Questions We're Asking: Should Michigan Pursue A QB Transfer?
What would it mean to have Carlo Kemp and Michael Dwumfour back for the 2020 season?
As WolverineDigest first reported last week, Kemp and Dwumfour are both expected to receive a fifth year from the NCAA after Kemp appeared in just two games as a true freshman in 2016 and Dwumfour appeared in just one game (the season opener) in 2016.
Neither player has a strong NFL opportunity right now, and it makes perfect sense for both to return to see if they can improve their draft stock. Dwumfour has a better opportunity because of the quickness and athleticism he possesses, getting off the snap to create some chaos in the offensive backfield.
Unfortunately, that didn't materialize much this season, as the 6-2, 282-pound Dwumfour finished with only 1.5 tackles for loss among nine stops. He has to boost those numbers significantly to draw favorability from NFL scouts.
Kemp, on the other hand, had 40 tackles, including 4.5 for loss (two sacks), in a career year for the 6-3, 286-pounder, but seen as an undersized run-stuffing defensive tackle, there's not a huge market for players like Kemp.
Both players can help Michigan next year, especially since the two prospects U-M signed for 2020 - 6-4, 239-pound Kris Jenkins and 6-5, 235-pound Aaron Lewis - will need a year or, more likely, two to put on the weight necessary to compete inside, and there is no guarantee DTs Donovan Jeter and Phillip Paea will return to Ann Arbor for their fourth years.
If the two small-time contributors exit for the transfer portal (sources have told WolverineDigest they expect Jeter to do so), Michigan would be severely understaffed at defensive tackle, with just Chris Hinton and Mazi Smith as second-year Wolverines and the two signees. Thus, Kemp's and Dwumfour's returns are of tantamount importance.
What remains to be seen, though, is they can evolve into anything more than what they have shown, and more importantly, if they can overcome what they lack - size.
Featuring a pair of sub-290-pound tackles, Michigan got overrun by Wisconsin and Ohio State's big offense lines. Those two teams combined for 623 yards and nine rushing touchdowns, averaging 5.8 yards per carry. The rest of U-M's 10 opponents combined for 806 yards, nine TDs and 2.2 yards per carry.
The Wolverines would benefit greatly if the 6-4, 303-pound Hinton, who was coming on late in the year, and the 6-3, 305-pound Smith can take over as starters, or at the very least, one of them starts, allowing Kemp or Dwumfour to flourish in one-on-one opportunities.
In other words, Kemp and Dwumfour have an important role to play, but it can't be as starters next to each other. That didn't work in 2019 and won't likely work in 2020. Michigan needs more size. But as depth and complementary players, Kemp and Dwumfour are important returnees for the Maize and Blue next year.
Should Michigan pursue a quarterback in the transfer portal?
Relegated to go to a backup plan through unforeseen circumstance - their commitment JD Johnson was forced to medically retire from football in October - Michigan signed three-star QB Dan Villari on Wednesday to ensure a fourth scholarship quarterback on the roster for 2020, and truly to guard against depth concerns if either Dylan McCaffrey or Joe Milton bolt when one of them doesn't win the starting job next season.
With Villari in the fold, in addition to Cade McNamara, who redshirted as a freshman this past year, U-M will have at least three scholarship QBs in 2020, and the battle between McCaffrey and Milton - both four-stars ranked among the Top 10 signal-callers in their respective recruiting classes - should provide the Wolverines a No. 1 capable of leading the program towards its Big Ten title goals.
We've been asking if either of these two is a 'generational' talent - a must in today's college football, a player that elevates every one of his teammates, as offenses have become the driving force behind playoff and championship teams. The truth is, though, none of us know if McCaffrey or Milton can be that, which is why Michigan should pursue a transfer QB.
The argument will be: how is that six years into his tenure Jim Harbaugh has not recruited and developed his own Heisman-level quarterback? But that shouldn't preclude signing a transfer, not when transfers are the new norm and have proven they can take a program next level - 3/4 of this year's playoff teams have transfer QBs (LSU's Joe Burrow, Oklahoma's Jalen Hurts and Ohio State's Justin Fields).
Transfer quarterbacks also made big impacts at SMU (Shane Buechele), West Virginia (Austin Kendall), Missouri (Kelly Bryant), Illinois (Brandon Peters) and others.
2020's crop includes Justin Rogers from TCU, Felipe Franks from Florida, KJ Costello from Stanford and more, and while fans would certainly like to see a quarterback from within the program blossom into a Top 5 QB nationally, beating Ohio State, ending the Big Ten title drought and making the playoff are too critically important to the vitality of the program to pass on a potential difference-maker.
Maybe McCaffrey is the guy. Maybe Milton is the guy, but it's also possible McCaffrey's fearless head-first style will lend him to further injuries and it's also possible Milton is still a year away. Michigan has to give itself the best chance to end its misery at the hands of OSU and qualify for Indianapolis, and to compete at that level, U-M has to strike gold at quarterback.
So if Costello, who once looked like a future star throwing for 3,540 yards with 29 touchdowns in 2018 before injuries plagued him in 2019, is interested, the Maize and Blue have to take a look.
What do you make of the comments from Khaleke Hudson that he feels Michigan is more talented than Ohio State?
I first saw Hudson's comment on Twitter, reported by WolverinesWire.com's Isaiah Hole and immediately rolled my eyes. What followed next was not surprising, as (presently) 190 people responded to the tweet with some balance between mocking, anger and disbelief. Of course, the story got bigger than that, with numerous Ohio State Web sites picking it up and even the national media.
Hudson's direct quote: “I feel like our talent is better" is of course nonsensical. During Hudson's five seasons in Ann Arbor, Michigan lost to Ohio State five times by a combined 221-126, including 62-39 and 56-27 losses to the Buckeyes the past two years. Hudson, who had one of the worst games of his career in this season's defeat - jumping offsides on a crucial 4th-and-4 among a number of errors -- should have left the question about talent hang in the air, refusing to answer it.
Admittedly, there is always a little bit of prompting from the press, and you can't expect athletes (or even coaches) to always get every answer correct. Hudson probably should have said when asked about the talent comparison: "We think we have great talent and we're disappointed we didn't prove that against Ohio State." Or something to that affect. You don't claim talent superiority when you lose by 29 points, went 9-3, and they went 13-0 and are in the playoffs.
I understand the strong reaction from both Michigan fans and everyone else, but honestly, I think Hudson just said the first thing that came to mind. I don't think he put any thought into the answer. He reacted swiftly and without consideration during an interview in which the line of questioning was going down a path that essentially challenged U-M's status as it relates to Ohio State.
At the same time, the line of questioning wasn't unfair. Michigan has not appeared any closer to beating the Buckeyes than it did when Hudson arrived in 2015, and a popular narrative both in the days after the game and on National Signing Day last week is the talent gap widening between the two rivals.
Harbaugh didn't answer the question in his post-game press conference and hasn't been available to the media since. As one of the senior members of this team, Hudson made for an appealing opportunity to try to dig deeper into the gulf that separates the two programs, but as Hudson's response indicates - he hasn't thought much about it, nor is it his responsibility to do so.
He felt challenged, his program criticized, and Hudson responded fiercely. Unfortunately for the senior it made for the worst possible sound bite and did more harm than good.
Harbaugh will be asked about it at bowl press conferences and this is one of those times he shouldn't be defiant or petulant - change the story, take the heat off Hudson by answering it with depth and resolve. And while the outcomes on the field speak louder than words, provide the fan base with a little hope for the future.
