The Wolverine chats strengths & concerns of Michigan football's roster post spring ball I #GoBlue

we're done with Spring ball we're done with the NFL draft portal window closed without you know we talked about this a little bit last week Clayton but much to the sh Chagrin of rival fan bases and maybe some Michigan haters across the country there was never really that chaos with Michigan football in terms of losing those guys they retained all most of their top players really all of their core players um you know lose a couple guys you know in terms of bringing guys in you've addressed some depth here at wide receiver um still some other pieces to add didn't add at quarterback which is again alluding to what Chris said about some of the the questions we have offensively but now that we're outside of this portal window and they can still add guys you just had to be in the portal by April 30th where are things head next with this roster and and how do we feel about the roster coming out of Spring ball uh feel good about the starting uh depth basically on really on defense offense obviously said there going to be some question marks seem like they're thin at wide receiver offensive line I think is going to be pretty good I I feel good about the pieces there and two guys that barely played I think I don't think Josh kie and uh Giovani oh hadti played much in the spring at all at least Gio Giovani didn't so um and Miles Hinton missed a little bit of time too but I think when they get those five guys there I think they're going to be fine and have a little bit of depth there so I still think they need a corner or two I still think they need a safety which they're looking for the Texas kid who will talk about I'm sure and and then a couple linebackers uh from the people that we've spoken with so but those first teamers guys uh I think are fantastic now when we look at the other side of the ball I'm concerned about the quarterback I don't know that you've got a championship quarterback on this roster just because I don't think you have the talent surrounding them maybe that you need um and of course I said that about 2016 and there wasn't I don't know that there was Elite Talent on the 2016 offense and they still move the ball with Wilton sprit right and I think there's better position players uh at some of those positions so maybe it's possible that the defense leads the way here in this offense you know is does better than we think but I'd feel much better if they had a quarterback in place and as to the the quote about the the guys in the not flocking to the portal as one parent told me they got those top guys at a discount you know and they got him at 50% off he said I don't know if they had a coupon or what and maybe he was embellishing but he said you know they got those guys at 50% of what they could have commanded on the open market that's not always going to be the case so in that respect Michigan still needs to up its nil game yeah just not a ton of Chaos in in general in college football this cycle you're not seeing the top guys that's why a kid like jvier Suggs a defensive tackle from Grand Valley State enters a transfer portal and he has over 40 offers now uh a kid who had seven tackles for loss last year of course he's a d tackle so you know stats aren't everything but it's kind of telling and and indicative of maybe what this spring transfer portal cycle is at least this year right and we talked about that with Pete noos last week um you know we'll see what it is going forward but it feels like the top talent's going to be there in December that's when you kind of load up maybe your starters and then this is a depth guy here some cleaning house there with some numbers with guys leaving so that's kind of an interesting one yeah the 2016 comparison is interesting to me like they were able to move the ball with an o line that was was good not great maybe you know not as well coached I think as the Chiron Mo lines the last three years we'll see what Grant Newsome can do and of course sherone Moore will be involved in the line quite a bit he said that uh when he was on John janson's podcast a week or two ago um so you have to trust that you know he's gonna have that identity but Davon Smith was the running back back then I think you could have some you know better production there with Donovan Edwards and K mullings we'll see right um receiver you know I think you had some really steady guys there in 16 this year the guys have to prove it a little bit I know we have a question about Tyler Morris later on in the show but yeah I feel you know decent about the roster they didn't lose um you know a lot of top talent and now they can still go and get some um you know Chris you mentioned Terence Brooks from Texas the corner who they're targeting but a few others you're looking at wide receiver maybe to add Corner D tackle safety um and as you said linebacker so there's still those spots to figure out and those missing pieces you know kicker was a big missing piece that they filled so I feel like that was one Domino uh you know that they were able to knock over you have the couple wide receivers coming in maybe not a different maker at receiver um but you're kind of on your way to filling out those last pieces that you need yeah in a lot of ways I think you look at this roster it does feel like the early kind of Jim Harbaugh era where yeah I think you could see with what they have a path to nine wins 10 wins anyone who thinks this they're going to revert back to six wins seven wins I I'm sorry I just I don't see that I still think there's way too much talent here and when you see that you know all these again you could take all of this with a grain of salt for now when you see these early 2025 draft boards and you you're a school that has potentially four guys on that list this early in the process I mean it kind of speaks to the talent that they still have returning now the question is depth and on offense I mean you're replacing almost all of your starters there except for coulston Loveland and you know if you want to call Max bredeson a starter I guess you can but uh to me I I think that given everything that transpired over the last several months that they were a that they were able to kind of keep this together keep it mostly intact uh you know there's I've termed it at times this year as like they're needing to be like this you're paying the tab on what the last three years were in terms of finally having some question marks at other positions but you know the fact of the matter is I don't don't let how good those teams were take away from the fact that I think that there is still something