The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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42 THE WOLVERINE JANUARY 2018 MICHIGAN FOOTBALL Wide receivers Tarik Black (who was lost for the year in game three) and Donovan Peoples-Jones, defen- sive tackle Aubrey Solomon, offensive guard Cesar Ruiz, punter Brad Rob- bins and kick returner Ambry Thomas, who also saw action at cornerback, all earned starting roles. Wide receiver Nico Collins, line- backer Josh Ross, defensive back Jay- len Kelly-Powell, defensive end Kwity Paye, viper Brad Hawkins, running back O'maury Samuels, cornerback Benjamin St-Juste, safety J'Marick Woods, fullback Ben Mason and offen- sive lineman Andrew Stueber also all played, many on special teams. Michigan also played seven redshirt freshmen this season: linebacker Devin Gil, kicker Quinn Nordin, punter Will Hart, quarterback Brandon Peters, run- ning back Kareem Walker, offensive lineman Stephen Spanellis and long snapper Camaron Cheeseman. In 2016, Michigan played 22 true freshmen, but only one was a regular starter — now-sophomore left guard Ben Bredeson. Despite shaky quarterback play, both Peoples-Jones and Black made an im- pact in the passing game this season. Peoples-Jones also returned punts and brought one back for a touchdown, while he caught 16 passes (third on the team) for 219 yards (fourth). Before getting hurt, Black caught 11 passes for 149 yards and a score. De- spite playing in just three games, he ended the year as Michigan's No. 6 receiver. Solomon took over as a starter on the defensive line halfway through the season, and finished with 17 tackles and two tackles for loss. Ruiz took advantage of his opportu- nity to fill in when sophomore guard Michael Onwenu got injured, taking his starting spot for the rest of the sea- son. He could end up being a starter for the rest of his Michigan career. Robbins punted 58 times and aver- aged 40.9 yards per kick. Thomas returned 18 kicks for an av- erage of 20.11 yards and had a long of 43. He also played sparingly on defense, recording six tackles, half a tackle for loss, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. The progress of Michigan's young players is encouraging, and next sea- son's roster will include four years' worth of Jim Harbaugh recruits. — Andrew Vailliencourt FOUR WOLVERINES WILL SEEK GRADUATE TRANSFERS As of mid-December, four Michigan players are seeking graduate transfers to play their final year of eligibility at another school. All four have been released by the program and will earn their degrees — making them imme- diately eligible at whatever school they attend next. Headlining the group is redshirt junior quarterback Wilton Speight. He missed most of this season after getting hurt against Purdue. He fin- ishes his Michigan career 257-of-437 passing for 3,192 yards with 22 touch- downs and 10 interceptions. Another quarterback, redshirt soph- omore Alex Malzone, is also leaving. He appeared in just two games at Michigan. A pair of redshirt junior wide re- ceivers will likewise head elsewhere, Maurice Ways and Drake Harris. Ways appeared in 25 career games and caught eight passes for 71 yards. Harris played in 25 career games and hauled in nine receptions for 60 yards. It is possible that several others could announce they plan to leave, which would open up roster spots for incoming recruits and transfers, including Ole Miss sophomore quar- terback Shea Patterson, among others. — Andrew Vailliencourt TAMPA IS FREQUENT U-M BOWL DESTINATION Michigan will play South Caro- lina in the Outback Bowl Jan. 1 and is no stranger to the contest that is based in Tampa, Fla. In fact, the Wol- verines' five past appearances in the event mark the most of any team in the country. The Maize and Blue hold a 3-2 re- cord in the Outback Bowl and first appeared in it on Jan. 2, 1988, when it was referred to as the Hall of Fame Bowl. U-M faced Alabama for the first time in program history, and defeated the Crimson Tide in a 28-24 thriller. Trailing 24-21 with just 47 seconds left in the game, U-M's John Kolesar hauled in a 20-yard touchdown from Demetrius Brown for the Wolverines' game-winning score. Michigan made its second-ever trip to the Tampa showdown on Jan. 1, 1994, and once again came away vic- torious, this time 42-7 against North Carolina State. It held a 21-0 lead at halftime, while running back Tyrone Wheatley won MVP honors after rushing for 124 yards and two touch- downs. Michigan returned to the postseason event just three seasons later on Jan. 1, 1997, for a rematch with Alabama. The Crimson Tide avenged their 1988 loss to the Wolverines with a narrow 17-14 victory. U-M actually outgained Alabama 415-247 and led 6-3 heading into the fourth quarter, but the Tide offense woke up for 14 points in the game's final frame to come away with a three-point triumph. Michigan then took a six-year hia- tus, before returning on Jan. 1, 2003, to go up against the No. 22-ranked Florida Gators. The two teams traded leads for much of the contest, before Michigan pulled away a bit when it grabbed a 35-23 lead in the third quar- ter on consecutive touchdowns from running back Chris Perry. The Gators had one final chance to tie the game, though, trailing 38-30 late in the fourth quarter, but their hopes ended when U-M linebacker Victor Hobson grabbed an interception and ended any hopes of a comeback. The Maize and Blue's most recent trip to the Outback Bowl came on Jan. 1, 2013, and was also against South Carolina. The No. 11 Gamecocks jumped out to a 14-3 lead on the No. 19 Wol- Wilton Speight will utilize a graduate transfer to finish his final year of college eligibility. He com- pleted his U-M career with 3,192 passing yards and 22 touchdowns against 10 interceptions. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN