The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/835590
THE WOLVERINE 2017 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 89 OFFENSIVE LINE have in the middle, those long arms. He's got all the tools, he's just young, and he's raw." At right guard, massive sophomore Mi- chael Onwenu played in nine games last fall, some on both sides of the line of scrimmage. He approached the end of spring at 6-3 and upwards of 370 pounds. Harbaugh noted Onwenu's immense talent, but indicated he needs to be a little less immense by fall. Skene concurred, for the sake of better movement. "My question is, what happens when he gets a little tired?" Skene pondered. "He's carrying all that weight, and now he's got to pass protect in space. He doesn't have a center right on his hip … I saw a couple of times when he got caught flat-footed in pass pro, and a guy got by his edge. "My concern with Onwenu is his third-and- long, second-and-long, obvious passing down pass pro capabilities. Yeah, it's cute that he weighs 370 pounds, but the guy should get down to 350. I'd like to see him move a little better." In terms of run blocking, the sophomore is everything Michigan could want at this point, Skene stressed. "When he run blocks, he's moving people," he said. "He's naturally inclined to get under- neath someone's shoulder pads. "He's got such potential to just bulldoze guys off that line of scrimmage, and he gives you that ability right now." In the spring game, redshirt sophomore Jon Runyan jumped out at right tackle, in the absence of redshirt junior Juwann Bushell- Beatty, who along with redshirt sophomore tackle Nolan Ulizio did not appear. "I like Runyan at right tackle," Skene noted. "I thought he did a decent job there. It looked like he was moving around pretty good there and that he's in decent shape. "If I had to draw up a starting five, it would be Cole, Bredeson, Kugler, either Onwenu or [redshirt freshman Stephen] Spanellis, and Runyan at right tackle. "If we had to play tomorrow, that would probably be my lineup." Runyan's enthusiasm caught the former Wolverine's attention. "It wasn't perfect," Skene said. "He was still playing a little high at times. It looked like he played in the spring game with an urgency. That's always fun, and you see that in the spring. Guys are trying to position themselves for opportunities in the fall, and it looked like he was playing that way. "There's no doubt in my mind Ru- nyan is in the mix, in the top seven. You've got to have seven starters to have a successful offensive line. A couple of guys are going to get hurt. Right now, Runyan is in that top seven." It's safe to say Bushell-Beatty, Span- ellis and Ulizio could be in the top eight, depending on health and how the sum- mer goes. Some observers noted Bush- ell-Beatty has been pushing hard for the top spot at right tackle, after starting one game and playing in eight a year ago. "It's encouraging that he's had a good spring. That means he's gotten better," said Skene, who noted the veteran needed more power out of his stance on run downs. Of Spanellis, he noted: "I like the guy's motor. That guy ran around late in the spring game. He was downfield, giving great effort, engaging his blocks. He seemed to be getting after it pretty good and playing with energy. "The measureables are there. Obvi- ously, he can move pretty well. I think he challenges Onwenu for the right guard spot next fall. He might end up being the next guard in the game, either right or left. But his chance to crack the lineup is at the right guard spot." Regarding Ulizio's spring game ab- sence, Skene said: "It's disappointing he didn't get to play. Hopefully we'll see him challenge this fall. He's got to be hanging around in there somewhere. That kid's got too much talent not to be." Walk-on redshirt freshman Andrew Vas- tardis also saw action in the spring game, adding depth along the line. Meanwhile, Skene laid down a bottom-line standard for any elite offensive line, one the Wolverines are trying to attain. "The standard for offensive line excellence is winning football games late when you have to, and not putting the defense back on the field," he said. He noted times a year ago when that didn't happen — at Iowa and at Ohio State. "All the great offensive lines take control of the game," Skene stressed. "They're the ones that set the pace. They're the ones that impose themselves on the defensive front, and they control the game. "We've seen it from Michigan State two years ago, when they went down and won the Big Ten championship game against Iowa. They controlled the game. We've seen great Michigan teams do it — the '97 team had a great offensive line that controlled the game. "We've seen Alabama's offensive line a couple of times over the last five to seven years just control the football game. That's what we're trying to get to." ❏ Redshirt sophomore Jon Runyan emerged during the spring and is a good bet to be the starter at right tackle in the fall. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN Last year, redshirt junior Juwann Bushell-Beatty saw action in eight games on the offensive line and the extra point protection unit. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN