The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1490206
FEBRUARY 2023 THE WOLVERINE 33 FEBRUARY 2023 THE WOLVERINE 33 2023 LOOK AHEAD OFFENSIVE LINE PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER 2023 ANALYSIS It was no surprise that Sherrone Moore, Michigan's co-offensive coordinator and line coach, earned Football Scoop's Offensive Line Coach of the Year award, when considering his group took home the Joe Moore Award for a second straight season. Three of the five starters from the Fiesta Bowl are set to return, a trio of transfers have joined the fold, young talent litters the rest of the room … and needless to say, the outlook for 2023 is extremely bright. Michigan found success with graduate Olusegun Oluwatimi at the center posi- tion in 2022, with the Virginia transfer winning both the Rimington and Outland trophies for the top center and interior lineman (on either side of the ball) in the country, respectively. Moore and Co. brought in another transfer graduate center in former Stanford captain Drake Nugent. He could be a plug-and-play piece in the middle of the line. Graduate LaDarius Henderson, too, figures to be the most likely option to win the starting left tackle job. At the same time, players like juniors Giovanni El-Hadi, Greg Crippen and Ra- heem Anderson, and senior Jeffrey Persi have bright futures. Graduate Trente Jones has starting experience, as well, and will push for time. Moore has some tough decisions to make — but that's a great problem to have. — Clayton Sayfie BY CLAYTON SAYFIE RETURNING STARTERS Graduate Karsen Barnhart The honorable mention All-Big Ten se- lection won the right tackle job midsea- son and started nine of 10 games (one at left tackle, eight on the right side). Graduate Trente Jones Started six games and appeared in 11, playing right tackle along with the extra lineman position in heavy packages. He gave way to Barnhart in the latter half of the season. Graduate Trevor Keegan The left guard was a first-team All-Big Ten selection by the coaches and second- team choice by the media in 2022, start- ing 11 games this past season and 22 in his career. Senior Zak Zinter The right guard has started 30 career con- tests, including all 14 in 2022. He was a consen- sus first-team All-Big Ten performer this past fall, and his 75.6 overall PFF g ra d e ra n k e d third among Big Ten guards with more than 532 snaps. OTHER RETURNERS Senior Reece Atteberry He saw time in three games at guard in 2022. Senior Jeffrey Persi Persi made his first career start at Rutgers and saw time off the bench in 11 other tilts. Junior Greg Crippen The center saw action in only one game, redshirting as a sophomore after appearing in six contests his freshman year. Junior Raheem Anderson He earned snaps at center in four tilts this past season. Junior Tristan Bounds The tackle has appeared in four games over two seasons. Junior Giovanni El-Hadi He started three games at left guard and appeared in 12 total in 2022, after seeing time in only one game in 2021. Sophomore Andrew Gentry The former class of 2020 re- cruit went on a two-year mis- sion trip, enrolled to U-M last summer and played in two games — one at right guard and one at right tackle — to redshirt this past season. Sophomore Dominick Giudice He began his career as a defensive tackle but moved to offensive line early last season, appearing in three games, be- fore suffering a season-ending leg injury. Sophomore Connor Jones He saw time in two games in 2022, pre- serving his redshirt. Sophomore Alessandro Loren- zetti He redshirted and didn't see game ac- tion his first year. NEWCOMERS Graduate LaDarius Henderson The former Arizona State team captain transferred in and enrolled in January, after starting 29 career games over four seasons. He mostly played guard at ASU but is expected to compete at tackle in Ann Arbor. Senior Myles Hinton The younger brother of former U-M defensive lineman Christopher Hinton (2019-21) started 12 of the 23 games in which he appeared at Stanford. Graduate Drake Nugent The former Stanford team captain was a two-time All-Pac-12 honorable men- tion selection (coaches; 2021-22) and started 24 career games with the Car- dinal. His 80.5 overall PFF grade ranked seventh nationally among centers with 500 or more snaps. Freshman Nathan Efobi The four-star recruit was rated the No. 123 overall player in his class per On3. com and is expected to play guard. He will join the team this summer. Freshman Amir Herring The interior lineman was regarded as a four-star prospect and the No. 316 over- all recruit in the 2023 class per the On3 Consensus. He enrolled early in January. Freshman Evan Link The tackle was a four-star recruit and the No. 134 overall player in the nation per On3.com. He'll enroll this summer.