The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1073859
30 THE WOLVERINE FEBRUARY 2019 MVP REDSHIRT JUNIOR ZACH GENTRY Gentry is off to the NFL after a season in which he finished third on the team with 514 receiving yards, averaging 16.1 yards per reception and scoring two touchdowns. The for- mer quarterback had his share of big games, including a 112-yarder against Maryland, 95 against SMU and 83 versus Indiana, but he was limited against the big boys. Ohio State held him without a catch, though he had his opportunities in a 62-39 loss. He caught one pass against Wisconsin, two for 11 yards against Notre Dame, two for 21 at Michigan State and two for 18 versus Penn State. Gentry became a decent blocker, but had trouble with playing high too often — proba- bly not a surprise given his 6-8 frame. He was still the best (by far) U-M had to offer at his po- sition and provided some memorable moments. Overall Grade For all of the talk publicly about how good this group was, there were too many games in which it was average or not good enough. Gentry dropped three passes at Ohio State, all of them huge momentum changers in the game. Junior Sean McKeon caught 14 passes for 122 yards and a touchdown, while redshirt sopho- more Nick Eubanks went for big plays on his eight catches — a 19.6-yard clip with one score — but McKeon also had a handful of drops and nobody in this group became a "great" blocker. U-M ran a number of sets with multiple tight ends this year, but it didn't seem as though that always played to this team's strength, especially given the talent at the receiver position. Numbers To Know Gentry proved to be one of the league's best tight ends in 2018, checking in fourth in the conference for receiving yards among players at his position: TighT Ends sTaTus Of schOlarship playErs GRADUATED: None GOING PRO EARLY: Zach Gentry ELIGIBILITY REMAINING (YEARS): Sean McKeon (1) Nick Eubanks (2) Ryan Hayes (4) Mustapha Muhammad (4) Luke Schoonmaker (4) C 2019 PLAYER TO WATCH NICK EUBANKS He only reeled in eight grabs for 157 yards and a touchdown in 2018, but was playing behind redshirt junior Zach Gentry at the position (32 catches for 514 yards). With Gentry off to the NFL, Eubanks and junior Sean McKeon will likely be co-starters at tight end in 2019, which should allow the former to shine in what will be his first extended action in the spotlight. Zach Gentry Player, Team Yards Team TE Rec. Yds. T.J. Hockensen, Iowa 760 1,330 Brycen Hopkins, Purdue 583 795 Noah Fant, Iowa 519 1,330 Zach Gentry, Michigan 514 793 Cameron Green, Northwestern 483 535 PHOTO BY BRANDON BROWN