2024 Michigan Football Fall Position Breakdown Defensive Line
For our Position Breakdown series, we will look at each position group for Michigan Football as we head toward fall camp.
How does the current depth chart shake out? What are the storylines or things you should watch heading into the spring and, eventually, the season? What's the X factor, whether it's a player, coach, or situation, that could change how the group looks?
Let's talk about the big men up front.
POSITION BREAKDOWN SERIES
Tight End
Defensive Tackle
DEPTH CHART
| STATUS | PLAYER |
|---|---|
|
3T STARTER |
MASON GRAHAM |
|
3T ROTATION |
TREY PIERCE |
|
5T STARTER |
RAYSHAUN BENNY |
|
5T ROTATION |
ENOW ETTA |
|
NT STARTER |
KENNETH GRANT |
|
NT BACKUP |
IKE IWUNNAH |
|
DEPTH |
ALESSANDRO LORENZETTI, BROOKS BAHR, OWEN WAFLE, DEYVID PALEPALE, TED HAMMOND, MANUEL BEIGEL |
WHAT'S THE STORY?
While the offense is in transition and full of question marks, that is not true for the defense. And nowhere is there less doubt about who leads the way than with the defensive tackles.
Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant return and should be the best DT duo in college football.
Graham does it all. A run stuffer with an average depth of tackle of just 1 yard. Graham had as many pressures as a pass rusher as Josaiah Stewart, a win rate better than Derrick Moore, and led the team in hits on the QB.
Grant played behind Mazi Smith in year one and wasn't given the same opportunities as Graham. He does things a 6'3" 340lb man shouldn't be able to do, like chasing down Kaytron Allen in the open field.
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Best way to show Grant can do it all? Look at this stat line.
29 tackles, 5 for loss with 3.5 sacks, 6 quarterback hurries, 5 pass breakups, 1 interception, and 1 fumble recovery. Controlled chaos, Grant is a menace.
Having two interior players who can cause this much havoc is, well, a gift from the football gods, as Jim Harbaugh would say. The issue for defenses? You can only double-team one.
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Last season, Graham, Grant, and Kris Jenkins overshadowed a sneaky, impressive season from Rayshaun Benny. Playing 244 snaps while the other three played 400+, Benny still had only two fewer tackles than Grant and more tackles for loss than Grant and Jenkins. Benny had zero missed tackles in 2023—just an efficient run-stopping machine who should excel in a more significant role this season.
Benny is healthy and has been a full go in fall practices.
Trey Pierce will be the next sophomore breakout and could see heavy rotation as DT4 and arguably the position's future in a post-Graham and Grant world. How he has developed in the offseason will be a story to watch in the spring. Already a lean and strong 300lbs last season, any additional weight will make Pierce a force in the 3T/NT rotation.
X FACTOR
My primary reason for listing Etta and Brandt as EDGE players early in the offseason was their usage last season. Each played outside with no interior snaps, nose tackle or 3T. But that was last season, and they were freshman.
Etta was already listed at 6'5" and 295 lbs last year. With Michigan using their EDGE players as DE/OLB in 3-4/2-4-5 fronts, any more weight would likely make him too big to play outside. The Kris Jenkins comparisons are obvious, especially with Etta now north of 300 lbs.
Etta is versatile, agile, and strong. He's added a ton of weight in the last two years but looks lean. His strength is in his lower body, so if he has the kind of transformation with his upper body that we saw from Moore, he could be a dominant pass rusher. With the extra weight, he could easily be the DT/5T replacement for Jenkins.
Etta can be expected to make an impact in 2024. While Michigan is elite at the starter level, they need depth, and any player who can limit the drop-off from their starters will have a place in this defense.
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