Spring ball is drawing to a close, and tomorrow's annual spring game will be just the second opportunity (since last season ended) for the public to get a glimpse of the Wolverines in person.
We've rounded up our biggest revelations surrounding the team from over the past month, while also taking a look at the questions that still need to be answered moving forward.
Three Things we Learned This Spring:
3. The veteran starters have some serious competition on their hands
Head coach Jim Harbaugh has always preached a meritocracy at Michigan, and hasn't been afraid to make tough decisions regarding his depth charts during his four seasons here.
He may be tasked with more difficult choices this fall than he's ever had before, based on the reports out of practice that several backups have been giving the veterans everything they can handle at numerous spots.
The most notable is at quarterback, where Harbaugh declared right off the bat that senior Shea Patterson would have to fight to keep keep his job.
"Our quarterback room is really good," he said at the start of spring. "Shea will not be able to put his feet up at any point during spring practices, because the other guys behind him are coming hard and fast."
Some reports out of practice have indicated that redshirt sophomore Dylan McCaffrey has actually been better than Patterson, and that he looked more impressive running Michigan's offense in the early going.
Another spot where the veteran returnees appear to have been getting pushed in a big way is at linebacker.
Both redshirt junior Devin Gil and junior Josh Ross were — for all intents and purposes — starters last year, but could see their starting spots taken by a pair of up-and-comers in redshirt sophomore Jordan Anthony and redshirt freshman Cam McGrone if they're not careful.
Harbaugh provided an update on where things stand at almost every position 10 days ago, naming starters at the majority of the spots but choosing not to do so at linebacker.
"Ross and Jordan Anthony are battling it out at mike linebacker, while Gil and Cam McGrone are fighting with each other as well," he noted.
2. A wave of injuries has led to position changes for several players
Michigan has been hit harder with injuries this spring than any other spring in recent memory, and the large number of ailments have led to some shuffling at certain positions.
The most notable involves junior utility man Ben Mason, who — after only playing fullback last year — is now taking reps at fullback, running back, tight end and defensive line.
Believe it or not, defensive line may actually wind up being the position he receives the majority of his snaps at this fall, seeing as how that was the only position group he worked with during Saturday's open practice.
"Ben Mason is an animal, and I’m excited the coaches let us have him," defensive coordinator Don Brown said two weeks ago. "It would be against my better judgment to say he could play inside on the defensive line, but he’s a freak of nature who comes off the ball exceptionally well."
Injuries to redshirt freshmen Christian Turner and Hassan Haskins, along with freshman Zach Charbonnet have also led redshirt freshman fullback Ben VanSumeren to move from linebacker to running back.
Position coach Jay Harbaugh recently revealed, however, that both Turner and Haskins could return before the end of spring, while Charbonnet will be back well in advance of the season-opener.
Redshirt sophomore Phillip Paea, meanwhile, has been switched from offensive guard to the defensive line to help aid a unit that severely lacks both bodies and experience, while redshirt freshman Ryan Hayes has gone from tight end to left tackle (and is actually the backup to fifth-year senior Jon Runyan there, position coach Ed Warinner recently revealed).
A minor change on defense in the wake of senior cornerback Lavert Hill's injury involved junior safety Brad Hawkins, who Harbaugh now revealed is the team's starting nickel back.
He is also still the backup at both safety spots, and it remains to be seen whether or not he'll remain at nickel once Hill returns.
1. Josh Gattis appears to have truly been given the reins to the offense
All the reports out of practice regarding what first-year coordinator Josh Gattis' offense will look like have been the opposite of what U-M ran last year.
While the Wolverines' attack in 2018 featured a philosophy that was predicated on controlling the clock by grinding out drives on the ground, this year's edition has been described as an up-tempo, no huddle system.
During his three months on the job, Gattis has preached getting the ball to his play-makers in space with an emphasis on utilizing the talent currently on the roster.
Many felt Michigan failed miserably to do that last year, particularly when it came to the club's outstanding receiving trio that included then-sophomores Nico Collins and Donovan Peoples-Jones (and then-redshirt freshman Tarik Black when healthy).
Harbaugh gave the best description of how Gattis' offense will operate when he was asked about it at the start of spring ball.
“Josh will coordinate the offense and call the plays," he revealed. "We’re all working together and learning — he's so good at explaining his style of offense, and has been showing us how to coach it.
"The biggest difference for us will be the tempo — it will be more up-tempo and less huddling. I like it because it has an attacking feel in terms of going downfield in the passing game.
"We’ll have multiple personnel groups like we always do, but we’ll attack in multiple formations as well. Our RPOs could be a run or a pass, and I like that it'll have an attacking feel that defenses will have to be aware of. Other teams can't just figure out what your tempo is all the time.