really good left behind here and it might be a notch or two below but a notch or two below could still be a very good season and now with a 12 team playoff could still have you in the mix for a college football playoff game or to host a college football playoff game so it's interesting again I know there's a lot of people that kind of come out of this offseason underwhelmed because of the quarterback situation I think we've seen enough there to where it could be interesting I don't know that it's going to be like 2017 where you don't even have a guy that can compete a forward pass but yeah I mean it was a guy like JJ McCarthy that helped raise the level of this program take you to this you know National Championship contending level and I think we're going to see what the difference was and just how valuable that guy was you know with this next year and them kind of it feels like a bit of a stop Gap year to be honest well it would if you weren't losing all the Elite Talent uh from you know you're gonna lose five more guys to the early rounds of the NFL next year so when you say stop Gap you know I've got concerns about 2025 that uh they're going to have to go to the portal and they're gonna have to get a lot of help I think when you lose guys like Mason Graham when you lose guys like Kenneth Grant uh Colston Loveland so um to me it's more of a okay this is one last opportunity here to really you know you're gonna have they if they offense is solid then I think they've got the defense guys to contend in the Big 10 I wouldn't pick them to win it but I think that they can hang around until that last game against Ohio State and have a chance so and it again it all depends on quarterback play and that to me was the the biggest disappointment was okay because we've been hearing guys it's not like we've heard from anybody in that building that boy alex lergy really made a move and he's the guy you know we've got different opinions from so many different people one guy saying well maybe it can be Davis Warren we had another guy in fact some of the players told us when we were delivering some magazines you know I think Jack tuttle's the guy with a little bit of Alex orgy mixed in then I've had another guy tell me that we think Jack tuttle's gonna be the guy so um who knows and it's you know but they've got all summer and they've got all fall Camp to figure it out but to me that is the one area where you could make up for those weaknesses in depth and you could make up for those weaknesses in losing all those guys to the NFL if you had great quarterback play I don't anticipate that and to me that's the disappointment but I am still extremely excited for the season because I think this defense is going to be deadly and I think there are good players on offense especially on the offensive line and if they get get solid quarterback play they could win a lot of football games yeah you you don't have that a ER at quarterback like JJ McCarthy was when it was third and long and yeah he didn't throw 35 times a game but the throws he had to do had to make um were really important at at Big moments and I think Bill belich talked about this during the draft he didn't have the layups like everybody else had the the little screen pass that was in Michigan's offense that's that's a handoff or you know quarterback run at at times maybe not as much as you would have thought given his athleticism but um so the numbers weren't every everything but he was huge for that offense last year and you don't necessarily have that there you don't have Blake corm anymore but um you know I think tackle could be a little bit shaky I'm a little bit concerned about that that position on offense but um you know I I think like you said CB I mean there are still months to go in the season as Jim Harbaugh always said quarterback and kicker are kind of those two positions where you can get better throughout the offseason quite a bit you don't need somebody else you can throw into a tire you know whatever it is um and improve and obviously they'll have the receivers there to run routes with but they still got time they still got a fall Camp Jack Tuttle will be healthy um you know so we'll kind of see how it pieces together well let me ask you guys this this is kind of off the off the cuff and just something I thought about as we're having this conversation you know as we put together this football preview over the summer you know we we're GNA have to put predictions in stone which we don't need to do right now but you know that we're gonna have friends family maybe subscribers we run into out in the wild ask what do you what is the expectation like what do you guys think of this team and and to me I think where I land on it is you know as great as it is to win a big 10 Championship I I think you know when people like to throw the or bust tag on everything I really think when you look at this roster and what they have I don't know if beating Ohio state is the bar this year I don't know if winning a big 10 title is the bar I really think what will determine maybe if this you know past fail and what the season is is making that 12 team playoff I guess where do you guys stand on that that's where I am and I think N9 and three and or 10- two can do that and you know I don't think a lot of people are expecting them to go into Columbus and win this year but if they get solid quarterback play guys and they can bully them on both sides of the ball again then they're going to have a chance and that's why to me the quarterback play is so important I know I think they'll have a good game plan going in there they have certainly the last three games against Ohio State I thought they've been the better coached team now you got a different guy in charge Jim Harbaugh was one of the best in the in the world frankly and uh but Chiron learned a lot from him and Chiron Moore did Coach that game last year uh yes Jim Harbaugh was part of the the planning process in the week before but uh Chiron MOA did have to coach that team so uh and these guys don't know anything but beating Ohio State that's the best part about it they've got that confidence and I think that a lot of them are kind of excited that they're being overlooked and they're thinking that they're coming back trying to defend their Championship especially those guys like Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant and will Johnson they have got probably as topheavy Elite uh five as anybody in the in the in the conference at least you know you look at Ohio State and they're pretty good too I think Oregon's obviously up there as well but uh you got like what three or four first round