ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Jim Harbaugh identified five position battles for starting spots that could drag into Michigan football’s first two games of the season.
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‘The Michigan Method’
“Meritocracy,” “Enthusiasm unknown to mankind,” “happy mission.” When Harbaugh finds a phrase he likes, we all know it’s probably here to stay. On Tuesday, the list of Harbaughisms grew by one.
“I read it that another team was doing that for their quarterbacks,” Harbaugh said. “(They called it) ‘The Michigan Method.’ I liked it. I liked the way that sounded.”
I mean, look at his face as he said this:
Yep, better get used to hearing “The Michigan Method.”
It’s a reference to how Michigan ultimately determined the winner of last year’s quarterback competition. The battle between J.J. McCarthy and Cade McNamara was close enough that Harbaugh didn’t want to make a final call based solely on practice, so each player got to start one of the first two games.
McCarthy outplayed McNamara in his start, so he took over the No. 1 spot on the depth chart. It seemed risky at the time, considering McNamara had just led Michigan to its first Big Ten championship in nearly two decades, but it worked out in the end.
And now, Harbaugh’s bringing it back -- just not for the quarterbacks.
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McCarthy is the undisputed starter under center, but there are other position battles that aren’t as clear-cut.
“Who plays?” Harbaugh asked Tuesday. “Who plays? Who gets to start? The best players. How do you know who the best player is? They play the best. So if I had to define what ‘The Michigan Method’ is, that would define it well.
“Tackle this year, center, corner, edge -- it’s so close and there’s multiple guys that are starters that practice may define it over 29 days, but it may not, and (we might) have to go to find the separation in the game to find out who the best player is, because they would play the best.”
Offensive tackles
Zak Zinter and Trevor Keegan will be Michigan’s starting guards, but the hierarchy at the other three offensive line positions is not set in stone.
Offensive tackle is the one group with a clear outline of who is competing to start.
Karsen Barnhart might have the edge at left tackle, but Harbaugh considers Arizona State transfer LaDarius Henderson a co-starter at the position.
At right tackle, longtime versatile contributor Trente Jones is duking it out with Stanford transfer Myles Hinton.
Now, could both Barnhart and Henderson end up starting, with one moving to right tackle? Sure. Harbaugh has moved tight ends to quarterback and linebackers to running back during his Michigan tenure -- he’d have no problem bumping a lineman over to the other side.
But officially, those four tackles are expected to go into the season as co-starters battling for two spots. It’s great to have depth along the offensive line -- Michigan just needs to find the right mix.
“There’s two starters on the left, there’s two starters on the right,” Harbaugh said. “There’s four starting tackles that we have, and it’ll go through camp, I envision, starting two tackles the first game and two tackles the second game.”
Center
This is another battle between an incoming transfer and a 2022 reserve.
Stanford transfer Drake Nugent is on the preseason Rimmington Award watch list, which means he’s regarded among the best centers in the country. But that doesn’t guarantee he’ll be at the top of Michigan’s depth chart.
Harbaugh’s staff also likes Greg Crippen, and if he’s just as good as Nugent, he has the advantage of three more seasons of eligibility. He only appeared in one game last season, though, so Nugent is much more experienced.
Cornerback
Defensive coordinator Jesse Minter can rest easy knowing Will Johnson, Mike Sainristil, Rod Moore, and Makari Paige are at the top of the defensive back depth chart, but who will be the final piece?
D.J. Turner and Gemon Green moved on to the NFL this offseason, and that left a major hole in Michigan’s cornerback room. Johnson looks like a budding star and Sainristil was excellent at nickel, but someone else needs to step up out wide.
Amorion Walker was the talk of spring camp because of his frame and incredible athleticism, but moving to defense full-time after coming in as a wide receiver takes time, and Walker still has plenty to learn at the position.
That’s why Harbaugh brought in Josh Wallace, a late transfer from Massachusetts who started 34 games the past four years. He was a three-time captain for the Minutemen and offers the exact opposite of Walker: high floor, low ceiling.
Harbaugh also mentioned Ja’Den McBurrows as someone who could be part of the mix. He’s probably the top competition to Wallace right now, because Walker is “working through” a minor injury that will likely keep him out until at least this weekend.
This is probably the greatest weakness on an otherwise loaded roster, so Harbaugh had better hope “The Michigan Method” brings out the best in somebody.
Edge rusher
Michigan’s defensive line will have a much different look without Mazi Smith, Eyabi Okie, and Mike Morris, but the rotation will still be made up of familiar faces.
On the interior, Kris Jenkins, Mason Graham, and Kenneth Grant will take on increased roles. Harbaugh also mentioned Cam Goode as someone who is ascending.
The edge will likely feature some combination of Jaylen Harrell, Derrick Moore, Josiah Stewart, and Braiden McGregor.
Who will start? Harrell feels like the only lock.
“Just really becoming a complete player, in terms of an edge player,” Harbaugh said. “He plays our SAM edge, which is more the athletic pass rusher. Expecting him to be really proficient in coverage, but he’s somebody that can really get the quarterback and set the edge.”
Stewart plays a similar style as Harrell, while McGregor and Moore are bigger edge rushers.
Who will officially start across from Harrell? It sounds like we might not know until mid-September.
What does this mean?
All but one of these position battles are the result of Michigan developing depth and having more than one good option.
The obvious exception is cornerback. Whoever starts opposite Johnson will have a target on his back, and it’s up to Michigan to try to disguise that weakness as well as possible.
Some of these competitions might work themselves out before the Sept. 2 opener against East Carolina. But it’s clear that with under three weeks until kickoff, the final depth chart is far from finalized.
