The tight end position at Michigan isn’t necessarily wide open, but early enrollee freshman Erick All is knocking on that door.
While he is squarely behind redshirt junior tight end Nick Eubanks and senior tight end Sean McKeon on the depth chart, All is impressing the coaching staff and his fellow tight ends. With Zach Gentry leaving for the NFL, the Wolverines are looking to fill the role he had in the offense, and All could be part of that solution.
During spring practice, he has flashed the potential that made him one of the 16th best player in the country at his position in the 2019 recruiting class.
“The kid is going to be special for this program,” Eubanks said. “Kids that love to hit. You don’t find too many kids that crave to hit besides Ben Mason. He’s a good student as of knowing the game and knowing what he’s doing.”
“It’s kind of opening my eyes from an offensive standpoint and him knowing what to do. He’s got a lot ahead of him."
During the spring, not only is All playing tight end exclusively, he is also showing off his versatility.
“Erick All has been really good this spring,” Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh said Wednesday. “He’s playing some receiver, he’s playing some tight end. He’s got a lot of talent.”
At times, All played some wide receiver in high school before putting on weight to become a tight end. That flexibility could help him get on the field early on as a freshman along with his mix of skills between the two positions.
“If you look at the number of athletes we have on offense, I think we’re very versatile,” new offensive coordinator Josh Gattis said. "We have a lot of depth at tight end.”
Under Gattis’, the tight ends are tasked with getting out in space and making plays. That’s something that All can bring Michigan.
“For tight ends, [Gattis] says, ‘Big speed in space,’” McKeon said. “So, that’s definitely cool to see. Obviously, everyone needs to be fast when you’re running routes and stuff like that. I think we have some pretty fast tight ends.”
Even though All is inexperienced, he is impressing McKeon.
“He’s been great so far coming in as an early enrollee didn’t know anything and he’s just out there making plays,” McKeon said. “That’s great to see. He’s a little undersized right now, but I know he’ll put some weight on and be a contributor.”
Harbaugh didn’t want to hype up All too much, but he has gotten on Harbuagh’s radar for his performance during spring practice. He might be still learning the offense, but he’s giving his all-out effort.
“Again he’s just a freshman, but this guy competes until he drops,” Harbaugh said on his “Attack Each Day” podcast. “He is doing a heck of a job and I don’t want to talk too much about him and give him a big head, but man is he doing good. Really, really, really excited about him.”
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