The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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1 Safeties — Name the last time you could say Michigan might have the best pair of safeties in the Big Ten. It may or may not play out that way, but sophomore Dax- ton Hill and fifth-year senior Brad Hawkins have a case heading into the season. Hill is the flashy up-and-comer to Hawkins' steady-Eddie style, a playmaker who will be used not only to roam the secondary, but also to lock down opponents' best receiv- ers at times. Hawkins is usually in the right place at the right time and will be — needs to be — one of the leaders of a revamped defense. By all accounts, he's picked up the new schemes quickly. 2 Running Backs — It took four games last year for the coaches to realize red- shirt sophomore Hassan Haskins should be the bell cow of the group, but better late than never. He's just got a knack for moving the chains, and he was the clear No. 1 com- ing out of spring ball after an outstanding showing in the spring game. Second-year frosh Blake Corum will get more touches this year and could (should) be a huge asset in the passing game, while true freshman Donovan Edwards has "spe- cial" potential, per his teammates and coaches. He's explosive, and he'll play in his first year. There's a lot to like about this trio, and there's been talk of more two-back sets to get them all more involved in the offense. 3 Wide Receivers — Junior Ronnie Bell is the leader of this group, but there are others with great potential. Sophomore Cornelius Johnson could easily have made the 'players to watch' list after hauling in 16 passes for 254 yards and three scores in six games played — he's a big target at 6-3, 205 pounds — and sophomore Mike Sainristil received praise for his solid spring. Second-year rookies A.J. Henning and Roman Wilson are speedsters who should emerge in the slot, and a pair of freshman early enrollees (Andrel Anthony and Cristian Dixon) impressed with their playmaking ability this spring, as well. 4 Offensive Line — There are several highly rated recruits here from four or five different classes, more than enough to put a good line together. The talk the past few years is that the group should be more athletic than the one two years ago that fea- tured four future NFL Draft picks, allowing them to do more things in the running game (pulling, etc.). There's also some star power here, too. Second-year freshman Zak Zinter has the makings of the next U-M great, and they'll build around him. This group will be a blend of youngsters and veterans, and it should be really solid by the end of the year. 5 Defensive Ends — This unit gets the nod thanks to Aidan Hutchinson's return and the potential of the guys on the other side. 'Hutch' should be a candidate for Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, while veteran Taylor Upshaw seems ready to take another step. Third-year redshirt frosh Mike Morris had an outstanding spring. 1 Freshman Offensive Guard Zak Zinter — It's not ideal when a fresh- man is considered the team's best potential lineman heading into a season, but that's where things stood at the end of spring ball (though it's also worth noting he's not the typical freshman, after playing in all six games with four starts last year). Zinter manned the right guard position and was mauling people, to the point that some are already calling him a future first-round NFL Draft pick. He looked good in his debut campaign before a thumb injury ended his season in the finale against Penn State. The 6-6, 334-pounder came back with a vengeance and had an outstand- ing spring. He could play center if needed — he took reps there this spring — and is candidate No. 1 for a breakout season on offense. 2 Sophomore Tight End Erick All — Observers have been waiting for All to produce in games like he's shown in practice, and he's going to get his chance this year. There are allegedly more targets for tight ends than ever in this year's version of the 'speed in space' offense, and All had some outstanding days in the spring. One of them came during the final scrimmage in which he was dominant at times, catching everything thrown his way in about a half of play — five or so recep- tions for about 75 yards. This is a big year for the third-year Ohio native. The team needs the 6-4, 229-pounder to step it up. 3 Freshman Running Back BLAKE CORUM — The second-year back is one of the team's hardest workers, has explosive burst and is versa- tile, which he showed last year in taking his first touch — a swing pass on the first play of the year at Minnesota — for 24 yards and a first down. The key here is to: A) get him out in space, where he can use his quick- ness to make people miss, and/or maybe run him outside the tackles a bit more, and B) hope he becomes more patient and waits for the holes to open in front of him before accelerating. However, the 5-8, 200-pounder has all the tools to be an outstanding Big Ten running back. 4 Redshirt Freshman Quarterback Cade McNamara — The third- year quarterback isn't big (6-1, 205), doesn't have a huge arm and isn't known as a great practice performer, but he provided a spark off the bench in the loss to Wisconsin last year and was outstanding in replacing Joe Milton at Rutgers, leading a three-overtime win. We haven't seen enough of him, however, to know exactly who he is yet. We do know he had a solid spring game and is the odds-on favorite to start the opener against Western Michigan, though true frosh J.J. McCarthy and Texas Tech transfer Alan Bowman will get their shots. At this point, though, it seems like he's 'the guy' behind center, and a lot is riding on his performance. 5 Redshirt Freshman Defensive End Mike Morris — The Belle Glade, Fla., native, is now 6-6 and 276 pounds, and came out of nowhere in the spring to provide some much-needed pass rush and consistency on the edge. He's a hard worker, has molded his body in his third year with hard work in the weight room and seems ready to contribute at a high level, per coaches and teammates. His emergence would be a huge boost to a front seven with modest expectations. THE WOLVERINE 2021 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 45 Top Five Strongest Position Groups Michigan returns both of its starting safeties, and fifth-year senior Brad Hawkins has opened 16 of the 19 games played over the last two seasons. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL 2021 SEASON PREVIEW Top Five Players To Watch PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL