnesota team, and then took its paper-thin 5-0 record to Happy Valley.

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Three years earlier, Rich Rodriguez had taken his 5-2 Michigan team into Beaver Stadium for a game that felt every bit the arbiter of Rich Rods Michigan tenure. Like Hokes 2013 squad, the 2010 Wolverines had streaked to 5-0, highlighted by a thrilling win over Notre Damethen fallen back to Earth with close wins over bad opponents, before getting slammed by quality Michigan State and Iowa teams. Penn State was a vulnerable adversary, and Michigan needed a win to stay in any semblance of championship contentionso this game was Rich Rods opportunity to prove he belonged. Yet the Nittany Lions took control of the contest early and dominated throughout, winning by a 41-31 score in a game that wasnt nearly as close as that score might suggest. If Blue Nation had believed in Rich Rod before, now the pendulum had swung. Perhaps a win against Wisconsin or Ohio State might have saved him, but either of those seemed altogether impossibleand the balance of the season an inexorable march toward Rich Rods eventual termination.

The jackals circling Hokes door were not quite as famished. But neither was Hokes task so difficult as Rich Rods had been. This was a shell of a Penn State team, denuded by NCAA sanctions and led by a true freshman quarterback, and coming off a 20-point loss to the Indiana freaking Hoosiers. All he had to do was win; a win would move Michigans record to 6-0, and psychologically reset the season with a tune-up against Indiana before a showdown at Michigan State.

Yet again, however, the Blue found themselves in a perilous death battle against another overmatched opponent. Terrible offensive line play and a stubborn aversion to easy yards (that Penn State left open in the short passing game) resulted in Fitzgerald Toussaints infamous rushing stat: 27 carries for 27 yards. Even so, Michigan led 34-24 with under 10:00 to go, after Gardner connected with mercurial WR Devin Funchess on his second long TD pass of the day. It should have been enough, especially when Michigans four-minute offense took over the ball with 6:35 to go and gave the ball back to Penn State on their 20 with :50 and no timeouts. But the D couldnt hold it. After completions of 14 yards, 29 yards, and 36 yards on three consecutive plays, Penn States Christian Hackenberg dove into the end zone to tie the game with :27 seconds still on the clock. Even then Michigan could still have preserved the win, had kicker Brendan Gibbons connected on any of three plausible field goal attemptsa 52-yarder to end regulation, a 40-yarder after Penn State failed to score in the first session of overtime, or an eminently makeable 33-yarder after Penn State fumbled in the third OT. Nope. We must never let this happen again.

Michigan won the following week, in a ridiculous 63-47 shootout heavily influenced by IUs insanely high-tempo offense. But it wasnt enough to wash out the awful taste of four overtimes, three missed field goals, and 80 yards in 23 seconds. MSU would be the next game, and confidence was low going in and even lower coming out after a non-competitive 6-29 loss. Faith in the Hoke regime was irretrievably shaken, and continued to falter as Michigan careened lost every remaining game but onea triple-overtime slopfest at Northwestern that pretty much felt the same as a loss anyway, even if Michigan did manage to score more points.

There were other casualties. The nations top-ranked high school prospect, Virginia defensive end DaShawn Hand, saw the Blue train stuck in reverse and opted for the Alabama Crimson Tideafter having long been expected to sign with Michigan. And Al Borges, his grab-bag offense taking much of the blame for Michigans anemic offense, gave way to rising single-back star Nussmeier. Hokes job security needle slid into the orange, if not the bright red.

*

Even then, there was still reason for optimism too; Hand didnt sign, but Jabrill Peppersthe nations #2 prospect and probably its most genuinely excitingdid. Michigans two Devins (Gardner, now a fifth-year senior, and Funchess, a true junior) would be returning, while reports out of Columbus confirmed that star Ohio State QB Braxton Miller would miss the season with a shoulder injury. And the redshirt freshman responsible for Michigans porous 2013 offensive line would now be redshirt sophomoresanother year stronger and another year wiser, and surely much more effective. So Hoke had some pieces to work with; the 2014 season would be his show-me year.

Hopes for a 2014 turnaround were dashed almost as quickly as the season began, however, as Michigan hobbled out of South Bend with a 31-0 loss to the Irish. A worse setback came two weeks later, in a disheartening home loss to Utah. Despite clear advantages in speed and size, a lethargic and undisciplined Wolverines offense could manage practically zilch against the hard-nosed, disciplined Utes. Michigan fell behind when their 10-man punt team gave up a 66-yard return TD, and watched the contest slip away as Utah worked for points while the Wolverines disinterestedly punted. Michigan trailed 26-10 when the officials signaled a lightning delay with 7:51 remaining in the game. Why, Brady?

That 16-point deficit felt like 60. Michigan had a 50-yard field goal drive on its opening possession of the game, and nothing on offense since. Michigans only other touchdown had come on a defensive score against Utahs backup QB. The game was lost, and the stadium emptied for good. Yet Hoke refused to concedeso after a 2-hour, 24-minute weather delay, the Utes and Wolverines stepped back on the field to play out the final useless, miserable minutes.

There was much left to play for, with Michigans record still at 2-2 with the entire Big Ten schedule remaining. But that wasnt necessarily good news; Michigan certainly wasnt about to go 10-2 that season, and might go 2-10. The Utah affair had been pure torture from a fans perspective, but now the demoralization seemed to reach Hoke as well. In a palpably desperate move, he announced mid-week that a change would be made at the quarterback position. Shane Morris would start against Minnesota in the Big Ten opener.

*

There were many who, impatient with Gardner, endorsed the change. But a coachs job is to ignore the angry rumblings of uninformed fans and make the best possible decision for his team. Hoke, like so many disappointed spectators, could have had no real expectation that Morris would somehow kickstart the Wolverine offense. Hoke was only making a wish, hoping whatever fairy godmother had charmed his first season at Michigan would come back and help him now. Good coaches dont bench veteran stars for inferior backups just because the going gets rough. Hoke was doing exactly that. After two-plus years of optimism, I finally closed the syllogism: Hoke was not a good coach. And no matter how smart his coordinators might be, they were not going to save him.

I might have given Hoke some kind of mental reprieve, had Gardner still trotted onto the field for the Michigans first offensive possession against the Gophers, or even the second. But Morris started the game, and stayed in the gameeven after his play made clear to all that Morris was exactly who we thought he was: a talented kid who needed time to develop, and hadnt gotten it. His throws were erratic, often mistimed and overthrottled. He seemed to feel uncomfortable in the pocketdeliberate, then rushed. Morris didnt look the part, and he certainly wasnt effectiveMorris posted a dismal 7-19 passing line that day, notching only 49 yards and 0 TDs, while throwing a pick-six and also turning the ball over on a fumble. His QB rating was 5.2. And that was hardly the worst of it.

I thought for sure Hoke would reinsert Gardner to start the second half, but Morris stayed in. He was still in by the fourth quarter, whentrailing 30-7he rolled to his left, released a pass, and was blasted above the shoulders by Gopher defensive end Theiran Cockran. Morris staggered to his feet, limped to the huddle, then nearly collapsed before being caught by an offensive lineman. Despite the obvious concussion, despite being visibly dazed and unable to protect himself, the Michigan coaches left Morris in the game to run the next play. Boos flew from the stands as shocked students, alumni, and fans registered their disapproval. Morris recorded his nineteenth and final incompletion, and was finally pulled from the field.

Hoke, having left a clearly concussed player in harms way, had probably already earned his pink slip (especially given the teams poor performance). But just a few moments later, a surreal sequence of events would erase all doubt. Devin Gardnernow in the midst of leading an actual touchdown drivewas forced to sit out a play after his helmet came off. Third-string QB Russell Bellomy couldnt find his own helmet, and thus couldnt sub in for Gardner. So Morris, concussion and all, re-entered the game and ran yet another play.

Michigan Football had endured some low points in recent years, such as an opening-game loss to Appalachian State in 2007, a 3-9 season in 2008, NCAA sanctions for exceeding practice time limits in 2010, and prolonged losing streaks to rivals Michigan State and Ohio State. But through all of that, Blue Nation could at least still hold their heads high. Games may have been lost, but at least the Michigan ran an honest program and competed the right way. NCAA rules may have been broken, but the violations were accidental and highly-technical, and afforded no discernable competitive advantage. A struggling Michigan was still Michiganwed get things turned around eventually.

There was no reconciling Michigans core values with leaving a woozy quarterback in a tackle football game, however. Hoke would later plead a bizarre form of ignorance, claiming he thought Morris stumbled because of a leg injury rather than a concussion. And when Dave Brandon then tried, unsuccessfully, to buffalo the UM medical staff into cooperating on an amateurish cover-up attempt after the incident, the whole dance was over. Michigan Football was an embarrassment; it had reached its lowest point ever, and the losing record was the least significant part of it.

*The Brandon pressers: because after a hard-fought game, who doesnt want to hear from the athletic director?

The first Michigan football game I distinctly remember watching was the 1984 Holiday Bowl. I was nine years old then, and already a fanso there could have been others Id watched. Not necessarily, though; somehow Id managed to become a caring supporter of a college football team I knew about primarily through listening to day games on my AM/FM Walkmanimagining the diminutive Jamie Morris drag a half-dozen tacklers past the first down marker time and again, as I raked leaves in my parents yard. Or, maybe it was from watching grizzled head coach Bo Schembechler not exactly break down game film on the Saturday morning replay show I mostly liked for the theme music. Michigan didnt win that Holiday Bowl, though; some strange religious school out west beat them. But Blue was already my colorI was bummed.

I wouldnt come to accept until many years later that the pain of losing truly is the essence of college football. Every season presents twelve, maybe thirteen, maybe even a couple more opportunities to lose a game. With a loss, of course, comes a ruined weekend and an often lingering discontent for which the only cure is a subsequent victory. And what of victoriesthey are enjoyed, surely. But to a serious fan, the true thrill of victory is in the avoidance of defeatits in knowing you are not miserable, when you very well could be. Ties were underrated, and sorely missed. Bye weeks represent a doubling-down of sorts; a victory means an extended reprieve from the looming torment, whereas a loss dooms one to prolonged gloom. And bowl games are a full-on Russian Roulette: win, and defer the tugging anguish of defeat all through next autumn; lose, and endure many long, slow weeks of stabbing agony.

There is no escape for the college football fan. No matter how good your team is today, it will lose eventuallyand when it does, previous victories will only intensify the pain of that loss. You can turn the games off, not watch them, go find something else to dobut still you will check the score, or be involuntarily informed of it through myriad ways. You can swear off the gamedeclare that you dont care anymore, but you never really mean it. And the next week, when early reports have your team up by a field goal on some enemy field, youll want to tune in. Good thing you set the DVR to record just in case, right?

If all this makes college football fandom compare closely with a narcotics addiction, well, that wouldnt be far off. And like street drugs, there are plenty other good reasons to turn your back on college football. The sport itself is martial, violent, and dangerous, with devastating injuries not infrequent and countless players reporting lifelong disabilities from the constant impact trauma. Women arent welcome, except maybe as scantily dressed sideline attractions. And whatever the academic benefits of non-revenue sports may be, as the National Labor Relations Board concluded in the Northwestern case, education is hardly the core function of major college football and basketball programswhich begs the question of why colleges and universities should even run them.

Worse, college football is organized in an objectively exploitative manner, in which the terrible risks and injuries are borne by mostly black athletes who do not share in the massive profits their labor generates. Those profits go mostly to a handful of mostly white, upper-class male coachesand to even whiter, upperer-classer athletic administrations that plow the funds back into the corporate world through (usually garish) marketing and development projects. The one tangible benefit the players do receivea free college educationis often diminished by a need to study less demanding subjects, so as to maintain a satisfactory grade-point average without sacrificing football time for studies. At many schools, few scholarship athletes manage to graduate even with such attenuated majors; they come for their shot at playing pro football, and its NFL or bust. American universities take gender equity very seriously.

That free college is so valuable at all is a function of a deeply unjust economic stratification, in whichunlike most other industrialized nationsstudents from wealthy families enjoy broad access to top quality education while working class households struggle to put their children through even far inferior institutions. Much of this is an outrage, and then theres just the simple Noam Chomsky argumentwhy, ultimately, should one actually care whether a team from my town/school/state/region is any more proficient at advancing an inflated (or deflated, as the case may be) pigskin down a lined field than a team from the next town/school/state/region over? I certainly do no know.

Noam Chomsky is wrong, of course. Im no psychologist and couldnt begin to tell you why, but it does matter which team is better. It matters, regardless how many players and coaches are meathead jocks. It matters even though most of the athletes are being used and abused. It matters even though the sport makes a mockery of our commitment to gender equality. It matters even though somebody might destroy his knee, or break his neck, or die a premature death. It matters, even though it probably shouldnt, because it just does.

*

Precisely because football does matter, the dark days of 2014 were equally difficult for Michigan fans to stomach from even a pure football standpoint. The team was unwatchable, seemingly incompetent despite years of stockpiled talentaccording to the recruiting analysts, at leastin almost every phase of the game. There was no improvement to be had. And the high school prospects jumping ship or crossing Michigan off their short lists left little hope for a future turnaround.

Our fortunes could rise with a new coach, we thought, but slim chance of that. Our arch-nemesis, Ohio State, already had Urban Meyerarguably the best college coach in the game. There was no one Michigan could realistically hire to match him. There werent many coaches at any level of football who were Meyers equaland most of the ones who did exist were either coaching in the NFL or at established college programs on par with Michigans (rapidly declining) tradition and prestige.

Dan Mullen looked like the most probable candidatea middle-of-the-road SEC coach whose Mississippi State team had suddenly caught fire one season. Mullen was no Urban Meyer; he hadnt demonstrated sustained success, didnt have Meyers pull with recruits, and had a southern used car sales personality that would play in A2 like an Eva Braun record. Anyway, Mullen was a spread guy who wouldnt be able to do much with the talent on Michigans existing roster. He was the opposite of exciting, but Mullen would take the job, we figured; Michigan could pay him much better, andcurrent struggles notwithstandingthe Wolverines could still boast a higher-profile than Mississippi State.

Michigans dour prospects didnt stop fans from daydreaming about other, more alluring candidates, of course. There was Jim Mora, the rising talent whod muddled through a few NFL seasons and then resurrected UCLA from an Opie Neuheisal tenure. The Bruins werent paying him much, and wasnt UCLA a basketball school? Maybe, just maybe, Michigan could get him. There was Monday Night Football color commentator John Gruden, whod won a Super Bowl at age 39 and appeared annually on every bad college teams wish list since moving to the broadcast booth in 2009. There was Bob Stitt, the schematic genius whose unconventional offense had made the ultra-selective Colorado School of Mines a persistent power in NCAA Division 2but whose prospects on a major college football stage were completely unknown. For me, the preferred candidate was Seattle Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, caretaker of the vaunted Legion of Boom that, paired with the Russell Wilson-Beastmode backfield, had made the Seattle Seahawks into the NFCs best team. But for that very reason, Quinn would also be on every NFL teams short list, and plenty of pro jobs were expected to come open after the 2014 season. Dan Mullen really likes bulldog statues.

