Projecting Michigan football's 2023 depth chart after first scrimmage

Michigan football's 2023 season is less than three weeks away and this past weekend, the Wolverines held their first scrimmage during fall camp.

Like all practices, it was closed to outsiders — including media — but even though the game-simulating action took place behind closed doors, projections can be made.

For the past two weeks, players and staffers have left hints about what the rotation may look like when Michigan takes the field for its season opener against East Carolina on Sept. 2. Although U-M does not release official depth charts, here's our best guess.

Quarterback

Starter: J.J. McCarthy.

The junior and former five-star recruit is the face of the program and unquestioned leader. He was second-team All-Big Ten in his first season as a starter, when he accounted for 27 total touchdowns and five interceptions.

Reserves: Jack Tuttle, Alex Orji, Davis Warren.

Tuttle was brought in for experience; the former captain at Indiana has played in 15 games. Orji is the most athletic option, and ran for two scores on six rushes last year. Warren, a former walk-on, completed five of nine pass attempts for 89 yards and added 30 yards rushing last season. If McCarthy went down, U-M would likely want someone risk-averse with experience to step in. That's Tuttle.

Running back

Starters: Blake Corum, Donovan Edwards.

Corum, a senior who returns from knee surgery last winter, was Michigan's first unanimous All-American running back last season. He had 1,543 yards from scrimmage and 19 touchdowns in 2022.

Edwards, a West Bloomfield alum never short on confidence, turned 156 touches into 1,191 yards from scrimmage (an average of 7.6 yards per touch) and nine touchdowns in 11 games as a sophomore. Look for him to surpass those numbers this season, as he will be even more prominently featured in the passing game.

Reserves: CJ Stokes, Kalel Mullings, Tavierre Dunlap, Ben Hall, Cole Cabana.

Michigan will want to get a third back in the mix for at least five to eight carries a game. The front-runner again appears to be Stokes. Mullings became the short-yardage back during Corum's absence last season, so he could figure in that role again. Hall was a standout in the spring game.

Wide receiver

Starters: Cornelius Johnson, Roman Wilson, Tyler Morris.

The only position room that doesn't have somebody on a preseason watch list; Wilson said they know it, too. He is one of the elder statesmen, along with Johnson. Both must prove they can be top options for McCarthy. There seems to be no question about who will be the third wideout; that's Morris, McCarthy's teammate at Nazarene Academy in La Grange, Illinois (before McCarthy transferred to IMG Academy in Florida).

Reserves: Darius Clemons, Peyton O'Leary, Semaj Morgan, Fredrick Moore.

There's plenty of opportunity to step up, and these are the four most likely to do so. Clemons was a popular name last offseason, but is still proving to the staff he can handle all of the offense. O'Leary was a standout in the spring game, and Morgan — another ex-West Bloomfield standout — is a speedster who could figure on gadget plays and in the return game.

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Tight end

Starters: Colston Loveland, A.J. Barner.

Loveland broke out late in his true freshman season; he caught 11 passes for 196 yards and two touchdowns in the final five games of 2022 and is projected to be one of the nation's best tight ends. He's joined by Barner, a former Indiana captain who hauled in 28 receptions for 199 yards and three TDs in 10 games last season.

The 6-foot-6, 251-pound grad student has been said to do it all.

“In the pass game, he’s so big,” Michigan offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore said. “He’s so fluid and so agile. He gives you another threat in the passing game that you can’t say, ‘Yeah, he’s in the game, you’re gonna run the ball.’ He’s been extremely valuable. He’s gonna allow very multiple things with him. Very excited about that.”

Reserves: Matthew Hibner, Max Bredeson.

Hibner, a former four-star recruit, is a senior and could figure more into the tight end rotation. He shared U-M's award for most improved player on special teams last season and appeared in eight games at tight end. Bredeson, a junior, appeared in all 14 games a season ago and caught five passes for 78 yards.

Offensive line

Starters: LT LaDarius Henderson, LG Trevor Keegan, C Drake Nugent, RG Zak Zinter, RT Karsen Barnhart.

There's no question about either guard spot, but at the other three positions, we went with experience for the starting nod. Henderson, a transfer from Arizona State, is a former captain with two dozen games on the left side of the line. Nugent, a former captain at Stanford, was on the Rimington and Outland watchlists and received extensive praise from Zinter last week. Barnhart started nine games a season ago and has chemistry with Zinter on the right side.

Reserves: LT Trente Jones, LG Gio El Hadi, C Greg Crippen, RG Reece Atteberry, RT Myles Hinton.

This backup line is better than many starting offensive lines in the Big Ten. Jones, who likely will play right tackle more than left, started six games in 2022. El Hadi played in nine games last season, starting three at left guard. Crippen, another IMG Academy product, has played in seven games at center. Atteberry has played in four games, and Hinton started 16 games across the past two seasons for Stanford.

Edge

Starters: Jaylen Harrell, Braiden McGregor.

Both head coach Jim Harbaugh and defensive coordinator Jesse Minter said the team has "four starters" in the edge room. Minter alluded last week that McGregor and Derrick Moore tend to play on one side while Harrell and Josaiah Stewart will handle the other.

Harrell played in 13 games (12 starts) in 2022, where he recorded 30 tackles including 7½ for loss and 3½ sacks with five quarterback hurries and two pass breakups. McGregor tallied 16 tackles, with five for loss and 2½ sacks.

Reserves: Josaiah Stewart, Derrick Moore.

Stewart, even without starting, could make the most noise of this entire group. The Coastal Carolina transfer had 79 tackles (36 solo) with 25½ tackles for loss, including 16 sacks and four forced fumbles, over the past two seasons. Moore had eight tackles, two sacks, two quarterback hurries and one pass breakup as a true freshman last year, and dropped 20 pounds to increase his speed this offseason.

Defensive tackle

Starters: Kris Jenkins, Mason Graham.

Jenkins has received the most offseason praise on the defense. The senior had a Day 2 NFL draft grade but decided to return and improve his pass rush. He also put on more than 20 pounds. He will line up next to Graham, who, as a true freshman last summer, was called "a gift from the football gods" by Harbaugh.

Reserves: Kenneth Grant, Rayshaun Benny, Cam Goode.

The other gift from the gods Harbaugh discussed last summer? Grant, who will figure prominently into the rotation. The same goes for Benny, a former Oak Park standout who had 13 tackles in 13 games a season ago. And don't forget about Goode, who played in 33 games at UCF before his time at U-M, and had eight tackles, with one for a loss, in nine games last year.

Linebacker

Starters: Junior Colson, Mike Barrett.

Colson could be an All-American after 101 tackles and two sacks last season. He's a three-down linebacker who plays downhill against the run and continued to improve against the pass as his second year went on.

Colson is on the preseason Butkus Award watchlist, as is Barrett, a sixth-year Wolverine. He started 13 games last season and finished second on the team with 72 tackles and had two interceptions.

Reserves: Jimmy Rolder, Ernest Hausmann, Micah Pollard, Jaydon Hood.

The most notable addition to U-M's defense this offseason is Hausmann, a standout transfer from Nebraska. As a true freshman, he had 54 tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack and one fumble recovery in seven starts, becoming one of the top-rated available transfers.

Rolder appeared in 13 games as a freshman and will serve as Colson's understudy in the middle. In 155 snaps last season, Rolder had 14 tackles; he's expected to take another leap forward this year.

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Defensive back

Starters: CB Will Johnson, CB Josh Wallace, CB Mike Sainristil, S Rod Moore, S Makari Paige.

Minter said last week the goal was to find "the best five" combination in the secondary. This is likely it.

Johnson will start on one side. Moore, an All-Big Ten safety, should stay put as well. Same with Paige, who will get even more time at the other safety spot. Sainristil could move to outside cornerback, though it seems unnecessary given how well he did in the slot as the nickel back a season ago.

This leaves a battle at the second cornerback spot, projected to be won by Wallace. He is a UMass transfer and former captain who brings both the game experience and knowledge to the role, and is a more known commodity than his main competition, Amorion Walker.

Reserves: CB Amorion Walker, CB Ja'Den McBurrows, CB/S Zeke Berry, S Quinten Johnson, S Keon Sabb.

Walker was the main noisemaker in the spring, but did not fare well in the Maize and Blue Game scrimmage, giving up a contested jump ball touchdown to O'Leary among a handful of other catches allowed. He has tantalizing athletic ability, but at 6 foot 3 and 180 pounds, it's unclear if he can stay on the field. The rest of the secondary is unproven — that's what happens after losing Gemon Green and DJ Turner to the NFL — but talented.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football's depth chart prediction after first scrimmage