Michigan Football: 6 young players standing out this spring

Greg Crippen, Center

Many assume that Victor Oluwatimi is going to be the starting center this year for the Wolverines and that’s likely going to be the case. But former four-star recruit Greg Crippen, who is going into his second season is making things interesting. Here’s what offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore said about the center and his work this spring:

"“Olu’s done a great job for us. He’s coming in, got assimilated very fast. He did a lot of studying when I was out on the road and when I came back. Crippen’s been doing a great job for us, too, so excited to see as those two go how it keeps going.”"

Even if Crippen doesn’t start this season, he should get some valuable snaps and experience for the future. Grippen played at the IMG Academy with J.J. McCarthy and there seems like a strong chance he could be his center once again in the future.

Darrius Clemons, Wide receiver

You can’t talk about Michigan football spring standouts without mentioning Clemons, who gets talked about by just about every coach and media person covering the beat.

At 6-foot-3, 205 pounds, and with the ability to run a 4.3 in the 40-yard dash, Clemons is a different kind of wideout and it’s showing in spring ball.

Michigan has a “good problem” of having too many talented receivers with Cornelius Johnson, Roman Wilson, Andrel Anthony, Mike Sainristil, A.J. Henning, and other freshmen deserving some touches, but Clemons is going to make an early impact. He and Anthony are going to be tough to defend. Moore said good things about all of Michigan’s freshmen wideouts:

"“Yeah, they’ve been awesome. They’re fast, they’re physical, they’re strong. Just love watching those guys play. Still learning, still trying to figure it all out. It’s gonna take some time. It took Andrel time, it took him a couple games into the season and he was here early. It’ll take those guys time, too, but whenever they figure it out, they’ll be pretty special.”"

Louis Hansen, tight end

One name that Michigan football fans will start to know this fall is that of tight end Louis Hansen. The 6-foot-6, 252-pound tight end is one of the most talented additions from the 2021 recruiting class and he’s turned heads with his play this spring.

Tight end is as deep as any position on the roster. Erick All is going to be a top-100 draft pick in my opinion but Hansen is a talented two-way tight end and he’s going to be fun to watch this season, even if his role is a little limited due to the loaded depth chart.