picks there fellas and uh and excited to see what Donovan Edwards can do in a fulltime role at running back now as a league guy as the number one guy um to me again comes down to that quarterback play yeah and I mean people didn't uh you know people give Ohio State a chance this year at Michigan but Michigan was favored to win the game but Ohio state had chance to do it you know it was a it came right down to the wire um and you know the two other games against them in the last three years Michigan kind of you know really controlled it at you know at a certain point they were able to kind of pull away a little bit but Ohio state was was there for a while in those two so maybe he kind of flipped the script and actually pull it out like Ohio State wasn't able to do this past year um but they definitely have a chance in that one and I agree I think it's getting into the 12 team playoff you know before and Doug SK talks about the expectation never changes at Michigan but I'd like to hear his take on it too like the the landscape of college football has changed um you know to the extent that winning the Big 10 maybe isn't as important um you know the stakes in these games leading up to the 12 team playoff that now could get expanded in years to come uh just don't have the stakes that games in the past have you know I mean there's never going to be a regular season game uh again with the stakes that Michigan Ohio State 2023 had just can't be it's not possible um and I guess that's okay because then there's more Stakes on more games just not as High um you know throughout the college football season I've long been for expansion but uh I think you have to change you know not the definition of success necessarily but um you know to a certain extent I think so uh you know getting into the 12 team playoffs should be kind of that Baseline for a team that's this talented right um a lot of questions to be answered about uh you know about the coaching staff and and you know like some of the positions we talked about but there's enough there where you feel like you should compete for the 12 team playoff yeah I I guess if there's anything that's that makes it a little more exciting you know to give the positives of college football changing is that you know the fact that this big 10 Championship now will be decided between the top two teams in the conference period you don't have to include you know include a team from the west division or anything like that they're got to play this out on the field and Michigan's going to get Oregon this year they're going to play Ohio State um and to me right now you know I'll sit down here and start this big 10 preview for the football uh preview magazine soon but to me right now it still feels like you know even with a bit of a quote unquote slide in Talent from Michigan I think that it is a pretty clear top three in this conference heading into next year so it's Ohio State it's Oregon it's Michigan in whatever order you want to put it in certainly Ohio State probably the favorites on paper but um we'll wrap football with this fellas I mean now that we are kind of heading into the summer it's going to be Camp season soon you know we'll be be out interviewing guys and seeing guys and shaking hands and all that sort of thing you know what is one thing this Summer that you'd like to hear about this football team uh first nobody gets hurt right non-c contct injury like Rod Moore I remember losing Antonio bass in I think it was spring workouts or summer workouts to a a horrible injury that's number one number two that the um Jack tuttle's back and throwing well because I think there's a pretty good chance that he's going to be the quarterback or at least be a significant player in that race so they need somebody that can make the easy passes and I haven't heard that about have you guys heard that about Alex orgy nor have I seen it that okay I mean he's leaving too many plays out there that have to be successful if this offense is going to move the ball so I would love to hear that a little bit more accuracy from the from the quarterbacks more than anything and um to me though I I think the way they came back in shape I don't I think you know a lot of people thought when uh Ben Herbert left that it was going to drop off a cliff these guys like Justin Tres and they've done a great job responding to him so uh to me it all comes down to that and maybe that they add another receiver and another cornerback I would feel a lot better yeah I'd say strength and conditioning something you know jury's still out in terms of how they perform right I mean it's going to come down to like the fourth quarter of some game and you can't judge at all on that right but um you know just felt like they came up in those moments so so often uh when Ben Herbert was leading that so yeah to hear good things about that I think would be a real positive for Michigan you know to uh to hear about the the mentality of the team the guys who are stepping up leadership wise because once that summer cycle starts it's it's mostly the players with the strength staff and the players with each other you know Captain Le workouts that sort of thing um you know so that that will be kind of what will determine what kind of Michigan Team Heads into fall Camp other than addition you know to the portal and and lack of injuries hopefully knock on wood things like that so it's going to be kind of interesting to uh to hear and on the quarterbacks yeah I just don't know that any of these guys are going to say anything that will uh you know really convince anybody either way we're just going to have to see yeah I think for me it's probably I think I'd like to see them add one more wide receiver someone who's playable again that's not to say that CJ Charleston isn't playable but again you're are moving up from FCS to to FBS amorian Walker if he is coming back to play wide receiver I mean it's still kind of a project I mean you lost a year of development at that position there so um I'm pretty comfortable in what they have in their top three I think Tyler Morris is GNA take a lead I think Fred Moore uh is gonna be very good and samage is kind of your slot and Gadget guy I think we we've seen what he can do there but you know to get maybe one more body in that room that you know you can throw out there and get some production out of I think that's probably what I'd like to see the most at this point because if it's not going to be a quarterback that magically appears it's G it's going to have to be how he supported around him so I think they're good at tight end the backs are good I think they could use another body at wide receiver