The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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18 ■ THE WOLVERINE 2020 FOOTBALL PREVIEW MICHIGAN FOOTBALL Ohio State, Penn State and Michigan are slated to have 152 four- and five-star prospects on their respective rosters in 2020, while the 11 other Big Ten teams will only have a combined 124. It's no surprise that 15 of the 18 five-stars in the league reside among the aforementioned trio's rosters, with redshirt junior quarterback Hunter Johnson at Northwestern, and freshman wideout Rakim Jarrett and fifth-year senior linebacker Shaq Smith at Maryland being the lone three exceptions. It's also worth noting that Johnson arrived at Northwestern and Smith at Maryland as transfers, both from Clemson. The fact that Ohio State will lead the Big Ten in 2020 with 58 total four- and five-star players doesn't come as a surprise, but what may catch some fans off guard is that Penn State checks in second with 51, while U-M is third with 43. There is then a significant drop-off in recruiting talent after those three, with Nebraska slotting in a distant fourth with only 24. Pulling in phenomenal high school prospects is the first step toward winning at a high level in college football, but the teams at the bottom of the list below have proven that recruiting rankings aren't the end all, be all. Minnesota and Iowa are the perfect examples, having gone a combined 21-5 in 2019 and expected to both be very good once again in 2020, despite now having a total of just 14 four-star players on their respective rosters (eight for the Hawkeyes and six for the Gophers). Those two West clubs are the exception to the rule, however, with the three recruiting powerhouses in Ohio State, Penn State and Michigan having gone a combined 33-7 last season. — Austin Fox Michigan entered last season with 39 players on its roster who were rated as either a four- or five-star prospect out of high school, and that num- ber has been bumped up to 43 entering the 2020 campaign. Head coach Jim Harbaugh signed back-to-back recruiting classes that were ranked No. 4 in the country in both 2016 and 2017, and six players from those two hauls are expected to start for the Maize and Blue as experienced veterans. Senior wideout Nico Collins, fifth-year senior tight end Nick Eubanks, senior defensive end Kwity Paye, fifth-year senior defensive tackle Carlo Kemp, se- nior cornerback Ambry Thomas and senior safety Brad Hawkins all solidified themselves as produc- tive starters last season after they each began at least 10 games, and five of the six were rated as four-star recruits out of high school (Paye was the lone exception as a three-star). None of the four five-stars signed in the 2016 and 2017 classes remain, however, with defensive end Rashan Gary (2016) and wideout Donovan Peoples-Jones (2017) having both departed early for the NFL, and linebacker Jordan Anthony (2017) and defensive tackle Aubrey Solomon (2017) each having transferred (the latter to Tennessee, while the former's destination was never revealed). Defensive coordinator Don Brown will have two young five-stars to work with in 2020, though, with sophomore defensive tackle Chris Hinton and soph- omore safety Daxton Hill each expected to step into full-time starting roles (the duo started a combined four games last season as freshmen, but that was due to injuries ahead of them on the depth chart). Hill and Hinton will be two of eight projected defen- sive starters who were rated as a four-star recruit or higher out of high school, making up what should be a loaded Michigan unit on that side of the ball in 2020. It's much of the same on the offense, despite the absence of five-star talent. Redshirt junior quar- terback Dylan McCaffrey was a four-star recruit when he signed with Michigan (as was redshirt sophomore Joe Milton), and will have a trio of four-star starting pass catchers to throw to in Col- lins, Eubanks and sophomore wide receiver Giles Jackson (assuming the latter earns a starting role). Several spots on the offensive line, meanwhile, are up for grabs, though redshirt sophomore Jalen Mayfield — a four-star out of high school — is expected to reclaim his starting job at right tackle, while we have another former four-star prospect in redshirt junior Chuck Filiaga pegged to win the left guard role. — Austin Fox Sophomore safety Daxton Hill is one of two five- star recruits expected to step into a full-time start- ing role for Michigan's defense this fall. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN Pos. Player Stars Numerical Rank Position Rank QB Dylan McCaffrey 4 131 7 (pro-style QB) RB Zach Charbonnet 4 60 4 WR Ronnie Bell 2 — — WR Nico Collins 4 120 17 WR Giles Jackson 4 233 37 TE Nick Eubanks 4 — 9 LT Ryan Hayes 3 — 48 LG Chuck Filiaga 4 175 16 (OT) C Zach Carpenter 3 — 15 (OG) RG Andrew Stueber 3 — 74 (OT) RT Jalen Mayfield 4 — 17 Pos. Player Stars Numerical Rank Position Rank DE Kwity Paye 3 — 35 (WDE) DT Carlo Kemp 4 215 11 (WDE) DT Chris Hinton 5 15 2 DE Aidan Hutchinson 4 129 8 (SDE) LB Cam McGrone 4 195 16 (OLB) LB Josh Ross 4 222 15 (OLB) LB Michael Barrett 3 — — CB Ambry Thomas 4 146 15 CB Vincent Gray 3 — 60 S Brad Hawkins 4 — — S Daxton Hill 5 24 1 The Recruiting Efforts Of Ohio State, Penn State And Michigan Are A Notch Above The Rest Of The Conference FOUR- AND FIVE-STARS ON EVERY BIG TEN ROSTER Team Five-Stars Four-Stars Total Ohio State 11 47 58 Penn State 2 49 51 Michigan 2 41 43 Nebraska 0 24 24 Wisconsin 0 18 18 Maryland 2 15 17 Michigan State 0 15 15 Illinois 0 12 12 Purdue 0 10 10 Iowa 0 8 8 Indiana 0 7 7 Minnesota 0 6 6 Rutgers 0 4 4 Northwestern 1 2 3 Solid Blend Of Experienced And Youthful Talent Make Up U-M's Roster WHERE EVERY PROJECTED MICHIGAN STARTER WAS RANKED OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL