The 2014 recruiting class is the third-most recent haul of Wolverine football players who have completed their entire tenures at Michigan, behind only the 2015 and 2016 crews.
We have decided to review the '14 crop in a fun reflection piece on how the players panned out, after having done the same thing to the '15 and '16 classes the past two days.
The 2014 unit was the last full squad for Brady Hoke at U-M, and was rated No. 31 in the country. It wound up producing several players who helped Jim Harbaugh get off to a hot start during his first few years at Michigan, including the likes of Jabrill Peppers, Chase Winovich and many more.
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The top two players in the class — Peppers and offensive tackle Mason Cole — wound up serving as crucial building blocks on Harbaugh's first two squads (or three, in Cole's case).
Peppers was a key component to Michigan's elite defenses in both 2015 and 2016, while also providing the two teams with a jolt of energy and swagger that helped them go a combined 20-6 during that span.
Cole, meanwhile, started all 39 games during Harbaugh's first three seasons, serving as a stalwart on the offensive line. Winovich and under-the-radar quarterback Wilton Speight also wound up developing into significantly better players than originally expected, playing a key role in the Wolverines' success in 2016, and in Winovich's case, 2018 as well.
Winovich was a consistent terror off the edge and the epitome of a Michigan Man. His work ethic and love for U-M was never questioned at a time when some of his teammates didn't have the same dedication to the program toward the end of the 2018 campaign.
Speight, on the other hand, earned Michigan's starting quarterback job in 2016 and enjoyed an excellent campaign, completing 62 percent of his passes and throwing for 2,538 yards and 18 touchdowns.
Injuries derailed his 2017 season and he wound up transferring to UCLA, but he nevertheless far exceeded what was expected of him after Hoke signed him as an under-the-radar signal-caller from Richmond, Va.
Rivals.com obviously hands out star ratings for prospects, but goes a bit further in depth by also grading players on a scale of 5.2 to 6.1 (6.1 being the best). Detailed descriptions of what each rating means can be READ HERE.
Below is a look at Michigan's 2014 class and the way it appeared when the prospects put pen to paper in February of that year.
