Minnesota Football: Depth Chart and Injury Report vs Michigan

Depth chart and injury report for the Oct 5th game at the Big House vs Michigan was released last night. Kickoff is scheduled for 230 on, as Brent Musberger would say "A! B! C!"

OFFENSE

Left Tackle

78 - Ben Lauer 6-6 302 R-Fr. Plymouth, Minn. (Wayzata HS)

74 - Marek Lenkiewicz 6-5 289 R-Jr. Tinley Park, Ill. (Victor J. Andrew HS)

Left Guard

52 - Zac Epping 6-2 321 R-Jr. Kenosha, Wis. (Tremper HS)

73 - Joe Bjorklund 6-5 288 R-So. Rosemount, Minn. (Rosemount HS)

Center

63 - Jon Christenson 6-4 306 R-So. Minnetonka, Minn. (Minnetonka HS)

53 - Tommy Olson 6-4 301 Jr. Mahtomedi, Minn. (Mahtomedi HS)

Right Guard

64 - Caleb Bak 6-3 302 R-Jr. Columbia Heights, Minn. (Concordia Academy)

77 - Foster Bush 6-5 303 R-So. Menasha, Wis. (Menasha HS)

Right Tackle

65 - Josh Campion 6-5 326 R-So. Fergus Falls, Minn. (Fork Union Military Academy)

79 - Jonah Pirsig 6-9 308 R-Fr. Blue Earth, Minn. (Blue Earth Area HS)

Quarterback

9 - Philip Nelson 6-2 215 So. Mankato, Minn. (Mankato West HS)

OR

7 - Mitch Leidner 6-4 233 R-Fr. Lakeville, Minn. (Lakeville South HS)

Tailback

35 - Rodrick Williams Jr. 5-11 235 So. Lewisville, Texas (Lewisville HS)

OR

27 - David Cobb 5-11 225 Jr. Killeen, Texas (Ellison HS)

20- Donnell Kirkwood 5-10 233 R-Jr. Delray Beach, Fla. (Atlantic)

H-Back/Fullback

30 - Mike Henry 6-1 231 R-Sr. Mahtomedi, Minn. (Mahtomedi HS)

OR

88 - Maxx Williams 6-4 254 R-Fr. Waconia, Minn. (Waconia HS)

Y

83 - Drew Goodger 6-5 265 So. Shawnee Mission, Kan. (Northwest HS)

85 - Lincoln Plsek 6-4 265 So. Waco, Texas (Reicher HS)

Z

14 - Isaac Fruechte 6-3 204 R-Jr. Caledonia, Minn. (Rochester CTC)

1 - KJ Maye 5-10 197 So. Mobile, Ala. (Murphy HS)

OR

16- Jamel Harbison 5-11 199 R-Fr. Charlotte, N.C. (Mallard Creek HS)

H

18 - Derrick Engel 6-2 187 R-Sr. Chaska, Minn. (Winona State)

17 - Logan Hutton 6-1 181 R-Jr. La Marque, Texas (La Marque HS)

X

4 - Donovahn Jones 6-3 190 Fr. Stockbridge, Ga. (Dutchtown HS)

82 - Drew Wolitarsky 6-3 208 Fr. Santa Clarita, Calif. (Canyon County HS)

DEFENSE

End

98 - Michael Amaefula 6-2 244 Jr. Arlington, Texas (Bowie HS)

95 - Hank Ekpe 6-5 251 Fr. Lewisville, Texas (Lewisville HS)

Tackle

46 - Cameron Botticelli 6-5 290 R-Jr. Milwaukee, Wis. (Marquette University HS)

92 - Roland Johnson 6-1 286 Sr. Camden, S.C. (Butler CC)

Nose

99 - Ra'Shede Hageman 6-6 311 R-Sr. Minneapolis, Minn. (Washburn HS)

97 - Scott Ekpe 6-4 281 So. Lewisville, Texas (Lewisville HS)

End

55 - Theiren Cockran 6-6 238 R-So. Homestead, Fla. (Homestead HS)

91 - Alex Keith 6-3 237 So. Columbia, Mo. (Hickman HS)

Strongside Linebacker

57 - Aaron Hill 6-2 231 R-Sr. St. Charles, Mo. (Lutheran HS)

56 - Nick Rallis 5-11 227 R-Fr. Edina, Minn. (Edina HS)

Middle Linebacker

5 - Damien Wilson 6-2 254 Jr. Gloster, Miss. (Jones County CC)

50 - Jack Lynn 6-3 234 R-Fr. Lake Zurich, Ill. (Lake Zurich HS)

Weakside Linebacker

26 - De'Vondre Campbell 6-5 225 R-So. Fort Myers, Fla. (Hutchinson CC)

9 - James Manuel 6-2 225 Sr. Indianapolis, Ind. (Warren Central HS)

Cornerback

31 - Eric Murray 6-0 194 So. Milwaukee, Wis. (Riverside University HS)

3 - Martez Shabazz 5-11 172 Sr. DeSoto, Texas (Trinity Valley CC)

Safety

21 - Brock Vereen 6-0 202 Sr. Valencia, Calif. (Valencia HS)

11 - Antonio Johnson 6-0 207 So. Cleveland, Ohio (Shaker Heights HS)

