Michigan football: 4 key things to watch for Wolverines against Army
By Jacob Shames
Offensive line
The Wolverines’ offensive line came into 2019 more talented and more experienced than at any point under Jim Harbaugh. So against a Group of Five opponent, the loss of left tackle Jon Runyan Jr. wasn’t expected to hurt that much — Michigan had the depth easily survive his absence.
That doesn’t mean anyone expected Ryan Hayes to do what he did against the Blue Raiders.
Runyan’s replacement, a redshirt freshman and converted tight end, made massive strides over the offseason, bulking up from 245 to 295 pounds. In his first major test as a college football player, Hayes was Harbaugh’s player of the game on offense, grading out as high as veterans Ben Bredeson, Cesar Ruiz and Michael Onwenu.
Runyan might return to the field against the Black Knights, which would seemingly push Hayes back to the bench — but Hayes might have already proven too good to keep off the field.
If Runyan does play, it will be interesting to watch how that plays out on the right side of the line, where Hayes might see action as well.
Jalen Mayfield looked to have earned that job by default when Andrew Stueber was lost for the season, and the redshirt freshman certainly didn’t do anything to lose the job against Middle Tennessee. But with Hayes throwing his hat in the ring, he’ll get continued opportunities to play — which can only be a good thing for Michigan.