One NFL team that would be hiring a new coach in the offseason was the San Francisco 49ers, who were widely expected to cut ties with embattled head coach Jim Harbaugh. In Ann Arbor, the name Harbaugh was already a synonym for football. Jims father, Jack, had played professionally and had been a long time assistant for Bo Schembechler before moving on to a head coaching spot of his own at Western Kentucky. Jim had grown up in town and been a star quarterback for the Wolverines, finishing third in the 1986 Heisman voting and winning Big Ten MVP that season. Jims older brother, John Harbaugh, had graduated from Pioneer High School and went on to a prolific coaching career of his own, rising to head coach of the Baltimore Ravens in 2008. Naturally, then, the prospect of Jim Harbaugh being out of a job at the same time Michigan would be looking for a new coach was too magnificent a coincidence to ignore.

For precisely that reason, the notion needed to be purposefully suppressed. After taking over a 1-11 Stanford program in 2007 and quickly building them into a face-smashing, Orange Bowl-winning West Coast power, Harbaugh had leapt to the 49ers around the same time Michigan hired Hoke (#$%&!) and immediately took that foundering franchise to three consecutive NFC title games and a Super Bowl. Hed fallen a couple plays short of a world championship, but Harbaugh had proven he belonged among the highest echelon of football coaches at any level and was now one of the biggest names in U.S. sports. If any coach could take on Meyer at OSU, surely Jim Harbaugh was the guy.

True college football fans who understand that the game is about pain and gloom knew better than to worry about Jim Harbaugh. Coaches like that dont just pop out of the ground like the Brady Hoke types do. When Harbaughs services hit the market, the bidding would be fierceand even in the unlikely event that a collegiate athletic department might be able to offer a competitive financial package with a pro team, they could not offer the one thing Harbaugh was presumed to want most of all: another shot at that elusive Super Bowl ring. He wasnt coming. And musing over vaguely plausible types like Jim Mora or Dan Quinn was one thing; hoping for some magical unicorn like Jim Harbaugh was just setting oneself up for even greater blow when he inevitably signed with Oakland or New York or whatever other professional franchise offered the most money and the best prospects for future success.

So instead, we pored over obscure up-and-comers (like University of Louisiana-Lafayette coach Mark Hudspeth), established head coaches who seemed poachable (like Mullen, Mora, or Wyoming coach Craig Bohl), coordinators who might be ready for a step up (like Ohio States Tom Herman, or Oregons Scott Frost), or retreads who might have learned from their past mistakes (like former Rutgers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Greg Schiano). We slowly came to accept that whoever Michigan hired was going to be a disappointment. He wasnt going to beat Meyer. Hed probably even struggle to beat Dantonio. But hed be the coach, because Jim Harbaugh sure as hell wouldnt be. And then a funny thing happened.

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Like Michigan, the mighty Florida Gators had fallen on hard times in recent seasonsdropping to 4-8 in 2013 after an 11-2 campaign the year before. Also like Michigan, the Gators struggles were attributed almost entirely to an inept offenseand what success Florida did enjoy was largely the product of a fantastic defense. The Gators rebounded to 7-5 in 2014, but it wasnt enough to save (head coach) Will Muschamps job; Florida fired him before their bowl game, and named defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin the interim head coach.

In his fourteen year coaching career, Durkin had already worked under Urban Meyer, Tyrone Willingham (back when he was actually good), Jim Harbaugh, and now Muschamp. His resume reflected a consistent record of success, and it wasnt long before hed have job prospects to match. On top of offers from the likes of North Carolina, the big one came from Texas A&M, a program Kevin Sumlins offensive prowess alone had made into a national championship contender. Paired with a Durkin defense, the Aggies just might win it all. The talent was there, the money was good, it was the SEC, the contract seemed like a no-brainerand then the bombshell dropped: Durkin told a reporter in Austin, Texas, that he was waiting to see whether Jim Harbaugh would take the head coaching position at Michigan before deciding on the Texas A&M offer. As interim head coach, D.J. Durkin led the Florida Gators to a victory in their bowl game last season.

Thered been plenty of rumors and hope-inspiring tidbits leading up to the Durkin story, such as potential NFL-suitor and UM alum Stephen Ross bowing out of the Harbaugh sweepstakes early, or media figures connected to Harbaugh (especially John U. Bacon) refusing to dismiss the possibility. Yet seasoned fans knew to dismiss all this as fools gold, the sadistic machinations of that most diabolical enemy: hope. The way it sounds to me there's not even that one in a million," Charles Woodson had said (about the possibility of Harbaugh coaching at Michigan). Charles Woodson speaks the truth. "I guess you do have a slight chance, he said. But man, it ain't looking good."

The Durkin story, however, could not be dismissed. Even if Harbaugh did go to Michigan, the Texas A&M job was at least comparableand arguably betterto being the defensive coordinator on Jim Harbaughs theoretical Michigan staff. Opportunities of that kind were not exactly abundant. For Durkin to dally about the A&M position (let alone publicly disclose that he was doing so) on a mere hope that Harbaugh would take the Michigan job and then hire Durkin as defensive coordinator would have been insane.

D.J. Durkin did not appear to be insane.

This could only mean one thing: that Durkin already knew Harbaugh was heading to Ann Arbor and had already signed on as his defensive coordinator. The impossible was happening: a unicorn was coming to the Big House.

Like any head coach, the Michigan Athletic Department introduced Jim Harbaugh as the 19th Head Coach in the programs storied history at a January press conference. But the true realitythat mother*king Jim Harbaugh was the coachthat he had actually spurned the National Football League to come back to Michigan and return the Wolverines to glorydid not set in with a press conference. For me, at least, the reality hit when Harbaugh led his players into Michigan Stadium for the 2015 Spring Game. That was him alrighta navy blue Michigan sweatshirt replacing his familiar black 49ers garb, and still those same khaki pants. Thats when it really started to all make sense.

The players on that field had finished the previous season with a dismal 5-7 record, missing a bowl game for the first time since Rich Rods second year. Even the wins had been rough. Worse, it was Michigans third losing season, and sixth season with five or more losses, in the preceding seven years. Michigans culture of winning no longer permeated the program; the Wolverines now looked up at mediocrity, and as Brady Hokes tenure limped to conclusion there was no end in sight. If there was ever a time to break the addiction, ever a time to walk away and genuinely not care anymore, this was it. If the plummeting season ticket sales were any indicationnot to mention the absurd spectacle of admission being granted on purchase of two 20 oz. Coca-Cola products in what Brandon termed a failed retail activationmany long-time supporters had come to that exact conclusion already.

Frustrating Michigans struggles were to fans and alumni, the losing must have hurt double for the players and coaches with a direct stake the program. Michigans declining prestige and dwindling reputation must have hurt triple for the former players, whose efforts and sacrifices had built that tradition. And for Jim Harbaugh, a pillar of the Michigan Football alumni whod played for Bo and whose own father had coached on Bos staff, the futility must have hurt quadruple. If Harbaugh wouldnt come now, then maybe Noam Chomsky was rightif probably the only man who could save Michigan in its darkest football hour would sooner coach some soulless professional team, then maybe I shouldnt care about the outcomes of football games. Maybe I should break the addiction. Maybe I should walk away.

But that was really Jim Harbaugh on the Big House field this spring; he really was the coach at Michigan. I guess football really does matter. And Im still here.

