Sports Illustrated released the first half of its top 100 college football player rankings for 2018 and four members of the Michigan football team made the list.
Several more are expected to make the top half of the list, which we'll have for you when it comes out.
The rankings are based on projections for this fall, which of course also factors in each players output in 2017. SI also released its list of biggest snubs, which includes Michigan State redshirt junior quarterback Brian Lewerke and several other Big Ten players.
Here are the U-M players that made the cut:
No. 80 — Junior Quarterback Shea Patterson
What They Said: "It wasn’t that long ago that Patterson felt like a long shot to gain immediate eligibility at Michigan. Now he’s being touted as the potential savior for a bumbling offense that finished No. 101 nationally in yards per play last season. As long as there are no lingering effects from the season-ending knee injury he suffered at Ole Miss last October, Patterson could provide the offensive spark the Wolverines need to rise to the top of a daunting Big Ten East division."
No. 78 — Junior Cornerback Lavert Hill
What They Said: "An unspecified injury sidelined Hill for much of Michigan’s spring, but it’s not expected to set him back this season as he looks to build on a second-team All-Big Ten campaign. At full strength, Hill is an elite cover man capable of spooking opposing quarterbacks out of making contested throws in his vicinity. He and fellow junior David Long have a strong case as the conference’s premier cornerback duo."
No. 62 — Junior Viper Khaleke Hudson
What They Said: "Ace defensive coordinator Don Brown has groomed Hudson, a former three-star safety/athlete recruit out of McKeesport Area (Pa.) High School, into a big-time playmaker at the Wolverines’ hybrid Viper position. On Nov. 4, Hudson set a single-game Big Ten record with eight tackles for loss in a 33–10 win over Minnesota, and the only player in the conference to beat Hudson’s 18 TFL last season was teammate [fifth-year senior defensive end] Chase Winovich (18.5)."
No. 56 — Fifth-year Senior Defensive End Chase Winovich
What They Said: "It’s not a huge stretch to suggest the Wolverines could field the No. 1 defense in the country this season, and Winovich is a major reason why. He is a 6'3", 253-pound wrecking ball off the edge who is poised to spend his fifth year in Ann Arbor tormenting Big Ten offenses while functioning as one half of a frightening defensive end duo that also includes projected first-round draft pick [junior] Rashan Gary."
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