Buy Or Sell: Sainristil Will Emerge As Michigan's No. 2 WR Behind Bell
With Donovan Peoples-Jones in the NFL, Nico Collins set to head off to the pros and Tarik Black now at Texas, the Michigan Wolverines' football team will feature a revamped receiving unit in 2020.
Junior Ronnie Bell is the unquestioned leader of the crew (a team-best 758 yards last year) and is a proven commodity, but the Maize and Blue will need a second reliable option to emerge behind him.
Is Mike Sainristil — whose 145 yards were the most among Michigan's three freshmen wideouts last season — in line to be U-M's next-best receiver in the passing game, or will it be another youngster?
Clayton Sayfie and Austin Fox provide their takes below.
Clayton Sayfie — Sell
Bell is essentially a lock to start at Michigan’s ‘Z’ position, and it’s safe to assume Sainristil will grab the starting job opposite of him at ‘X.’ Those facts alone may have some jumping to the conclusion that he’ll be the team’s second-leading receiver.
“Not so fast,” we’ll say here (Lee Corso style). I’ll go with fellow sophomore Giles Jackson to be the Wolverines’ No. 2 target and finish the season second in yards, behind Bell.
The reason? Jackson looks like a lock to start at the slot receiver position, the spot Bell started at last season while actually leading the club in receptions and yards. Offensive coordinator Josh Gattis showed last season, with his utilization of Bell, that the position is just as important as each of the outside receiver spots.
Though Sainristil played significantly more on offense than Jackson last season (173 snaps to 46), Jackson was just as productive, hauling in nine catches for 142 yards and a touchdown, compared to Sainristil’s eight grabs for 145 yards and a score.
It’s important to keep in mind that last season was a small sample size for both players, but Jackson proved to be more sure-handed than Sainristil, as well, not dropping a pass all season long (per PFF), while Sainristil had three drops.
Believe it or not, Jackson actually graded out the highest among all of Michigan’s receivers, per PFF, a group that included Nico Collins, Donovan Peoples-Jones and Tarik Black. Again, sample size played a part in that, but it’s impressive nonetheless.
And finally, while predicting Michigan’s second most productive receiver for this upcoming season, projecting how that player will be used is a crucial factor. Michigan has already shown the desire to move Jackson around and get the ball in his hands as much as possible, especially at the end of last season when he began to grasp the offense at a higher level. There’s no reason why Harbaugh and Gattis shouldn’t have some more wrinkles in store this season to get Jackson’s speed in space.
If Nico Collins chooses to return to Ann Arbor, however, this all changes, and I would expect Collins to lead Michigan in receiving, followed by Bell and Jackson.
Austin Fox — Sell
There are several realistic options who could emerge as Michigan's No. 2 receiver this season, including Sainristil. We'll give fellow sophomore Giles Jackson a slight edge, however, thanks to the way he ended last year.
He became more involved in the offense in November, with 107 of his 142 yards on the year occurring in U-M's final three games. The Citrus Bowl loss to Alabama was the best receiving game of Jackson's season, with the then-freshman reeling in career-highs in both catches (four) and yards (57).
Explosive plays also became more prevalent down the stretch last year, with the Antioch, Calif., native hauling in a 40-yard reception against Alabama and a 50-yarder at Indiana on Nov. 23, to go along with a 50-yard kick return to open the game against the Crimson Tide.
Jackson was clearly on an upward trajectory to close the 2019 campaign, and U-M offensive coordinator Josh Gattis recently admitted the sophomore will take on an expanded role this fall.
"I didn’t think he’d make the impact on our team until about Week 5, and from then on, it was about trying to find ways for him to touch the ball," Gattis told the media last week. "It’s now about making him a complete receiver — he’s accepted the role and has made some big-time plays for us.
"He was a high school running back and is great with the ball in his hands, but now it’s about creating separation as a route runner. We found quick ways to get the ball in his hands last year, and now we’re putting it in his hands in all different ways.”
It's worth noting, however, that any of Michigan's three sophomore receivers could easily be the answer to this question, with Sainristil and Cornelius Johnson being the other two.
It's splitting hairs with the trio of sophomores, as all three seem destined to see the field a lot in 2020. It would not be a surprise if any of them emerged as the team's No. 2 option behind Bell.
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