Offense

Harbaughs stature on that April day may have been sweet vindication for long-suffering Blue fans, but the actual play of his charges confirmed our resigned expectationsthere would be no national titles in 2015. The same rickety offense that had stalled out in 2013 and never left the garage in 2014 was scarcely any better now, with Gardners eligibility having finally run out and Devin Funchess off to the pros. Only the Blue Team managed to score in the spring gameseven points on a lone touchdown pass from Morris to reserve wideout Jaron Dukes. Even that score gave little cause for encouragement, seeing as the player covering the 65 Dukes on the play was not a cornerback, safety, or even a linebackerbut 57 return specialist Dennis Norfleet, who was being tried on defense. Replicating that scoring play in a real game against a real opponent seemed highly improbable, as did the notion that Harbaughs first three months had turned Michigans offense into anything but a less-shambolic shambles.

I watched that spring game on via Big Ten Networks television broadcast, complete with the homer announcers making every trite excuse for the sad offensive showing. The defense is always ahead of the offense in the spring, they insisted. The play-calling is very vanilla. Dividing up the players keeps the offensive lines from developing chemistry. The offense doesnt know much of the playbook yet. Maybe some of that was accurate, but other teams around the country did not play spring games to 7-0 scores. The truth seemed to be that while Michigan had a shiny new coach, they still had a pretty good defense that had dominated its still terrible offense. The question was, how much better could they get by fall?

With the same personnel, the prospects of significant near-term improvement looked dim for the Blue offense. Shane Morris remained himself, posting an uninspiring 11-24-135 passing line in the spring game, with one INT to accompany the Dukes TD pass. Even that was still leagues ahead of his White Team counterpart, early-enrolling freshman Alex Malzone, who managed just 95 yards passing and threw two interceptions on the day. The homer spin was that Morris had the inside track to start in the fall; the objective takeaway was that Michigans best wasnt near good enough.

"The competition will rage on, Harbaugh told the media, after confirming that Morris did lead for the starting QB role. But the situation was dire, and the head coach had no illusions. Malzone wasnt ready, Morris wasnt good enough, and Wilton Speighta 66 siege engine whom Borges had signed in 2013, apparently because Borges was too lazy to scrap for a better recruitwasnt going to be an answer either. So Harbaugh did what Harbaugh do.

He signed 67 New Mexico prospect Zach Gentry, a raw but extremely athletic talent who had long been committed to the Texas Longhorns. He signed John OKorn, a Floridian gunslinger whod thrown for 4,000 yards and 34 touchdowns in two seasons at the University of Houston. And he collected verbal commitments from two 2016 quarterbacksElite 11 prospect Brandon Peters from Indiana, and human 70s sharknado Victor Viramontes of Norco, California. These newcomers grew Michigans scholarship quarterback ranks from three names to seven, but not until 2016of these additions only Gentry, as a fall-enrolling true freshman, would be available in 2015. Enter Jake Rudock.Michigan now has a few different quarterbacks on the roster.

Ordinarily, players who transfer from one college to another must sit out one season before becoming eligible to play for the new school. But the NCAAs graduate transfer policy enables a player who has completed his or her undergraduate degree to avoid this one-year disqualification, provided the player will enroll in a type of graduate program not available at the original institution. Utilization of this rule has grown significantly in recent years, to the point that off-season graduate transfers somewhat resemble the free agent signing periods of professional sports leagues.

In football, probably the most common graduate transfer candidates are backup quarterbacks down to their last year of eligibility, looking for opportunities to start. Typically this involves transferring to a less-prestigious program or even a lower tier of competitionbut sometimes, a place like Michigan needs a starting Big Ten quarterback stat. And sometimes theres actually a starter-quality Big Ten quarterback with an undergraduate degree in his pocket and one season of eligibility left who is looking for a new place to play.Jake Rudock started two seasons at quarterback for Iowa.

Jake Rudock started 25 games for the Iowa Hawkeyes in 2013 and 2014, recording over 4,800 passing yards and 34 touchdowns. The 2013 Hawkeyes won eight games and made the Outback Bowl (where they were soundly beaten by a superior LSU team), but that had more to do with Iowas stingy defense (which ranked #2 in the Big Ten behind Michigan State) and physical running game than with Rudocks passing ability; Rudock threw 13 interceptions that season, and averaged just 6.9 yards per passing attempt. Though Iowas notoriously conservative offensive coordinator Greg Davis, unreliable pass protection, and lack of big-play receivers surely all contributed to Iowas unimpressive passing numbers that season, Hawkeye fans also grew impatient with Rudock and his notable tendency to quickly abandon downfield options and check plays down to backs and tight ends. By 2014, Rudock found his job under threat from big-armed sophomore C.J. Beathard. And though an improved Rudock (16:5 TD:INT ratio) would fend off the challenge through most of the 2014 season, the competition was roughly a dead heat by the time Iowa reached the 2015 Taxslayer Bowl against Tennessee.

Thats when Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz, in something resembling a homeless mans version of Tom Brady vs. Drew Henson, announced that Rudock would start the bowl game and play the first quarter, Beathard would take over in the second quarter, and then the coaches would decide at halftime who would play in the second half. But the decision wouldnt necessarily rest on performance alone; Beathard, who had two more seasons of eligibility remaining to Rudocks one, let it be known through media channels that he might take those two seasons somewhere besides Iowa City if he didnt like Ferentzs decision.

The game was a full-on disaster for the Hawkeyes. Tennessee mounted long touchdowns drives on their first four possessions and on six of their first eight, and the game was over well before halftime. Iowa had only four meaningful possessions in the first halftwo led by Rudock, two by Beathard. Rudock moved the ball a bit, driving 33 yards in five plays on his first possession and driving 36 yards in four plays on his second. But Beathard marched the team 51 yards in nine plays on his first opportunity, turning the ball over on downs when power back Mark Weismnan failed to convert a 4th & 1 at the Tennessee 33, and then led his team 71 yards to paydirt on his second possession. It was a small sample size, and the margin decreased even further considering Beathard had also thrown an interception whichhad it not been reversed by penalty, would have ended his eventual touchdown drive and set the Volunteers up at the Iowa 40. But Beathard had inched in front of Rudockso at the start of the third quarter, with Iowa down in a 35-7 hole, it was Beathard whose helmet stayed on.

Days later, still in the dead of the Great Plains January, Ferentz would take the unusual step of releasing a depth chart that listed Beathard as starting quarterback. Now Rudock was the one on the outside looking inand as he closed out the final credits he needed for his pre-med degree, Rudock must have figured there wasnt much point in sticking around Iowa. He could work hard through the off-season and try to win the job back, but that wasnt likelyin the end, Beathard was a better athlete with a better arm, and was a younger, longer-term option. Rudock could back up Beathard for a yearmaybe get in some games for mop-up duty, maybe more if Beathard got hurt. But why do that when he could go someplace else and start? So Rudock hit the graduate transfer marketand wouldnt you know who was buying?Iowa Head Coach Kirk Ferentz.

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There are some who still believe Morris will emerge as the starting Michigan quarterback this fall. Like C.J. Beathard, Morris has a stronger throwing arm than Rudock, maybe a bit more speed, and two full seasons of eligibility in the tank. Especially now that he has Harbaugh coaching him, why wouldnt Morris beat out Rudock for the job at Michigan, the same as Beathard did at Iowa? After all, the argument goes, had Morris received the benefit of a redshirt hed only be entering his sophomore season now.

That Morris could start is far from a crazy notion; that arm strength forces defenses to cover much more spacea benefit Harbaugh will surely not overlook. To date, however, Morris hasnt shown that hes anywhere near having the ability to translate his talent into production; Rudock has. Morris is still young enough that the proverbial light bulb could go on for him, and Harbaughs success with Alex Smith stands out as one of the great quarterback reclamation projects in recent memory. But everything weve seen and everything we know suggests Jake Rudock will be Michigans starting quarterback this fall.