Safety

2 - Cedric Thompson 5-10 211 Jr. Calipatria, Calif. (Calipatria HS)

7 - Damarius Travis 6-2 208 So. Pensacola, Fla. (Pensacola HS)

Cornerback

13 - Derrick Wells 6-0 206 Jr. Lehigh Acres, Fla. (Lehigh HS)

22 - Jeremy Baltazar 6-0 197 Sr. Corona, Calif. (Blinn College)

SPECIAL TEAMS

Kicker

36 - Chris Hawthorne 6-6 200 Sr. Raleigh, N.C. (NC State)

Punter

37 - Peter Mortell 6-2 195 R-So. Green Bay, Wis. (Notre Dame Academy)

Holder

37 - Peter Mortell 6-2 195 R-So. Green Bay, Wis. (Notre Dame Academy)

Long Snapper

48 - Jake Filkins 6-2 240 Sr. Prescott, Wis. (Prescott)

Kick Return

15 - Marcus Jones 5-8 166 Jr. Wake Forest, N.C. (Wake Forest-Rolesville)

11 - Antonio Johnson 6-0 207 So. Cleveland, Ohio (Shaker Heights, Ohio)

Punt Return

15 - Marcus Jones 5-8 166 Jr. Wake Forest, N.C. (Wake Forest-Rolesville)

1 - KJ Maye 5-10 197 So. Mobile, Ala. (Murphy)

INJURY REPORT

5- Chris Streveler, Out

47 - Alex Bisch, Out

29 - Briean Boddy, Calhoun Out for the season

CHANGES FROM LAST WEEK

OFFENSE

Not much, which is perhaps a little surprising given the horrible performance from just about everybody last week. The offensive line got pushed around up front but it's the exact same two deep as last week. The quarterback was less than stellar, but hey no need for a change! Derek Engel was the only productive wide receiver, but hey I'm sure things will turn around this week! Ok, ok fine, I'll dial back the sarcasm and admit it makes zero sense to make wholesale changes after one game. The line looked awful, but were also operating out of far more 3-receiver sets than they had been used to. Still, this is the one spot we have not only a lot of depth, but also experience, and I can't help but wonder if there needs to be more competition at a few of the non-Campion and Epping line spots? Maybe there is and the coaches liked how the starters responded. It's also hard to tell when Kill and Co list Mike Henry as a starter and he doesn't play, Nelson as a backup and he does, and Donovahn Jones as your starting X receiver but once again barely sees the field. So who the hell knows.

Speaking of the receivers, besides Engel there were guys who were open- and thrown to- but it's hard to catch the ball when it's either five yards behind you or over your head. Even on Engel's TD catch he had to make a pretty remarkable adjustment on a bad ball to haul it in. I hope we continue to see more good stuff like from Engel the rest of the year, and hopefully the QB1 can throw some better passes to the other guys so we can get them more involved.

Which brings us to Nelson. Don't get me wrong, I was definitely frustrated with his poor play, but I was far more frustrated with Kill's stubborn insistence not to pull him. His explanation after the game was even more maddening, saying there just wasn't a situation to put Mitch Leidner in the game. I'm not sure what's happened to Moose's throwing ability since he was recruited here, but apparently he's lost all ability to make a forward pass. He was a pocket passer in high school who got a scholarship offer after he tore up a 7-on-7 summer camp. And he didn't tear it up running, he did it throwing, yet in the game against Iowa when a change at QB at halftime seemed like the most obvious move in the world, Kill wouldn't do it.

I'm willing to give Nelson another chance against Michigan in hopes that, despite the coaches comments to the contrary, he wasn't 100% last week (he sure didn't look it) and will be this weekend and maybe that makes a big difference. Maybe getting Mike Henry backs changes this offense back to a power run team and gives Nelson more time and confidence with the play-action pass. That's my hope, because if we see another week like last week...well, let's save that discussion for IF it happens, and hope it doesn't.

DEFENSE

Remember how excited I was about De'Vondre Campbell's rapid development? Remember how much he sucked against Iowa? Well he's listed as the starter again this week, but I'm expecting Manuel to get the start. Campbell continues to give Minnesota a much higher ceiling and potential at that weakside LB spot than Manuel, but if he has as many problems as he potentially had last week, well, that's definitely a problem. So keep an eye on that one.

Everything else remains the same from a week ago. The D wasn't great last week (the D-line got owned. There's just no other way to say it), but overall, especially considering how often they were on the field, the D could have been worse (is that faint praise or the faintest praise?). Obviously, they're going to need to be better to contain Devin Gardner and the Wolverines on Saturday. Derrick Wells, who didn't play much due to injury last week because that shoulder injury keeps bothering him, is back in the starting lineup and is obviously a huge key against one of the B1G's best receivers in Jeremy Gallon, and to help in run support. I had a feeling we'd miss Michael Carter and Troy Stoudermire at some point this season, and last week was the first time I felt like we did. Boddy-Calhoun's injury just shows again the lack of depth at corner, which needs to be addressed in recruiting in the coming class.

Finally, look at that special teams depth chart! We're not listing every kicker, punter, and long snapper on the roster! One guy at each spot! Not that we didn't know who the starters here were, but worth pointing out the coaches apparently finally decided to stop the shenanigans and just list one guy.