Michigan football has completed its first week or so of spring ball and here’s our take on what the Wolverines projected depth chart will look like.
Spring football is well underway for Michigan football. We have learned plenty so far and we will continue to over the course of the spring.
It all comes to a head on April 1 when Michigan football will hold its annual spring game. From what Jim Harbaugh has said, it will be an actual football game. The Wolverines are going to be drafted into separate teams and the score will be kept like a year ago.
Of course, it’s hard to get information about what’s happening during the Wolverines’ spring practices because they don’t open things, and outside of social media posts, they don’t offer up much to the media.
Yet, here’s our Michigan football spring depth chart projection and also a position-by-position preview of the roster starting with quarterback.
QB1: J.J. McCarthy; QB2: Davis Warren or Jack Tuttle
We all know that McCarthy is going to be the starter. His development will be key this spring but I expect to see a seasoned veteran during the spring game. We also probably won’t see a ton of McCarthy.
I do expect that we’ll see a lot of Jack Tuttle and Davis Warren — the top competitors to be McCarthy’s backup next season.
You need depth at the most important position in the game. Warren is on scholarship now and the coaching staff seems to really like the former walk-on. However, Tuttle has Big Ten experience. He didn’t play much at Indiana but was a former four-star recruit.
Tuttle is talented and a former top-200 recruit. So keep an eye on him this spring and if the Wolveriners need a quarterback to play in a pinch, it could be Tuttle. There’s a reason they added him from the transfer portal after all.
RB1: Blake Corum/Donovan Edwards; RB3: CJ Stokes/Cole Cabana
This one isn’t hard to figure out. Michigan football is going to use plenty of Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards next season.
Edwards wants a bigger role next season and he deserves one. Edwards ripped off a 50-yard-plus run against Ohio State (2), Purdue, and TCU. His performance against the Buckeyes will live on forever in Michigan football history.
Corum clearly got worn down at the end of last season and an injury to Edwards didn’t help with that. It’s imperative that they share the load but the goal-line running of Corum was missed in the playoff game against TCU and if he’s fresh, you can bet Michigan football wins that game.
Numbers and Heisman trophies don’t matter. Corum and Edwards can both run for 1,000 yards but the most important thing is making sure they are healthy for the stretch run.
In that effort, Michigan needs to develop a reliable No. 3. The good news is there are multiple options. I think we’ll see CJ Stokes emerge. He showed promise but needs more patience and also needed to work on ball security.
Cole Cabana is also going to make an impact as a receiver and runner. Kalel Mullings could be in the mix too and I’m excited to see all three of those guys in the spring game.
WR1s: Roman Wilson, Cornelius Johnson, A.J. Henning; WR2s: Darrius Clemons, Tyler Morris, Semaj Morgan, Fredrick Moore
Ronnie Bell was a big loss for Michigan football and I think the Wolverines will wish Andrel Anthony was still around after watching him stand out at Oklahoma.
That being said, getting Cornelius Johnson back was huge. He caught 32 passes (third on the team) for 499 yards (2nd on the team) and came up big in the Ohio State game again. In addition to his two 70-yard touchdowns last season, he had that diving catch from Cade McNamara in 2021.
Roman Wilson caught 25 passes for 376 yards last season and stood out in the Fiesta Bowl. He’s got the ability to stretch the field — he just needs to stay healthy.
Add in guys like A.J. Henning, who is due for a bigger workload after just nine receptions last season, and young guys like Darrius Clemons, Tyler Morris, Semaj Morgan, and Frederick Moore and the wide receiver room is plenty talented.
TE1: Colston Loveland TE2: AJ Barner
Colston Loveland is a guy that’s going to be a future day-two pick in my opinion, maybe even a first-rounder. Barner is a solid player though and was a four-star transfer according to 247 sports.
Just like last season, it’s not really going to matter who is the starter and who isn’t. Both tight ends are going to see the field a lot. Jim Harbaugh and Sherrone Moore love using two tight ends for the running game and I could see these two combining for 50-60 receptions in 2023.
O-line1: LaDarius Henderson, Trever Keegan, Drake Nugent, Zak Zinter, Karsen Barnhart; O-line2: Jeffrey Persi, Giovanni El-Hadi, Raheem Anderson, Greg Crippen, Trente Jones
Looking at the two-deep for the Michigan football offensive line is an encouraging thing. The Wolverines lost two starters but added two seasoned veterans in LaDarius Henderson from Arizona State and Drake Nugent at center, as well as former top-100 recruit Myles Hinton.