So if you havent been watching Iowa Hawkeyes football the past couple years, Jake Rudock is about 63 and 205 lbs. Hes blonde. Hes right-handed with so-so arm strength, throws a pretty accurate ball, and can run enough to be called a plus-athlete, though he wont be confused with Devin Gardner or even Tate Forcier. Hes like the beer they hand you when you just order a beer, hes like the haircut you get when you dont know what kind of haircut you wanthes your basic pro-style Big Ten quarterback, 5th-year senior edition. If Michigan wins ten games this season, he probably wont be the reason. If they only win six, he probably wont be the reason for that, either.

Give Morris an outside shot of winning the starting gigbut likely hes your backup. Third-string is probably Wilton Speight, whether or not as a placeholder, and then theres Zack Gentry. Some with murky connections to the program suggest the coaches plan on using Gentry this seasonnot as a full-time QB, but with his size and mobility engaged as a special short-yardage and goal line weapon. Either that will happen or hell redshirtand either way, Gentry (along with OKorn, who is ineligible this season) will be in the thick of the competition for the starting job next year.

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Stanfords distinguishing characteristic under Harbaugh was its dominant rushing attack, one that rushed for over 213 yards per game and 5.2 yards per carry in his final season thereand did it without the services of a genuine star at tailback. Rather, what powered the Cardinal running game were some of the best offensive lines to have been assembled in college football this century. And thats saying something; teams with top offensive lines are generally either blue-blood programs stacked with talent (Alabama, Florida State, USC, vintage Miami or Michigan) or Midwestern smashmouth outfits that tend to emphasize power and strength at the cost of speed and offensive balance (Wisconsin, Iowa, vintage Nebraska). The very notion of building a formidable offensive line at Stanford is a Boromir memesomething one does not simply do. Yet Harbaugh, and chief lieutenant Tim Drevno, did precisely that.

One key to how Harbaugh and Drevno built the Stanford lines was outstanding talent development. Among the debris that Harbaughs predecessor, Walt Harris, left on the Stanford roster, they found Andrew Phillips, an unranked offensive guard from Maryland, and made him a quality startergood enough to earn all-conference honorable mention his final two years. They found Derek Hillan unranked, zero-star defensive end prospect from Kansas Cityand turned him into a right tackle, one good enough to last a year as a scout team player on the 49ers. And they found transfer student Chase Beeler, an actual three-star prospect whod originally signed with Bob Stoops at Oklahoma, and developed him into an immediate all-conference player and eventually a consensus All-American. Tim Drevno obviously coached in the NFL. He has the hat and everything.

The other major factor that enabled Harbaugh and Drevno to establish dominant offensive lines at Stanford was precise talent evaluation. Late in his tenure, Harbaughand later his successor, David Shawwas able to sign major O-line talents like David Yankey, Andrus Peat, and Joshua Garnett. But when Harbaugh first arrived in Palo Alto, competing for coveted four-star and five-star offensive line recruits would hardly have been a viable recruiting strategy. Walt Harris had gone 1-11 the previous season, and Harbaugh was then a new coach with no established track record in big time college football, let alone the NFL pedigree he has now. Recruits also had to meet Stanfords more stringent minimum admissions criteria, not just the NCAA baselines in effect at most schools. This all meant Harbaugh and Drevno were relegated to the massive heap of middling two- and three-star recruits lower in the pyramid.

Granted, major contributors emerge from the ranks of three-star, two-star, and even no-star prospects on the regular (see: above). But the odds are not in their favor; for every low-ranked recruit who blossoms into a star, several others play out their careers as back-ups and special teamersand even those who do earn playing time generally require several seasons of development, making their first marks perhaps as redshirt sophomores or even redshirt juniors. Thats why its downright amazing that, of the four offensive linemen Harbaugh recruited in his first two classes at Stanford,[footnoteRef:1] two (David DeCastro, Jonathan Martin) became first-team All-Americans and a third (Sam Schwartzstein) made all-Pac 10. [1: Harbaughs first Stanford recruiting class, in 2007, also included three additional offensive linemen who had committed to Walt Harris. Their careers werenot as successful as Harbaughs recruits. ]

To the analysts at the likes of Rivals and Scout, DeCastro and Martin were generic three-star prospects with a few regional suitors; they did not draw scholarship offers or serious interest from top national college programs. Schwarzstein was a lowly two-star player from Southlake, Texas, whose only Power 5 offers were from conference doormats Stanford, Kansas, and Purdue. Obviously Harbaugh and Drevno saw something in those players that the recruiting experts, and most other coaches, had missed. And none of those players were long-term developmental projects who contributed only as upper classmen; DeCastro and Martin started as redshirt freshmen and never relinquished their positions until declaring early for the NFL draft as redshirt juniors. Schwartzstein, stuck behind Beeler, didnt start until his junior seasonbut did get into six games as a backup his (redshirt) sophomore year.

Now, Harbaugh brings those same evaluation and development skills back to Ann Arborwhere one of his first hires was new offensive coordinator Tim Drevno. Having proven their bona fides as one of the bestif not the bestoffensive line-developing brain trusts in pigskins, Harbaughs staff wont have to glean its Michigan linemen from barren agave fields and bins of old kitchen appliance parts. Four of the countrys top offensive line prospects (Ben Bredeson, Devery Hamilton, Michael Onwenu, and Erik Swenson) have already committed to Michigan for 2016, with the Wolverines also in the thick of it for four-star linemen Terrance Davis and Jean Delance. But those guys are down the road; even this season, Harbaugh and Drevno should find plenty of quality raw material on the Michigan rostercertainly compared to the radioactive junkyard Walt Harris left behind in Palo Alto. Hoke, and his much-maligned offensive line coach Darryl Funk, werent able to coax All-Americanor even All-Big Tenproduction out of them, but the Wolverine offensive line corps. is deeply stocked with three-, four-, and even five-star prospects. Despite their struggles to date, I, for one, will be quite surprised if Harbaugh and Drevno arent successful in molding Michigans existing offensive linemen into a daunting force by the end of 2015.

That 2015 line will certainly feature sophomore Mason Cole, the Floridian technician who stunned Blue Nation by starting every game as a true freshman left tackle last season. This made him a shoe-in for freshman All-American, and raises high hopes for Coles ongoing career under the real slim Drevno. The only serious question seems to be where along the line Cole will playat 65 and a shade under 290 lbs., hes probably better suited to guard than tackle. But left tackles have to deal with opponents best edge rushersso unless one of Michigans young LT prototypes emerges in a hurry, the coaches will probably keep Cole where he is. True freshman Mason Cole held his own at left tackle last season.

One left tackle project whos been a subject of some practice buzz is redshirt sophomore Logan Tuley-Tillman, from Peoria, Ill. At 67 and 310 lbs., he has the kind of coaches crave in tackle and according to spring practice buzz his technique lightbulb has come on. But practice buzz has been notoriously unreliable the last several seasons, and appears to be even more so this season, so I dont necessarily expect a breakout. But Im saying theres a chance (and yes, I do mean that in a Jim Carey kind of way). If it does happen, the added depth and positional flexibility could be a major luxury for Michigan.

The only other backup lineman getting practice buzz so far is true freshman Grant Newsome, a four-star prospect from Virginia (via New Jersey). At 280 lbs., Newsome actually enters camp five pounds heavier than Mason Cole was last seasonso hes not implausible based on size alone. But Cole, who played big-time high school football at East Lake High School in Tarpon Springs, Fla., arrived at Michigan with advanced footwork and technique uncommon in a new recruit. Newsome played his high school ball at something called The Lawrenceville School, which is known for having the highest tuition of any private high school in the U.S. I suppose you never know, but Ill go out on a limb and suggest the white Manhattan kids he spent the last four years shoving around didnt prepare him quite as well as Cole for D-1 competition.

