Opinion Roundtable: Which Wolverine Are You Most Anxious To See In 2020?

We just watched 10 Wolverines get drafted and a few others get signed as undrafted free agents during draft season. Because of that, several new faces are going to be making their debut in a winged helmet this fall. A few young players who played sparingly last year are also going to get a massive bump in playing time.

With those developments taking place, who are you most anxious to see on the field? We discuss....

Brandon Brown

I've been on the Chris Evans train for a while and I'm going to keep riding it out. I know the running back room is pretty crowded and quite capable, but Evans is perfect for Josh Gattis' system. If he's on the field often, I think he can be ridiculously productive.

In high school, Evans was just as much a wide receiver as he was a running back. Since arriving at Michigan he's bulked up in order to endure the wear and tear of a season in the Big Ten so he's very complete at this stage of his career. If Gattis wants to hand him the ball 20 times, he can. If he wants to throw him the ball eight times per game, he can. If he wants to give Evans the ball on jet sweeps and push passes, he can. Evans is fast, elusive, sudden, tough and a fantastic pass catcher. I don't know how many snaps he'll get per game, but I hope it's a lot.

Steve Deace

I’m most anxious to see whomever emerges as the starting quarterback, because that’s the key to Michigan getting out of the lukewarm hell it currently finds itself. Too good to risk wholesale change, but still not as good as fans hope/expect. This is the position that must become elite for the Wolverines to once again become elite.

Eric Rutter

I’m most excited to watch Daxton Hill or Luiji Vilain this season. Last year, Hill accumulated 36 total tackles, three tackles for loss and one pick in limited playing time, but Josh Metellus’ departure to the NFL opens up the door for significant playing time. Hill has a crystal clear opportunity to make an impact in the secondary, and his ball hawking skills will be very much needed as U-M looks to replace quite a few starters on defense.

As for Vilain, I want to see what he can do given a full season’s worth of playing time. His Michigan career has been marred with injury thus far, but he was billed as one of the more dynamic pass rushers coming out of high school. Vilain shined at the Under Armour All-American game when he lined up against top flight talent, so the ability is there. However, he needs to stay on the field in order to produce, and adding an impact edge rusher would be a huge boost to Michigan’s defense this fall.

Michael Spath

Whoever wins the QB job is the easy answer. Defensively, a full season of Brad Hawkins and Daxton Hill at safety is exciting. My two choices though are Giles Jackson (whom I'm sure is a popular pick) and Chris Hinton. I've been on (and creating) the Jackson hype train for a few months now, dating back to November 2019. I think he can have a Rondale Moore-like impact (the 2018 Big Ten Freshman of the Year at Purdue). He can exploit so many matchups in the slot or coming out of the backfield. And he's not done returning kickoffs for touchdowns. I expect Jackson to be the most explosive athlete Michigan has featured since Denard Robinson or Steve Breaston if you don't count QBs.

Defensively, Michigan has no chance against Ohio State again this year if the middle of its defensive line is not significantly stronger and more capable than it has been the past two years. Hinton has the size, strength and high-level athleticism to be very disruptive at defensive tackle. Back in 2005, Michigan had a similar player in Alan Branch, who was very good as a sophomore and then outstanding as a junior in 2006. His play and presence in 2006 helped create the big-play opportunities that LaMarr Woodley, Rondell Biggs and Shawn Crable cashed in on.