The Michigan Wolverines' football team had six underclassmen make vital decisions about their NFL futures once the 2019 campaign ended, and two chose to go pro while four decided to return to Ann Arbor.
We rank on a scale of 1-5 (one being the least impactful, five being the most) the impact each player's decision will have on U-M's 2020 football team.
Wide receiver Nico Collins — Returning
Impact Level: 5
Collins' decision to return for his senior season is arguably the most impactful choice that any player on this list made.
If he would have left, Michigan's receiving unit would have been incredibly inexperienced and unproven heading into 2020, with sophomore Ronnie Bell standing as the lone returning proven player.
Collins and Bell should form one of the best receiving tandems in the nation next year after combining for 1,487 yards and eight touchdowns in 2019, and will help ease the transition for whichever new quarterback steps into the starting role (likely either redshirt sophomore Dylan McCaffrey or redshirt freshman Joe Milton).
At 6-4, 222 pounds, the Birmingham, Ala., native should be viewed as one of the better wideouts in the nation heading into his senior season, especially if offensive coordinator Josh Gattis' system picks up where it left off to end 2019.
Collins' decision to return was massive for the Michigan program.
Tight end Nick Eubanks — Returning
Impact Level: 3
Eubanks will be another nice target for either McCaffrey or Milton to throw to in 2020 after hauling in 25 receptions for 243 yards and four scores as a redshirt junior in 2019.
His return was especially impactful when considering senior tight end Sean McKeon's graduation (235 yards and two touchdowns this year), meaning a potential Eubanks departure would have left the tight end spot extremely youthful in 2020.
It would have forced at least one of freshman Erick All, redshirt freshman Luke Schoonmaker or incoming freshman Matt Hibner to step into a starting role, presumably before any of them are ready to.
Eubanks will be third most productive pass catcher on Michigan's roster next season, behind only Bell and Collins.
Defensive end Kwity Paye — Returning
Impact Level: 5
Paye took a massive step forward in 2019 as a junior (29 tackles and 5.5 TFLs in 2018, before racking up 50 stops and 12.5 TFLs this season), and it's fair to expect him to be even better as a senior in 2020.
He will serve as one of the anchors on what will be an experienced and proven defensive line (along with current senior Carlo Kemp and current sophomore Aidan Hutchinson), and should help turn a spot that was viewed as a weakness heading into 2019 as a potential strength next season.
Departing fifth-year senior Michael Danna was the only backup defensive end who was regularly subbed in this year, with the other backups (redshirt sophomore Luiji Vilain and redshirt freshman Taylor Upshaw) rarely seeing playing time.
A potential Paye departure would have forced one of the unproven, inexperienced defensive ends into a starting role, but his return instead provides Michigan with one of the best defensive end tandems in the Big Ten.
Wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones — Leaving
Impact Level: 4
His early departure will certainly be felt in the passing game after he racked up 438 yards and six touchdowns this year, but Collins' decision to return helped soften the blow a bit.
Peoples-Jones seemed to regress following a 2018 campaign that saw him haul in 47 receptions, 612 yards and eight scores, as the former five-star prospect out of high school failed to materialize into the game-changing wideout many expected him to be.
His absence will also be felt on punt returns as well, a duty he had held since his freshman campaign of 2017.
Peoples-Jones took two attempts to the house during his time in Ann Arbor (against Air Force in 2017 and versus Nebraska in 2018), and was incredibly sure-handed while fielding the punts.
Center Cesar Ruiz — Leaving
Impact Level: 5
This one stings, with U-M's offensive line now having to replace four starters prior to next season.
A potential Ruiz return would at least have given the front five two proven starters in 2020 along with redshirt freshman right tackle Jalen Mayfield, but his exit instead leaves the unit as arguably the biggest question mark on the whole team.
Part of the reason Ruiz's jump to the NFL is so impactful is due to the fact there's no proven, experienced successor in place; redshirt junior Andrew Vastardis and freshman Zach Carpenter appear to be the most likely candidates to take over the center duties, but both are woefully inexperienced (the former has only made 13 career appearances and the latter has none).
Granted, Vastardis and/or Carpenter could wind up being exceptional in 2020, but question marks remain nonetheless, a sentiment that could also be used for the three other players who will be stepping into new starting roles up front.
Cornerback Ambry Thomas — Returning
Impact Level: 5
Thomas' return should give Michigan yet another outstanding cornerback duo in 2020, with redshirt freshman Vincent Gray likely serving as his counterpart.
A jump to the NFL by Thomas would have left Michigan's cornerback situation inexperienced and young, especially when considering senior Lavert Hill is departing via graduation.
U-M's corners have been consistently productive under the tutelage of position coach Mike Zordich, and it's fair to expect Thomas to take another significant leap forward next year as a senior (some viewed him as a liability coming into 2019 due to his inexperience on defense, but that sentiment wound up being flipped on its head).
Thomas — along with junior safety Brad Hawkins — should serve as the leaders of a 2020 Michigan secondary that appears to be equally as good, if not better, than it was this season.
---
• Talk about this article inside The Fort
• Watch our videos and subscribe to our YouTube channel
• Listen and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes
• Learn more about our print and digital publication, The Wolverine
• Sign up for our newsletter, The Wolverine Now
• Follow us on Twitter: @TheWolverineMag, @Balas_Wolverine, @EJHolland_TW, @AustinFox42, @JB_ Wolverine, Clayton Sayfie and @DrewCHallett
• Like us on Facebook