The second name you can definitely expect to see on the back of a Michigan linemans jersey this season is Graham Glasgow (actually, it would just say Glasgow but you get the point), a fifth-year senior from the west Chicago suburb of Aurora. Glasgow, along with his younger brother Ryan Glasgow, began his UM career as a preferred walk-on and but quickly zipped past his scholarship peers to earn a starting spot as a redshirt sophomore in 2013. Now probably Michigans best all-around offensive lineman, Glasgow can play any of the five positionsbut will most likely start at center, due to the offseason departure of last years center, Jack Miller.

Behind Glasgow at the center position is redshirt sophomore Patrick Kugler, a former five-star recruit and son of long-time Pittsburgh Steelers offensive line coach, Sean Kugler. Even with that monster recruiting profile, Kugler was not expected to play this seasonand that was before he showed up to the student-only practice on crutches. As the clear heir apparent for next season, and as a critical backup with Miller not around, you can be sure Kugler is high on Drevnos list of priorities. But first he need to heal up.

Two more offensive linemen, returning starters Kyle Kalis and Erik Magnuson remain odds-on favorites to keep their jobs. Both are now redshirt juniors, with 29 starts between them; despite their early struggles, both should be very good players for Michigan this season. With any kind of Drevno dividend, they could be stars. Theyll need to stay healthy, though; Michigan lost three backup interior linemen this off-season (Chris Fox to injury, Kyle Bosch and Dan Samuelson to transfer) and of the guys remaining only redshirt sophomore David Dawson looks like a realistic option.

Physically speaking, redshirt junior Ben Braden is what you want in a right tackle: absolutely humungous (66 and over 330 lbs.), yet still a great athlete. He started 12 games at the position in 2014, but struggled to play low enough and maintain proper balance, frequently reaching out for defenders rather than sinking his hips and playing with leverage. Braden appeared at left guard in the spring gamea move possibly designed to match him up against bigger, slower defensive tackles instead of quicker, slipperier defensive ends. Hes expected to start there, but Dawsona more natural guard prospect with a grass-is-greener vibelooms.

Hoke and Funk tried and abandoned a similar Braden-to-guard experiment in 2013, so the maneuver could suggest that Harbaugh and Drevno believe they will succeed where the previous staff had failedand why wouldnt they? But the switch also bumps Magnuson from guard out to right tackle, and puts Braden directly in Dawsons crosshairs. Braden has 12 starts to his name, so hes an experienced playerbut has been a liability to date, and heads into fall camp as the lineman with the most tenuous hold on his starting job. Hence, a second read on the switch is that Harbaugh & Drevno want to give Dawson the best chance to overtake Braden, while getting Magnuson reps at tackle in the meantime.

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In 2013 and 2014, the main problem with Michigans running game was usually that there just werent any holes for the Michigan backs to run through (not to mention defensive players owning timeshares in the Michigan backfield). But sometimes there were holes, and the backs just wouldnt see them, or wouldnt get through them quickly enough, or would meekly allow themselves to be tackled before gaining significant yards. So while theres plenty of reason to believe that Michigans 2015 team will finally have a line capable of blocking well enough to support an effective rushing offense, its not at all clear whether Michigan has a running back who can take meaningful advantage.

Junior Derrick Green, who entered Michigan as the nations top-ranked back in 2013, is dangerously close to bust territory. His statistics arent bad165 carries for 771 yards and five touchdowns to date, in two injury-shortened campaigns. Practically all those yards, however, have come in walkovers against the likes of Central Michigan, Appalachian State, and (not that) Miami. When facing real competition, Green has shown inconsistent vision and a remarkable inability to break tackles or punish defenders that is frankly disturbing for a 235-lb. back. Greens nerfball wont sit well with Harbaugh; hell either need to toughen up this season and start finishing his runs, or he sits the bench.

Junior running back Derrick Green.Greens inability to seize the starting tailback job or remain healthy throughout the 2014 season opened the door for two other backs, true junior Deveon Smith and redshirt junior Drake Johnson, to take command. Smith, in many ways the anti-Green, carried 108 times for 519 yards and six touchdowns. He showed good vision and ran with the hard, violent style that is most becoming of a Big Ten tailback. But he didnt stick. Speed was the issueSmith is not a home-run threat, and is marginally effective even on well-blocked outside runs.

Smith might be staring down the barrel of career back-up duty, had not the vaunted Harbaugh-Drevno power game shown up in A2 this off-season. On the first play of the spring game, Smith took a handoff on Power O through the left-side B-gap and exploded through a hole. He picked up a nice crack block on the free safety from (WR Jehu Chesson), and rambled up the sideline until being pushed out34 yards later. As that run reminded us, Smith remains a useful inside runner; he isnt going to take those runs the distance, but he might well be the back on Michigans roster most likely to consistently bang out 4-5 yards with the blocking Drevnos charges deliverand maybe hit a 34-yarder once in a while.

Drake Johnson, an Ann Arbor kid who ran for over 2,800 yards in high school and earned All-American recognition as a track athlete, almost didnt get a chance to play for Michigan. The recruiting analysts, who saw Johnson as basically a sprinter in pads without the lateral quickness or agility to play running back, only gave him two stars. Coaches seemed generally to agree, with his only other D-1 scholarship offer coming from Eastern Michigan. Even when he did get the call from Michigan in November 2011, a starting tailback role seemed a pipe dream for Johnsonkick returns, or perhaps less glamorous special teams duties, appeared his more likely contribution.Senior running back Drake Johnson

After Johnson red-shirted in 2012 and tore his left ACL in the first game of 2013, a special teams ceiling seemed all the more probable. But Johnson had other plans, as he would make clear when Michigan inserted him against the Indiana Hoosiers as that bitter 2014 schedule wound down. Johnson hit holes hard, cut sharply, and made people miss. Johnson not only looked like a competent Big Ten tailback, he racked up racked up 122 yards and two touchdowns on just 16 carriesand was named the starter for next weeks game against Northwestern. Johnson didnt do much in that Northwestern game, but then again neither did anyone elsebut the following week Johnson made 94 yards on 14 carries, and then he went up against Ohio State and rushed 15 times for 74 yards and two TDs. Two-star, schmoo-snar, Johnson was a player.

There was just one thing. On that second touchdown run in the Ohio State game, Johnson stayed down in the end zone long after the run was over. His teammates walked over to find him clutching that damn left knee again, and the MRI confirmed it. Hed torn the ACL for the second time in fourteen months, and was done for the day, the seasonand maybe his career. Word is, Johnsons rehabbed the knee again and is ready to go for fall camp. If so, Michigans got a known quantity to tote the rock and hes a pretty good one at that. But two ACLs equals a knee that cant be trusted. Johnsons a great story and a very good player at a position of need for the Wolverineswell all be pulling for him. But if that storys over soon, as it very well could be, football dont care. The games will go on, and Michigan better find somebody else.

The fourth candidate for the starting tailback spot is jumbo tailback Ty Isaac out of Joliet, Ill. One of the top high school recruits in the 2013 class, Isaac turned down Michigan and headed west to join Lane Kiffins USC program. Isaac got into several games and recorded a respectable 40 carries and 236 rushing yards as a true freshman. But after a year in L.A., he decided to transfer back to the Midwest. Isaac landed at Michigan, but was unable to secure an NCAA waiver that would have cleared him to play in 2014. Hes eligible now, howeverand could be just the back Michigan needs.

