Jalen Mayfield Looking 'Phenomenal' According To Jim Harbaugh
Now in his third year at Michigan, offensive line coach Ed Warinner has worked wonders for U-M's blocking ability. His crowning achievement is having four O-Lineman selected in the 2020 NFL Draft, but with that success comes the need to restock the protective unit of Michigan's offense.
According to Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh, the Wolverines are more than prepared to field another group of talented offensive linemen this fall.
“Jalen Mayfield looks phenomenal as a tackle, as a football player,” Harbaugh said on Wednesday. “He is another example of somebody who really has done a great job this entire offseason. He looks great. Other guys, Ryan Hayes is definitely somebody that has game experience, started at left tackle, expect really good things from him.”
After making 13 starts at tackle, Mayfield was an All-Big Ten honoree last year, but his stock has only risen since that time. In fact, ESPN's Todd McShay predicted that Mayfield could wind up as a first round selection in the 2021 NFL Draft if all goes well, so Mayfield will be counted on to protect the blindside of Michigan's quarterback this season.
As a staff, we recently named Mayfield the No. 1 Wolverine heading into the 2020 season while Michigan fans slotted him third.
With one spot up front essentially locked up, Michigan will work to sift through its players to find two guards, a center and another tackle. While replacing Cesar Ruiz is no easy task, Harbaugh says that Zach Carpenter and Andrew Vastardis will likely battle for that spot.
The guard is a bit more open, though the Wolverines have several competent players that could work their way into a starting position as well.
“The guard position, there is going to be a few guys. Chuck Filiaga is looking good, doing great, and he's really developed. I think he is ready to play,” Harbaugh said. “Karsen Barnhart is another in there at guard. Andrew Stueber will be back. He is back from his ACL injury that he had last year and he is looking good, so there is some real good guys in there, and they'll be battling for those positions. Overall, I would say it looks good. It looks good right now from a strength standpoint. The athleticism is very good at that group.”
Ryan Hayes was also listed as a player who has experience and drew praise from Michigan's head coach during his media availability session, and those seven players will roughly make up the top contenders to replace the four U-M lineman drafted this spring.
“Ed Warinner does a great job coaching them, and we will know more when we can start getting them together,” Harbaugh said. “They are in those voluntary workout groups, but come July 24th I'm very excited to see them challenged.
“Individually, they definitely have done a great job understanding the system,” Harbaugh said. “Installs, we've probably installed each install three times if not four, so mentally very sharp and guys know what they're doing.”
Since Michigan will field a new starting quarterback this fall in either Dylan McCaffrey or Joe Milton, assembling a strong, cohesive offensive line is one of the paramount challenges for U-M over the offseason. But heading into fall camp, Harbaugh feels confident that his players are up to the task.
Which five blockers would you like to see take the field for game one this fall? Do any players outside of Jalen Mayfield have the inside track to a starting job this season? Let us know!
