87 days until Michigan football: Ron Kramer, Colston Loveland and stretching the field vertically
There’s much anticipation heading into the Michigan Wolverines football season, and TheWolverine.com is counting down the days until the Sept. 2 opener against East Carolina. We’ll discuss current Michigan events, the upcoming season and/or take a look at a significant number that correlates with how many days remain until kickoff, whether it be a player’s jersey number, a year, a date, a score, etc.
With 87 days until Michigan football, it’s hard not to mention the legendary Ron Kramer. The late Kramer is Michigan’s top tight end and one of its best players in program history, having played from 1953-56.
He was a consensus first-team All-American in 1955 and unanimous first-team All-American in 1956, before becoming the No. 4 overall pick to the Green Bay Packers, where he won two NFL championships.
Kramer was named a “Michigan football legend” during Brady Hoke‘s tenure, and tight end Devin Funchess wore his jersey for the 2013 season. The “legend” jerseys were put back into retirement in 2015.
A three-sport athlete (football, basketball and track), Kramer could stretch the field for the Maize and Blue. He had 23 catches for 303 yards and 2 touchdowns in 1954, 12 grabs for 224 yards and 4 scores in 1955 and 18 hauls for 353 yards and 3 touchdowns in 1956.
Today, Michigan incorporates its tight ends into the offense as much as anyone in college football. Sophomore Colston Loveland is receiving plenty of praise heading into the 2023 campaign after a strong finish to his freshman year with pivotal scores against both Ohio State in Columbus and Purdue in the Big Ten title game.
Loveland seems to have that extra gear that some of Michigan’s recent tight ends haven’t — even though there have been some great ones — similar to Jake Butt, but perhaps with more speed.
He played behind Luke Schoonmaker most of last season and only was targeted in the pass game 26 times. However, 12 of those targets came 10-plus yards down the field (8 between 10-19 yards and 4 20-plus yards). He brought in 6 of those, including 2 touchdowns (the aforementioned scores).
Schoonmaker, on the other hand, while extremely reliable, with 35 catches, 418 yards and 3 touchdowns last season, was better on underneath routes. Twenty six of his 35 receptions came within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage, and he was thrown to 10-plus yards down field on only 15 of his 45 targets.
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Former Michigan tight end Erick All was in a similar boat. He ranks No. 10 on the Wolverines’ single-season list for receptions by a tight end with 38 in 2021. But only 9 of those came beyond 10 yards past the line of scrimmage, and he was targeted in that area of the field just 13 times.
Loveland isn’t a complete product yet, or even close. Blocking, for example, is something he’s admitted he has to improve upon. But there’s a chance he can add a different dimension to Michigan’s offense from the tight end spot, and perhaps even as a wide receiver.
Maybe that’s why former Michigan tight end Joel Honigford — an undrafted free agent who signed with the Arizona Cardinals — believes he can be up there with Kramer and Co. as one of U-M’s best tight ends in history.
“I think he has the potential to be one of the greatest that’s gone through here just as far as whether it’s his skill on the field, his mentality, a multitude of things,” Honigford said at this spring’s pro day.
“He is that guy, when it comes down to it, and it didn’t take us long to figure that out. And I don’t think it took the public that long to figure it out, too, once he started playing in games. He’s an exceptional player and an even better person.”
Michigan football countdown to kickoff
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