Michigan football: Will this freshman be the surprise of 2022?
The 2022 Michigan recruiting class might not be as loaded as the 2021 group — or it just might. There’s the “freak show” at wide receiver, led by Darrius Clemons, some outstanding athletes on defense among a group of early enrollees that impressed the veterans and a few significant surprises.
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Perhaps none more so in the latter category than Mason Graham. The big defensive tackle initially committed to Boise State before the Michigan coaches got a look at his film. The Wolverines flipped him, held off USC and others who made a late push and got him on campus early.
He blew everyone away in his first few months on campus. As Michigan radio color commentator and analyst and former U-M All-American tackle Jon Jansen told us for our football preview, he “fell in love” with Graham’s game in the spring game. Not only did Graham hold his own, but he also excelled at times against some of the Wolverines’ best linemen.
That said … Jansen cautioned the fan base to be patient with the 6-3, 295-pounder.
“Ther’es going to be a learning curve, things that are going to pop up that he needs to continue to develop,” Jansen said. “It doesn’t necessarily mean we’re going to see him against Hawaii, against Colorado State. We probably will.
“But I caution people that just because he had a good spring game, don’t go over the top crazy about what he’s going to be bring. He’ll get there, and he may be there already. But he’s still a freshman.”
Still, based on what we’ve seen covering Michigan football for the last few decades, he’s as advanced at his age as any interior lineman we’ve seen. Guys like Gabe Watson, Chris Hinton, etc. came in with much more fanfare. Graham, though, has been better earlier, had a great spring and impressed beyond just the spring game.
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Harbaugh told Jansen on his podcast he believed his frosh would play this year, explaining why.
“Really high motor, well thought of, already physically pretty strong. He needs some more strength work, but he shows the athleticism and the agility to be a really good player,” Harbaugh said. “He’ll play as a freshman.”
The Michigan frosh was playing at a “pretty darn high level” right off the bat, Harbaugh said, before an ankle injury set him back. But he showed his ‘want-to’ in getting back on the field quickly.
“He was out about a week or so, two. He came back faster than the ordinary man does, which you love to see,” Harbaugh said. “Because that’s a real level of toughness there. As you know, the closer you get to the ball, the harder it is to play as a true freshman. Center, guard, defensive tackle, for sure. Just the physical development of being strong enough to be a defensive tackle when you’re playing guys four or five years older than you.
“He’s a mid-year freshman, should still be in high school. But he is right in there not just flashing, but consistently playing really good football. We’re excited about that.”
Making the underrated three-star perhaps the Michigan team’s biggest surprise in the 2022 class.