USC transfer Ty Isaac had a good freshman season for the Trojans. But is he tough enough to play for Harbaugh?Isaac, like Drake Johnson, has great speedwhich enables him to be an effective outside runner and makes him a big-play threat on any touch. His USC film showed a determined, north-south runner with good vision who keeps his shoulders square to the line of scrimmage, and who was not afraid to lower his shoulder and drive through tacklers at the end of runs. Though not the shiftiest of runners, Isaac has some ability to make defenders missand at well over 230 lbs., plenty of power to break through arm tackles. Perhaps most impressively, Isaac was also a weapon in the USC passing gameboth as a screen target and as a check-down option for downfield passing plays. And all of this was as a true freshmannot the third-year player Isaac will be when he suits up for Michigan this fall.

If theres one knock on Isaac, his height (63) gives him a high center-of-gravity that could limit his effectiveness as a physical inside runner. But Isaac mitigates that well with outstanding leg drive and forward body lean. Even if Drake Johnson makes a complete recovery and is full-go by fall, and even despite practice reports putting Deveon Smith atop the depth chart, dont be surprised to see Isaac line up as the starting tailback against Utah. Thats certainly what I expect to see.

Michigans fifth back, true freshman Karan Higdon, could get a look this season if the four guys ahead of him all flop or if AIRBHG follows Rudock to Ann Arbor. Higdon isnt known as a game-breaker, but is a thick, low center-of-gravity guy who runs hard with tremendous balance and a metric ton of moves. Chances are hell get a redshirt year to transform himself into a muscle-bound fire hydrant and change his jersey number to 20. But the resemblance is pretty striking already.

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When Hoke came to Michigan in 2011, he inherited an outstanding college tight end, Kevin Koger, and then secured a commitment from highly-regarded Texas prospect Chris Barnett in the mad scramble before signing day. Koger helped Michigan to its miracle Sugar Bowl run later that fall. But Barnett didnt even make it through fall campso when Koger graduated at the end of that season, the position was looking dire for 2012. Unimpressive and injured senior Brandon Moore was the only experienced tight end left on scholarship, so heavy contributions were expected from a pair of true freshmenreceiving TE Devin Funchess, and blocking TE A.J. Williams. It could have been ugly, had walk-on surprise Mike Kwiatkowski not then appeared. He wasnt Koger, but Kwiatkowski brought competent blocking and just enough pass receptions to put the thought in defenders minds. With him and the freshmen, Michigan muddled through 2012 and looked to be set up for the future with Funchess and Williams, plus star TE recruit Jake Butt enrolling early for 2013. But that was a Potemkin depth chart.As a true freshman, Devin Funchess arrived in style.

Devin Funchess had been an exciting player from his first significant game actiona 106-yard explosion against the Air Force Academy in the second week of 2012. He went on to record 234 receiving yards and five touchdowns that season, raising speculation that he might challenge Jack Clancys school record for tight end receiving yards. Like Clancy had been, however, Funchess was less a true tight end than a big wide receiver lining up at the spot. He was over 64 tall and uncommonly fastbut he wasnt anywhere near tight end playing weight (usually, around 255 lbs.) and was neither a gifted nor even willing blocker. Funchess, of course, would later move officially to wide receiver, where he would finish out his UM career and then be taken 41st overall in the 2014 NFL Draft. Hed gotten his weight north of 230 lbs. by then (232 lbs. at the NFL combine), but never did learn how to block.

While Funchess was a wide receiver masquerading as a tight end, A.J. Williams might have been an offensive tackle doing the same thing. Through 36 career games, including 12 starts, Williams has caught a grand total of 5 passes for 35 yardsa number that even seemed high to me when I looked it up. Hes not a legitimate receiving threat. He is 66 and 285 lbs., however, which makes him larger than several of the offensive linemen presently on scholarship at Michigan. If all this suggests Williams is at least a quality blocking tight endwell, sadly, thats not the case eitherand Williams struggles in the running game were a big part of Michigans 2013 implosion and ongoing difficulties last year.

Williams does have one year left, and hell spend it being coached by Jay Harbaugh (whose last name is Harbaugh and who just arrived from the Baltimore Ravens) rather than Dan Ferrigno (whose last name is not Harbaugh and who joined Brady Hokes staff from St. Marys High School), so a breakthrough senior season isnt totally out of the question. But if the number of defensive players who the staff tried out at tight end this spring is any indication, that doesnt appear particularly likely.

Fortunately, Michigan does have one tight end they can count onand that tight end might just be the best overall offensive player on the roster. At 66 and a smidge under 250 lbs., Pickerington, Oh., junior Jake Butt has good size for the position and has been a respectable blocker as well as a legitimate weapon in the passing game. Butt has 41 receptions for 446 yards and four touchdowns through 23 career gamesall the more remarkable, considering he tore an ACL in last spring and rehabbed in time to play all but two games of the 2014 season. @jbooty88 could be Michigans offensive MOP in 2015.

Thing is, Butt was pretty much an effective player from the day he arrived on campus. Now, hell not only be working with the staff that developed NFL tight ends Jim Dray (drafted in 7th round by Arizona Cardinals, 2010) Coby Fleener (34th overall pick of Indianapolis Colts, 2012), Zac Ertz (35th overall pick of Philadelphia Eagles, 2013), and Levine Toilolo (drafted in 4th round by Atlanta Falcons, 2013), but will likely be the focal point in a passing offense based on rhythm and play-action. Id set Butts over/under around 45 catches for the seasonand wont be surprised if he breaks Bennie Jopprus single-season school record (53).

Redshirt freshman Ian Bunting will also get a look this season. Bunting, a former high school wide receiver, is a wiry 67 receiving type in the Funchess mold. Hes still a bit undersized for the position at around 240 lbs., but even thats a hell of a lot bigger than Funchess. We know (or, at least, strongly predict) Bunting can catch the ball; he could earn significant PT if he proves he can also block. Thats a big ifbut weve all seen the wonders Harbaugh works with tight ends (well, technically it was Stanford fans who saw that, but the games were televised, so).

Another young tight end on the roster this year is gifted true freshman Tyrone Wheatley, Jr. Unlike his track-star papa, Wheatley Jr. is a 67 jumbo athlete who might well fit better at defensive end. Since hes already playing size and since Harbaugh never met a tight end he didnt want to append to the end of a formation, Wheatley Jr. would be a sure bet to see action this season if he hadnt shown up to the student-only practice in a walking boot. If he gets out of that boot in time, Harbaugh may just throw him onto the field. Im not really sure what hell do when hes out therebut seeing as hes 67 and 280 lbs. and his name is Wheatley, Im still pretty sure he can at least do something.

If the injury bug strikes again, or if the Williams/ Bunting duo cant hold down the non-Butt tight end duties, we might see one or two converted defensive players in a game. Chase Winovich, who came over from linebacker, is a little small for the tight end position but a good all-around athlete with a refreshingly enthusiastic attitude. His physique does seem to fit better at linebacker, a position where UM will be short in 2016, so the move to TE is a bit surprising for Winovich. But the coaches kept him there, so they presumably must see something. The other alternative is reserve defensive lineman Henry Poggi, a coachs son from Maryland who actually received a tight end offer from Alabama. At 64 and 273 lbs., Poggi figures to fall more on the blocking than receiving end of the TE spectrum. Practice hype says hes good at it, but the EGD done learned his lesson on practice hype. These are hopefully just depth moves, as both guys would probably help Michigan the most on defensebut hey, who am I to question the Harbaugh?

In addition to the in-line tight ends, Michigans roster carries a number of fullback/H-back style players who can expect to play significant roles in a Harbaugh offense. The most classic fullback type is 5th-year senior Joe Kerridge, a 250 lb. blocking machine whose managed to hold off his faster, more agile counterpart (senior Sione Houma) for three years running. A Harbaugh favorite, Kerridge should see the majority of the work this season with Houma contributing mostly on special teams and as an experienced backup.

