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Michigan's wide receivers are young but full of potential in 2018. With spring practice wrapping up ahead of the team's trip to France, we take a look at how things stand at the position entering the summer.
The Players
• Sophomore Donovan Peoples-Jones: After an up and down freshman season that saw him play a more featured role than what was initially expected, Peoples-Jones has been heralded as the best looking receiver this spring — coach Jim Harbaugh even said so himself. He will start the fall as one of the team's starting wide receivers and is in line for a breakout season with better quarterback play.
• Sophomore Tarik Black: After getting injured in the third game of the 2017 season, Black is now back and fully healthy. He showed promise in his brief appearance last year and was on pace to be the team's leading receiver. He's looked impressive this spring as well, and will start opposite of Peoples-Jones this fall. You can make the case that Michigan has the best one-two punch of young wide receivers in the Big Ten.
• Senior Grant Perry: Perry was nicked up a bit this spring, but was able to practice some. He's the leading candidate to play in the slot this fall, like he did last year. He's the veteran of the position and will provide valuable minutes. If he doesn't produce, he could lose playing time to redshirt freshman Oliver Martin.
• Redshirt freshman Oliver Martin: Martin has been talked about a ton this spring and is being considered one of the most improved players. He will fight for playing time, but don't be surprised if he takes over as the starting slot receiver at some point during the season. He'll see time regardless.
• Sophomore Nico Collins: The big sophomore is having a nice spring, but has been limited a bit as well. He is clearly an outside receiver and will be a nice target on deep balls for whoever is playing quarterback for the Wolverines. Expect a bump in playing time this fall.
• Junior Kekoa Crawford: We really haven't heard much about Crawford at all this spring. He seems to have been buried or passed by younger guys like Collins and Martin, but that remains to actually be seen on the field. Keep an eye on his situation.
• Junior Eddie McDoom: The speedster has typically been used on reverses or end-arounds by U-M, and that's how he likely will continue to be used. There's so much talent at the position that it will be hard for him to crack the rotation in a significant way.
Quotes On/From The Wide Receivers
• "Our quarterback play is also getting better, and receiver play has improved greatly. I'd say [sophomore] Donovan [Peoples-Jones] is our best receiver right now. [Sophomore] Tarik Black is getting back into form, and [redshirt freshman] Oliver Martin has made a move up the depth chart." — Jim Harbaugh
• "The receiver group is 'just ridiculous,' much bigger and stronger. Sophomore Tarik Black is working his way back into great shape, but as head coach Jim Harbaugh said the other day, sophomore Donovan Peoples-Jones has really elevated his game.
“'He made a catch the other day that legends are made of,' one person told us. 'It was like the Charles Woodson (one-handed interception at Michigan State in 1997), only on offense. But right there on the sideline and he pulled it in with one hand.Redshirt freshman receiver Oliver Martin 'has been awesome,' he added. He’s going to be a factor this fall. Senior Grant Perry has been banged up a bit, we hear, but will certainly factor in." — April 6th's ITF.
• “We’re just all individually trying to get better. We have to get open for our quarterback, and we have to be ready for that at any given time.” — Peoples-Jones
• "Everyone caught a glimpse of a college-ready Tarik Black at the start of last season, before a foot injury took him out of action for the latter part of the non-conference and all of the Big Ten season. Black is back in a big way, but he's not far and away the best receiver on this team right now.
"That's because he's getting a huge challenge from classmate Donovan Peoples-Jones. Ask six different people who's No. 1, and you might get a 3-3 split. Peoples-Jones needed to get stronger and more technically sound at freeing himself at the line of scrimmage. He committed himself to both, and it shows. He already had the capacity for getting up and making spectacular catches, like we've seen in tweeted practice videos, etc.
"New wideouts coach Jim McElwain is likely gleeful over the abundance of young talent, especially when you mix in a third sophomore, Nico Collins. Collins gets consistent mentions as someone standing out, which can be attributed in part to his diligent off-season approach. He took it seriously, knowing the opportunity that awaits and having gotten a taste of the action later in the year.
"Collins is just what the catching doctor ordered: bigger, stronger, and a step faster, at least in terms of football operation at this level. Like Peoples-Jones, he's made strides in jamming at the line and being able to free himself better. Collins is also running better routes this spring, and when combined with possessing some sticky hands in traffic, he's a legitimate option for any of Michigan's quarterbacks.
"Meanwhile, Oliver Martin redshirted last fall while his much-discussed teammates got it going on the field. There are more confirmations that Martin doesn't intend to wait any longer. The redshirt freshman has enjoyed a very strong spring, to the point that some aren't at all convinced that he won't be the starting slot receiver when it's all said and done come September." — April 12th's ITF Extra
• “I haven’t played football in six months, so I’d say there was a little bit [of rust], not too much. Maybe after a day or two of practice I was straight. Came back and have just been doing what I do.” — Black
• “It was a big learning experience for me. Obviously I was redshirted, and there was a big learning curve for the offense. The main thing I needed was to learn the entire playbook last year and being able to process it quickly … doing that, and then getting acclimated to the college level a little bit.
“Between the injury and knowing the playbook and processing it quickly, those were the two major factors. After going through a full year, it’s so much easier, knowing the personnel groups, the formations, the shifts." — Martin
Projected Depth Chart
1A. Donovan Peoples-Jones — starter
1B. Tarik Black — starter
3. Grant Perry — slot starter
4. Nico Collins
5. Oliver Martin
6. Kekoa Crawford
7. Eddie McDoom
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