Michigan football: Saturday (8-19) scrimmage, camp intel

Michigan football went through a second scrimmage Saturday — at least some Wolverines did. Several were held out either as a precaution or due to minor injuries, including several of the starters. Corner Will Johnson, linebacker Junior Colson, running back Donovan Edwards, safety Rod Moore, guards Trevor Keegan and Zak Zinter, tight end Colston Loveland, and receivers Cornelius Johnson and Roman Wilson were all sidelined.

As of now, however, we’ve heard of no major injuries in the two- or even three-deep. That’s a blessing at this point in camp. They are being cautious, and head coach Jim Harbaugh is so pleased with his team he’s even taking his foot off the gas a bit. Earlier this week, he said the initial intrasquad matchup at Michigan Stadium was one of the best “first scrimmages” he’d ever seen of a team he’d been part of, as either a player or a coach. It’s to the point that he’s even letting guys out of the hotel for a bit of fun (a class at a time).

Blake Corum played a bit and ran well, as usual. He’s ahead of where he was last year in camp, and they’ll be careful with him. The starting offensive line consisted of LaDarius Henderson at left tackle, Giovanni El-Hadi and Karsen Barnhart at guards, Drake Nugent at center, and Trente Jones at right tackle. There’s some belief that Henderson and Barnhart will be the starting tackles for game one, but there’s still time. It does seem as though Nugent and Barnhart have joined Keegan and Zinter as probable game one starters.

Freshman Benjamin Hall was the No. 2 guy Saturday. C.J. Stokes has been nursing a minor injury and didn’t go Saturday, and Hall had a couple nice runs. He’s a very possible No. 3 heading into the year. Mullings has had his ups and downs.

At receiver, a couple freshmen looked good in the seniors’ absence. Fredrick Moore continues to play well, as does Karmello English. There were a couple dropped passes by others, and it was made clear to them that there’s too much talent behind them to be doing that and thinking you’re going to play.

Max Bredeson made a nice grab at tight end — it appears he’ll have a role again on this team — and Marlin Klein played a lot, as well. Our spotters didn’t see Matt Hibner out there — we know he’s been held out a bit, too. J.J. McCarthy was sharp at quarterback when he was out there, and he looked good on his running plays, too. Our sources said Davis Warren was once again the best backup, better than Jack Tuttle. Alex Orji was dressed, but they didn’t see him play.

On defense, Michigan sophomore Ernest Hausmann continues to impress, and he got more action in Colson’s absence. “He just makes plays … a very smart football player.” Josh Wallace and Ja’Den McBurrows were out there at corner in Johnson’s absence. Wallace continues to play well, though Mike Sainristil played a lot of corner today (he’s still a nickel first). Keshaun Harris played a lot, too, as did Jyaire Hill and Cam Calhoun, but one who is really “banging on the door — D’Juan Waller Jr. The Youngstown, Ohio native is looking like one of the steals in the 2023 class so far — he’s a big corner and he is playing very well.

The first Michigan defensive line Saturday (but not necessarily for the opener, of course) — Mason Graham, Kris Jenkins, Jaylen Harrell, and Braiden McGregor. There were packages in which they had Graham, Jenkins, and Kenneth Grant on the field at the same time — that’s a tough group to run on.

On special teams, Jake Thaw is currently getting a long look at punt return. He catches the ball, has been best about not putting it on the ground, and has done a good job judging when to catch and when to let it go. That does NOT mean he’ll get the nod in the opener — several are still in the mix, including Sainristil and Edwards — but he’s right there. English and Mullings were also working on kick return.

Louisville transfer James Turner is very likely your Michigan kicker in 2023. He hit a couple of 40-plus yarders when they put him under pressure today — and Tommy Doman continues to punt well.

We’ll continue to provide more Michigan football intel as we get it …

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