The two main H-backswhich Harbaugh actually calls F-backs, probably just to fuck with peopleare junior Khalid Hill and redshirt sophomore Wyatt Shallman. Hill, who at 265 lbs. could feasibly play on the line, started to generate some positive buzz last season after throwing a highlight-reel block against Notre Dame and reeling in a few passes. But he, too, sustained an ACL tear and missed the final eight games. Look for Hill to play a big role this season if the knees good as new. Otherwise those snaps could to Shallmana physical, angry football player who seems to lack a real position. 2015 Offensive Captain Joe Kerridge.

Shallman came in as a tailback and took snaps there in the spring game. But those carries only proved that hes too slow for tailback (except maybe as a short-yardage battering ram-which Michigan hardly needs with the likes of Deveon Smith, Derek Green, and Ty Issac on the roster). He played defensive end in high school, but doesnt seem to have the explosiveness needed to excel as a weakside end in college and at 63 probably doesnt have the frame to add the 25+ pounds hed need for strongside end. He might be plausible at linebacker, but not more plausible than anyone Michigans got this year or next and besidesas Magnus Thunder (of Michigan blog Touch-the-Banner.com) says, its generally unwise to move players back on defense. So the most logical place to put him is probably H-back (er, F-back), where he can contribute with some blocking any maybe catch the occasional pass out of the backfield. Shallman may not like playing H- I mean F-back as much as tailback, but he may come to like it better than riding the pine as the fourth, fifth, or even sixth tailback in.

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The final offensive position group, wide receivers, present clearly the most boom-or-bust scenario of any unit on the team this season. Funchess is gone, and while solid #2 man Amara Darboh returns for 2015, Darboha big-bodied chain-mover who brings 473 receiving yards and 22 appearances into this seasonis more of a possession guy than any kind of deep threat. Hes still the all-around best receiver on the team, and a pretty good start. But even with Harbaugh and his army of tight ends, one guy does not a equal a WR corps.

Fellow redshirt junior Jehu Chesson, despite being possibly the fastest player on the roster, hasnt exactly struck fear into opposing secondaries either. Hes been a quality role-player to date, with a surprising knack for downfield blockingbut not so much for getting open. Now that hes a 205 lbs. and a polished redshirt junior, a giant leap forward in the Harbaugh offense is highly conceivable. Hes always been a smart player, and the coaches will want him on the field for his crack blocking and because his speed presents at least the possibility of stretching defenses vertically. Chessons my pick for Michigans breakout offensive player (I consider Butt to have already broken out) this fall. Chesson, and maybe one or two of in a line of potentially big-play freshmen that begins with Grand Rapids product Drake Harris.

Harris entered Michigan as one of the top WR prospects in the country last year. At 64 with good speed and sufficient ups to receive a scholarship offer from Tom Izzo, Harris put up over 2,000 receiving yards as a high school junior. He was easily among Michigans most exciting recruits in the 2014 class, and at a position with a serious need for talent. Unfortunately, Harris has suffered through lingering hamstring injuries that forced him to miss half his senior high school season and kept him out of spring and fall practice last year (he redshirted the season, of course). Now he says hes ready to go, which could be fantastic news if trueand it looks like it is, because Harris got significant action in the recent fall practice that was opened to Michigan students (only).

As one of Michigans only receiving prospects with the raw game-breaking ability, having Harris in the lineup is undeniably exciting. On the other hand, Harris hasnt played football in nearly two full calendar years now; hes behind the on the technique curve, andlisted at 174 lbs.even further behind on the strength and conditioning front. He hasnt yet tasted college-level competition, and is still attached to those wonky hamstrings. I have high hopes for Harris long-term, but this year Id just like to see him dip a toe in the Big Ten waters without getting hurt. Oh, and maybe catch a TD pass to beat Penn State on the final play, or something.

Another gifted redshirt freshman receiver is Maurice Mo Ways from Detroit Country Dayalso 64 and highly athletic. But the book on Ways is that hes more of a physical, jump-ball artist (ala Junior Hemingway) who came in raw, meaning one redshirt year under Hokes staff might not be enough to get his routes and separation techniques down. Accounts on Ways speed also vary, with mgoblog calling him fast enough to take the top off a defense, while ESPNs analysis credits Ways for above average speed before declaring he may never be a guy that wins consistent foot races (i.e., a polite way of saying he slow).

My guess is Ways has adequate, but not exceptional, speed; his other offers came from the likes of Iowa and Rutgerswhereas a 64 speed merchant is going to have the Ohio States and Alabamas of the world coming hard after him. While his main recruiting negatives were inconsistent hands in his junior season, lanky Floridian George Campbell (who was briefly committed to Hoke last year before some meddling uncle got involved) had the same issue but was still a top-10 national prospect because of his size and speed package (and thats without anything resembling Ways chiseled-from-stone physique). I could be wrong, but the absence of top-echelon offers for Ways suggests hes no speed burner. If thats indeed the case, then hes essentially a younger Darbohwhich is fine, but he may have to wait his turn because we have that already.

Amara Darboh (left) and Jehu Chesson (right).Things get murkier at the slot receiver position. The presumed starter heading into fall was sophomore Freddy Canteen, fresh off of an arduous freshman campaign that started off sloppy but ended with a touchdown reception in Columbus. I admittedly expected more than 5 receptions and 22 yards out of a supposedly high floor, low ceiling recruit who basically took football in high school the way I took German (no, seriously). He was still a stick-thin true freshman last seasonmuch like Chesson when he first arrived (and red-shirted)so there was still time for Canteen to develop into an effective player, but if I hadnt entirely given up on him, I had significantly lowered my expectations.

News broke in mid-camp that Canteen himself, or maybe the coaches, actually had given up on his future at slotat least his immediate future there. Canteen moved to cornerback, a position hes never played before and will probably need to spend a year or two learning before we see him on the field in any capacity.

Part of the reason for Canteens move to defense might be Harbaughs proclivity to play multiple tight end formations, limiting the amount of snaps available to slot receivers. The other part is probably that, of the slot receiver snaps that will be available, Canteen would not be the guy most likely to draw them. Instead, true freshman Grant Perrya prolific high school receiver who teamed with QB Alex Malzone at Birmingham Brother Rice to win a ridiculous three consecutive (Division 2) state championships from 2011-2013is a player receiving all the camp hype and seemed to have walked the walk in the student-only practice. Perry gives off a distinct Mike Hart vibe; despite not being particularly big or fast, his high school production was massive and he arrives on campus already near the top of his developmental curve. Hes another modest-yardage grinder, but if his aptitude for just getting open carries over to college football, then Perry should catch a fair number of balls this seasonespecially if he can block.

Another true freshman we might see at slot receiver is Brian Cole, an early enrollee from SAGINAW, Mich. As a national top-100 player and the overall top-ranked recruit in Michigan, Cole comes in riding a wave of relentless hype. But having played mostly running back and QB in high school, as well as on defense and punter (!) for the HERITAGE HAWKS, Cole will still be learning the position this fall. His film shows an explosive athlete with good size and great bursthe may have the most big-play potential of anyone offensive player on the team. That makes him tough for any team to keep on the sidelinesespecially one sorely needing a playmaker at WR. But Cole wasnt a factor in the spring game and was spotted wearing sneakers (rather than cleats) at the student-only practice, so its not looking as though the coaches plan on playing him. Thats a mild disappointment, but if hes not ready then hes not going to light the Big Ten on fire anyway.

Two other receivers, junior DaMario Jones and redshirt sophomore Jaron Dukes, have some experience but lack the measurables or demonstrated production their counterparts have demonstrated. Both could contribute as role-players this seasonespecially Jones (a slot) if Cole redshirts and Canteen stays on defense. Both will likely the first to see their playing time evaporate