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The spring game is just five days away, which means it's time to wrap up our spring position previews by taking a closer look at special teams.
There were a number of young new faces in 2017 and most return in 2018.
Returning Players
Newcomers
• Michigan does not have any scholarship players coming in this fall purely for special teams. Both athlete Michael Barrett and wide receiver Ronnie Bell are candidates to return kicks. Adam Culp will walk-on as the backup kicker, and kicker Jake Moody will be either a grey-shirt or blue-shirt and join the team after the season on scholarship.
Observations
Michigan is pretty set all across special teams. Nordin will be the starting kicker and has a bright future ahead of him after a strong first playing year.
If he gets injured, Culp figures to be the next man up or another walk-on that the team could add.
With James Foug graduating, that would leave one to believe Nordin will also handle kickoff duty.
Punter was an area of concern in 2017, with both Robbins and Hart struggling. Robbins is the favorite to start in 2018 after taking the job from Hart early last fall. He has a big leg and is loaded with potential, just needed some experience. Expect the punting situation to be better this time around.
Cheeseman should be the team's long snapper, while Robinson and Baldeck provide depth. Long snapper and holder tend to be forgotten positions until something goes wrong, so the less you hear about them the better.
Speaking of holder, Michigan will need to find a replacement for Garrett Moores, who graduated. It could be junior Michael Sessa, a walk-on quarterback, any of the other backup quarterbacks, a punter or someone that comes out of nowhere. We'll keep an eye on this one in the spring game.
Punt returner should be all set with Peoples-Jones. He had some freshman growing pains early in 2017, but picked it up as the season went along — including his first career punt return touchdown. If he gets hurt or starts fumbling, senior wide receiver Grant Perry or Ambry Thomas could fill in.
Thomas will be the leader again as a kick returner. He is dynamic and can make plays with his speed and shiftiness. Hawkins and Crawford will return some kicks as well.
Don't forget about Bell and Barrett, however. They each have speed and the coaching staff might look to find ways to get them on the field.
Projected Starters
Kicker: Quinn Nordin
Punter: Brad Robbins
Long Snapper: Camaron Cheeseman
Holder: Michael Sessa
Punt Returner: Donovan Peoples-Jones
Kick Returner: Ambry Thomas, Brad Hawkins
Position Battle To Watch
Holder, maybe? There's not a lot going on here competition wise, but the fight for holder will be one to watch. Brad Robbins should have a solid lead on Hart for punter, but don't count that race out completely either.
More Spring Previews From The Wolverine
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