Michigan Football: 3 overreactions from the spring game
By Nick Popio
These are the three most absurd overreactions from the 2023 Michigan football spring scrimmage that the Maize won 22-21 over the Blue.
The two-time defending Big Ten champs were without several starters on Saturday, but others had their day in the sun to live their dreams of participating at the Big house.
Peyton O’Leary and Ben Hall sparkled Michigan football on offense with over 200 yards of total offense together. Leon Franklin found paydirt twice and the defense created four turnovers and 13 tackles for loss.
Here are the three overreactions.
1. Ben Hall is the next Hassan Haskins already
This is an obvious overreaction. The freshman took full advantage of the slimmer depth chart on Saturday. He netted almost 100 yards and broke the plane of the endzone for a touchdown. He definitely has a bright future ahead of him when Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards exit, but to expect him to contribute this fall is not believable.
Hall has put people on notice that this can come true one day, however. He’s built for the part already as an 18-year-old kid. The only thing to worry about is the running back room is going to be crowded in a year with him, Cole Cabana, C.J. Stokes, Jordan Marshall, and maybe a commit from Taylor Tatum. It’s going to be something to keep a tab on moving forward.
As good as Benjamin Hall looked at the spring game, I just don’t see him cracking the top 4 on the RB depth chart. Corum and Edwards are 1 and 2 and Mullings is clearly trusted by the coaches. That leaves Stokes, Gash, and Dunlap to compete with (Cabana will likely redshirt).
— Wolverine Chronicle (@WolverineChron) April 3, 2023
Cole Cabana missed the spring game and would have also gotten carries if he was healthy. He was a higher-ranked recruit than Hall and it wouldn’t be a surprise if he wins the third running back slot in the fall. He’ll have to beat out full-time running back now, Kalel Mullings, who eventually took over that role late last season.