Michigan NFL combine players pick Wolverines to watch in ’24

There was tremendous pride among the former Michigan players at last week’s NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis that 18 of them were invited from the Wolverines’ national championship team.

On the flip side, that obviously means that’s a considerable number of mostly starters who will have to be replaced before the upcoming season.

Michigan’s spring practice under first-year head coach Sherrone Moore begins March 18, and culminates with a spring game April 20, and the coaching staff will begin evaluating the future starters during those practices.

The former Wolverines, part of a record group at the combine, said plenty of talent remains at Michigan. The biggest question marks are quarterback, with the departure of two-year starter J.J. McCarthy, the Big Ten’s Quarterback of the Year in 2023 who went 27-1 as a starter, and the offensive line. Six linemen participated in the NFL combine.

“For the next group, it’s a standard that we set,” said Karsen Barnhart, considered the Wolverines’ most versatile lineman who made starts at every position but center. “We want all of those guys to follow.”

Zak Zinter, the Wolverines’ starting right guard and consensus All-American last season, is in the final push of his recovery from a broken leg suffered in the third quarter against Ohio State and went through the interview process with NFL teams while at the combine. He is confident that because so many of the backup linemen had reps during games early in the season when most of the starters sat during the fourth quarters, they will be ready under new offensive line coach Grant Newsome. Newsome coached Michigan’s tight ends the last two seasons.

“We had a ton of depth last year, and, I mean, six offensive linemen here at the combine is kind of crazy — you can only have five starters,” Zinter said.

Zinter listed several of the returning linemen, including tackles Myles Hinton, who made four starts at right tackle and one at left tackle last season; Jeff Persi, who has made one start; and Andrew Gentry, center Greg Crippen and guards Gio ElHadi, who has made three starts; and Josh Priebe, a transfer from Northwestern, as the next wave of starters at Michigan. Priebe has played in 36 games and made 29 starts, mostly at left guard.

“(Newsome is) gonna do a hell of a job coaching those guys up, and I think they’re gonna be really good,” Zinter said.

The defensive line was represented at the combine by tackle Kris Jenkins and edge rushers Jaylen Harrell and Braiden McGregor. At the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine, former Michigan lineman Mike Morris referred to Michigan as “Edge Rush U” because of the talent in recent years, and McGregor and Harrell believe that will still be the case this fall.

Harrell and McGregor named TJ Guy, Derrick Moore, Kechaun Bennett and Josaiah Stewart as players to watch.

“We have a deep edge-rushing crew now,” McGregor said. “They’ve been working their butts off since they’ve been there, especially Derrick. I’ve seen him since freshman year, he’s a junior now. Josaiah came in (from Coastal Carolina before the 2023 season), he’s just hit the ground running since the day he came in.”

Harrell praised Guy for his athleticism and also mentioned Enow Etta.

“He’s very big, kinda reminds me of (former Wolverine) Kwity Paye a little bit, very explosive, very big, powerful,” Harrell said of Etta, “so I feel he’s going to have a great spring. Stew is going to have a great year. He’s not the typical stature that you might think about for an edge guy, but he’s very explosive off the ball. They’re going to have a lot of success this year.”

Paye, Aidan Hutchinson, David Ojabo and Morris were Michigan edge rushers before McGregor and Harrell, and they see that line of talent continuing.

“The big thing is just you have so much depth there every year,” McGregor said. “Like when I came in, I had Kwity, Aidan, Ojabo, Jaylen, Mike Morris, so I think (at) Michigan, when you come in you got to know you have to compete. I think It prepares you really well for the league, because you’re going to get in there you’re going to have guys that are vets and first-rounders you’re going to have to compete with. Just being a Michigan defensive lineman is coming in to just work every single day. Don’t really stress about anything, just know that when you get your chance, you better show out. All the work behind the scene is really what you have to focus on.”

Two-time captain Mike Sainristil, who led the team with six interceptions last season, and Josh Wallace were the two combine participants from Michigan’s defensive backfield. Veterans Will Johnson, Makari Paige and Rod Moore return to Michigan, but Sainristil said to keep an eye on DJ Waller Jr. and Jyaire Hill.

“Those two guys are gonna have an impact this year, and I’m excited to see what they do,” Sainristil said.

At receiver, Michigan will be without Roman Wilson and Cornelius Johnson, who both attended the combine. Semaj Morgan returns for his sophomore season, and Tyler Morris and Peyton O’Leary will be back. Wilson singled out Fredrick Moore, a 6-foot-1, 180-pound sophomore-to-be.

“He’s got the size, the speed, the works,” Wilson said. “I think he’s gonna be a dog this year and next year and the year after. That’s my guy. Semaj Morgan, all the receivers pretty much. I think they’re all very underrated.”

As far as who will be running the offense, spring practice will go a long way toward making progress in determining a quarterback. Alex Orji and Jayden Denegal return, as does Jack Tuttle, who transferred to Michigan from Indiana before the 2023 season and recently received a medical waiver from the NCAA for a seventh season. In 15 games at Indiana, Tuttle made five starts. Tight end A.J. Barner also transferred from Indiana, and during his media session at the combine shared why Tuttle is a solid quarterback.

“I was just happy for him,” Barner said of Tuttle getting the waiver. “Whatever he wants to do, he’s going to be great at it. He’s going to put his best foot forward and attack every day. Jack is a tremendous leader and tremendous football player. Whatever opportunity he’s given, he’s going to make the most of it and compete for the starting job.”

Barner, like Tuttle, was a captain at Indiana. He said Tuttle has strong leadership skills.

“The way that he approaches each day, his experience and his ability to make plays outside of the pocket and move around,” Barner said. “He’s got good arm talent, too. He’s a complete quarterback. It’s the experience part, too. He’s played a lot of football and has been around a lot of different systems. He knows ball.”