There are probably a few Big Ten teams that would love to have Michigan football’s second unit as its starting five. Sherrone Moore has done a spectacular job of developing this group and he’s excellent on the recruiting trail too.
Henderson isn’t taking part in spring ball and neither is Nugent. That will open the door for young guys like Persi, El-Hadi, and Anderson.
The Wolverines are going to play the top five guys and as we saw last season, I would expect plenty of players to see snaps in 2023. Either way, this offensive line is going to be elite.
D-Line1: Mason Graham, Kris Jenkins, Kenneth Grant; D-line2: Rayshaun Benny, Cam Goode
Mazi Smith was a big loss but Michigan football is loaded on the defensive line and it starts with Kris Jenkins. He was a potential first-round pick that decided to come back after 54 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, and two sacks last season.
Those stats don’t really tell the entire story. He’s got All-American potential in my opinion and might be the best run-defending defensive tackle coming back in the Big Ten.
Mason Graham makes the loss of Smith sting much less. He was dominant last season and not just against the run. He had 27 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and 2.5 TFL. Kenneth Grant should also take a big jump while Rayshaun Benny has been getting better and better too.
The top four guys are all pretty interchangeable to me in terms of the interior defensive line.
EDGE1: Jaylen Harrell, Braiden McGregor; EDGE2: Derrick Moore, Josaiah Stewart
Like the defensive line, I feel really good about the top four EDGE guys for Michigan football. Harrell isn’t talked about enough. His ability to set the edge is really high-level. McGregor also took a big step at the end of last season and is finally healthy.
McGregor has been coming back from a knee injury he suffered as a high school senior and it limited the start of his career but he had a breakout performance and was huge vs OSU.
Derrick Moore flashed plenty of ability too and Stewart is a guy who had double-digit sacks back in 2021. Those four players combined for 11 sacks last season and in 2023, I would expect that number to double.
LB1s: Junior Colson, Ernest Hausmann, Michael Barrett; LB2s: Jimmy Rolder, Nikhai Hill-Green, Myles Pollard
There weren’t many linebacker duos more effective in the Big Ten last season than Junior Colson and Michael Barrett. They were the top two leading tacklers for Michigan football last season and combined for 5.5 sacks, 11 TFL, and a bunch of impact players.
Barrett and Colson are each dynamic athletes. Colson used to be a wide receiver. Barrett was formerly a quarterback and a running back. Their ability to cover sideline-to-sideline is rare. They are both very good in pass coverage too.
They are going to start. Ernest Hausmann was rated by 247 sports as a top-10 linebacker and the No. 2 addition in the transfer portal. He’s going to play too and also shares many of the same traits and abilities.
Hausmann really came on for Nebraska at the end of last season and Huskers fans were comparing him to Lavonte David. He may not start but will play a lot and you have to feel really, really good about Michigan football’s linebacker depth right now.
CB1s: Will Johnson, Mike Sainristil, Amorion Walker; CB2s: Jyaire Hill, Myles Pollard, Cameron Calhoun, Ja’Den McBurrows
We know two of the three starting cornerbacks for Michigan football, but the other boundary corner is the open position and Amorion Walker is off to a strong start this spring.
Jim Harbaugh said that he views Walker as a starter. There is still work to do but he’s long, athletic, and very quick. The combination of him and Johnson could be frightening for opponents but there is some quality depth behind them too and that’ll be something to monitor this spring and beyond.
Safety1: Rod Moore, Makari Paige: Safety2: RJ Moten, Keon Sabb, Zeke Berry, Damani Dent
Rod Moore was dynamic for the Wolverines last season with four interceptions and three passes defended. He’s good against the run and has outstanding instincts. Paige also really took a big step forward last season. Moten would start for most Big Ten teams too and all three players had at least one interception.
They will get the majority of the snaps but the young guys have my attention and I’m excited to see how far Sabb, Dent, and Berry, all 2022 signees, have come this spring.
Specialists: P: Tommy Doman; K: Adam Samaha; Returns: A.J. Henning
The kicking competition will be really interesting. Doman has a chance to handle the kicking and punting duties.
Samaha was rated as the No. 7 kicker in the 2024 class and was ranked as a three-star by 247 sports. I think he’ll win the kicking job and my feeling is that if it’s close, it’s better to split the job between two capable kickers/punters.
Henning should be the primary return guy once again next season.