Pro Football Focus And CBS Give Their Thoughts On U-M, Several Players
Pro Football Focus and CBS Sports each released several predictions and informational nuggets regarding Michigan and some of its players on Tuesday afternoon.
Pro Football Focus
Pro Football Focus ranked Michigan No. 11 on its preseason top 25, while noting that fifth-year senior defensive tackle Mo Hurst is the Wolverines' top returning player. The site gave Hurst a grade of 86.5 (out of 100), and said fifth-year senior linebacker Mike McCray and senior offensive lineman Mason Cole are the Wolverines’ next best returning players, with grades of 86.4 and 83.7, respectively.
The publication expanded on Cole a bit more, stating that his 87.3 grade as a tackle in 2015 allowed Michigan runners to average 5.1 yards per carry while running to the left.
However, it also notes that he needs to improve on his pass blocking, after he allowed 16 quarterback pressures on 467 pass blocking snaps last year, which ranked in the bottom third of qualifying centers in the league.
McCray's overall grade of 86.4 ranked third-best among returning Big Ten linebackers, while his 84.7 grade in pass coverage rated second-best among returning conference linebackers who played at least 200 snaps.
However, it also notes that McCray could improve on his tackling efficiency, stating that he recorded 5.43 tackles per missed tackle attempt (13 on the year.)
The site also put out a tweet showing that sophomore running back Chris Evans was the second-most elusive freshman running back in the country last year, trailing only Alabama’s Joshua Jacobs.
CBS Sports
CBS’ Ben Kercheval tabbed sophomore left guard Ben Bredeson as one of the 15 players who will break out in college football, writing:
“Great name, obviously. Bredeson had an excellent freshman season at left guard with eight starts and an All-Big Ten honorable mention. It's rare for a freshman to come in right away and make an impact in the trenches like that. With the Wolverines replacing well, pretty much everyone, Bredeson suddenly becomes one of the guys the offense must lean on for success.”
Kercheval also picked the best college football team from each state, and unsurprisingly tabbed the Wolverines from the Mitten state:
"Tougher choice than you might think with Michigan State coming off a 3-9 season. Spartans coach Mark Dantonio has done a lot for that program, and he's dominated his rival for the past decade. Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh still has a little something to prove. You can only finish third in your own division so many times, no matter how deep that division is. But, man, the way Michigan State fell to 3-9 in a hurry was concerning."
Finally, CBS Sports ranked all college football teams 1-130, and tabbed Michigan at No. 13. Despite that ranking, it projected Michigan to wind up in the Holiday Bowl against Oregon.
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