Trying To Pencil In Michigan's Starters Is A Tough Task

As Michigan prepares for its 2021 season there are a lot of question marks surrounding the team itself. Forget about Jim Harbaugh's tenure, extension and uncertain future and just focus on the here and now and the players that are going to be on the field this season and you'll find yourself wondering a lot.

Who will start at quarterback? How is the running back rotation going to look? What can we expect out of the speedy, versatile wide receivers? Who starts along the offensive line? Besides Aidan Hutchinson, who can be counted on along the defensive line? Which linebackers fit best into Mike Macdonald's new scheme? What combination is best in the secondary? Those are all questions, position by position, that are very hard to answer. As of today, you can't rattle off too many locks to start, but that's what makes the offseason so much fun.

Quarterback

There definitely isn't a lock here. The starting job at quarterback became a three-horse race with grad transfer Alan Bowman's announcement that he'd finish his career out at U-M. Redshirt sophomore Cade McNamara and five-star freshman JJ McCarthy round out the rest of the group competing for the job. Redshirt freshman Dan Villari is also in the mix but nothing has indicated that he's close to winning the job.

Running Back

Everyone is anxious to see how the running backs will be used in 2021 with Mike Hart now controlling the position. It feels like Hassan Haskins will be the guy to start out atop the depth chart, but is he the guy all year? Sophomore Blake Corum and true freshman Donovan Edwards will certainly have something to say about that. Another position, no surefire starter.

Wide Receiver

There is a lot of talent at the wide receiver position but there are also quite a few question marks because of how they've been used. These guys were supposed to be the stars of the show in Josh Gattis' offense, but that simply hasn't happened. Senior Ronnie Bell, junior Cornelius Johnson and junior Giles Jackson feel like the top three guys, but none of them separated themselves last year with 26, 16 and 15 catches respectively. Throw in guys like sophomore speedsters Roman Wilson and AJ Henning, along with some exciting freshmen in Xavier Worthy, Andrel Anthony and Cristian Dixon, and somewhat forgotten man Mike Sainristil, and you have a very loaded and capable group.

If you're starting a game with just two or three of them on the field, though, which guys get the nod? Who will end up leading this team in catches, yards and touchdowns? All of those things seem up in the air making for another group without many locks.

Tight End

The starting job probably goes to junior Erick All but I can't quite call him a lock. I'll write him down as the starter, but not in ink. Not yet. He struggled with some drops in 2020 and played behind Nick Eubanks and because of that, we're not quite sure what he looks like as the feature guy at tight end. Maybe redshirt junior Luke Schoonmaker takes a big step this season and becomes the best option at TE. Throw in the fact that Jay Harbaugh has moved back to coaching the position and we're in the same boat as with several other positions — some talent, some inexperience and a likely starter, but nothing set in stone.

Offensive Line

Because there are five positions to fill here, and because so many guys have actually played pretty meaningful snaps, this group is extremely tough to figure out.

You have graduate transfer Willie Allen now on the roster who started 13 games at left tackle for Louisiana Tech in 2019. You have redshirt junior Ryan Hayes who has started four games at left tackle while at Michigan. You have redshirt sophomore Karsen Barnhart who started four games at left tackle last year. You have true sophomore Zak Zinter who started four games at right tackle. You have fifth-year senior Chuck Filiaga who has started six games at right guard. You have fifth-year senior Andrew Stueber who has started six games at both right guard and right tackle. You have graduate student Andrew Vastardis who has started four games at center. And finally, you have fifth-year senior Joel Honigford who started to see action as a jumbo tight end last year, but is still listed as an offensive lineman on the spring roster. Throw in young guys who have played very little, like redshirt freshmen center/guard Reece Atteberry and guard/tackle Trevor Keegan, along with a bunch of true freshman and second-year players who haven't seen the field at all, and there's just a lot to sort through. Oh by the way, Sherrone Moore is the new OL coach and he's never coached the position group before.

As we sit here in mid-March, while spring ball is going on, I don't think you can name one starter along the offensive line with 100% certainty. That's really kind of crazy.

Defensive Line

Aidan Hutchinson — lock. He's the first guy that I feel 100% confident saying that about. Others are close — Haskins, All, some trusty receivers and a couple offensive linemen even if the position is an unknown — but none are at 100%. Hutchinson is.

Depending on what front(s) new defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald employs will determine how much we see interior guys like junior Chris Hinton and fifth-year senior Donovan Jeter, but I feel pretty good about those two. Hinton is very close to a lock in my opinion, but Jeter has been up and down during his entire Michigan career. Everyone is still waiting on the emergence of redshirt sophomore Mazi Smith, and redshirt junior Julius Welschoff came on a bit last year now that he's up to 286 pounds.

On the end opposite Hutchinson, I have no idea. I tend to lean towards redshirt junior Taylor Upshaw because he's been around and we saw a good bit of him last year, but it's definitely not a certainty. Beyond him, we really haven't seen anyone else on the field.

Linebackers

I think fifth-year senior Josh Ross and redshirt junior Michael Barrett will both start, but I'm not at 100% on the confidence scale. As a former linebackers coach, Macdonald likely has a clear vision of what he wants the position to look like within his defense, and maybe Ross and/or Barrett don't check enough boxes for him. I don't think that'll be the case, but you never know. Beyond those two guys — more talent without any experience. Junior Anthony Solomon has played in quite a few games, but to say he's ready to step into a starting role is a reach and everyone else has done even less than him.

Cornerbacks & Safeties

I've combined these two position groups because I think some shuffling is in order. Junior Daxton Hill is a lock to start, but where? We've all heard about him as a cover man and seen it in action. If he's the best cover guy on the team, he should be at cornerback. He's not a big hulking head hunter at safety, he's a long, lean, speedy, 6-0, 192-pound coverage guy. He would be better at the position than both Gemon Green and Vincent Gray were last year, so he should be there. That's my opinion and I think it would get a few players in their best positions to succeed. If that happens, fifth-year senior Brad Hawkins and sophomore Makari Paige are your starting safeties. Open up the competition and let Gray, Green and several other young, unproven cornerbacks battle it out for the spot opposite Hill.

If Hill stays at safety, which I've heard is his preference, then he and Hawkins are likely your starters on the back end. That means it's open season at cornerback under new assistant Mo Linguist. Green and Gray were torched early on last year but did improve down the stretch. Still, a clean slate for some younger, and perhaps more talented guys, could really shake things up.

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