Tight end Zach Gentry became the fifth Wolverine off the board in this year's NFL draft, when the Pittsburgh Steelers selected him in the fifth round with the 141st overall selection.
The four Maize and Blue players to go ahead of him were linebacker Devin Bush (No. 10 to the Steelers), defensive end Rashan Gary (No. 12 to the Packers), defensive end Chase Winovich (No. 77 to the Patriots) and cornerback David Long (No. 79 to the Rams).
Gentry endured a bit of a unique career at Michigan, arriving in Ann Arbor as a four-star quarterback from New Mexico in head coach Jim Harbaugh's debut recruiting class of 2015.
He quickly transitioned to tight end, however, while redshirting as a freshman his first year on campus, before playing in seven games as a redshirt freshman in 2016.
Gentry then enjoyed a breakout campaign in 2017 when he hauled in 303 yards (second-most on the team) and two touchdowns in 11 starts.
He put it all together and enjoyed his most successful campaign in the winged helmet as a redshirt junior in 2018, reeling in 514 yards and two touchdowns on 32 receptions, while starting all 13 games and earning third-team All-Big Ten recognition from the coaches.
Gentry chose to depart Michigan early following the 2018 campaign, concluding his U-M career with 49 receptions for 817 yards and four touchdowns, averaging an impressive 16.7 yards per catch.
While NFL Network's Daniel Jeremiah explained that the massive tight end has plenty of potential at the next level, he was a bit critical of his decision to leave Michigan early.
“He is enormous at 6-8, 265 pounds, and is a big ole' target running down the seam," the analyst noted. "When guys got into him though, he struggled to play out those blocks.
"I was a little surprised he came out, because I thought he'd go back to school. It shocked me when he came out early, seeing as how he’s very raw and will take a lot of time to develop.
"With his size at the position though, there is room for growth.”
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