First-Half Grades For The Michigan Offense

Michigan is 5-1 after six games, but the offense certainly hasn't played strong football, ranking 84th nationally in total yards, and our first-half report card reflects the struggles of the Wolverines.

Isaiah Hole

Quarterbacks: B-

Shea Patterson: C+

Joe Milton: B+

Dylan McCaffrey: B

Patterson ranks 69th nationally in pass efficiency (136.87), 52nd in yards per attempt (7.7), has a worse completion percentage (57.1) than Michigan-to-Illinois transfer Brandon Peters and sits sixth in the Big Ten in passing yards per game (207.7). 

Everything about his play so far this season has been average, but with matchups against Penn State, Notre Dame, Michigan State and Ohio State remaining, he will have opportunities to reshape his personal legacy at U-M. 

Milton wasn't expected to be the No. 2 -- and no one knows how he would perform if thrust into a big-time situation -- but in his mop-up duty, he's shown off the physical skills that could lead to an exciting future. 

McCaffrey has missed three games due to injury, but brought some spark to the Maize and Blue against both Middle Tennessee and Wisconsin. 

Running Backs: B

Zach Charbonnet: A-

Hassan Haskins: B+

Tru Wilson: B-

Christian Turner: C

Ben VanSumeren: D

One wonders how Charbonnet could have helped against Wisconsin -- he was limited to just two carries -- if the coaches had not run him into the ground the week before in a double-overtime win over Army (33 carries in his second career contest). 

He hasn't proven to be a home-run threat yet -- just a single carry over 20 yards and a total of nine that have gone for 10 yards or greater, five coming against Illinois this past weekend -- but he's been the Wolverines' most dependable back as both a rusher and, especially, in pass protection. 

Haskins has been, perhaps, the most pleasant surprise offensively of the first half, averaging 7.3 yards per carry on the season. He has three rushes of 20 yards or more and six of 10 yards or more on less than half (26) of Charbonnet's 79 carries. The redshirt freshman looks like Michigan's No. 2 back for the rest of the year. 

A senior, Wilson has jockeyed between the third and fourth spot in the rotation, and is poised to play behind Charbonnet and Haskins the rest of the way. 

A redshirt freshman out of Georgia, Turner has been poor in pass protection, leading to long stretches in which he has been benched, and has largely been dismissed as a potential featured back; he has had the most rush attempts in just a single game (Rutgers, with 11) and has the worst yards-per-carry average of the four (3.9). His opportunities appear to be dwindling. 

VanSumeren generated some preseason buzz but hasn't carried the ball since Week 4 against Rutgers.   

Wide Receivers: B+

Donovan Peoples-Jones: A-

Nico Collins: B+

Ronnie Bell: B+

Tarik Black: C

Mike Sainristil: D

Peoples-Jones has been everything expected of a No. 1 receiver after missing the first two games due to injury. He has only 12 catches for 129 yards (with a pair of touchdowns) but those numbers are symptomatic of broader issues with the passing game. 

Likewise, Collins has done just about everything one could hope for, and has been stymied not by defense's but by his own quarterback and the play-calling, recording a mere 13 receptions despite talk (as recently as last week) that he is a projected first-round pick next spring. 

Bell leads the team in 20-yard receptions (five) and has the two longest plays of the year on 68- and 71-yard catch-and-runs. He's No. 1 in receptions (20) and receiving yards (361) but also has a team-high four drops and has yet to make a big play on the ball in the air, failing to win a jump ball despite his basketball background. 

Black showed some flashes early with 10 catches in Michigan's first three games but has dropped down the priority list with the return of Peoples-Jones (just five receptions in the past three games). There is nothing he does that somebody else doesn't do, better. 

Sainristil was the superstar of the spring, however, the early-enrollee has barely played, making just one catch in six games. 

Tight Ends: B-

Luke Schoonmaker: B+

Sean McKeon: B

Erick All: B

Nick Eubanks: B-

All that offseason talk about speed in space sure didn't stop the tight ends from being active in the passing game. Combined, those three plus redshirt freshman Luke Schoonmaker have 22 catches for 278 yards and four touchdowns. They have six receptions of 20 yards or more - a higher clip at 27.3 percent than the wide receivers' 24.2 percent. 

Eubanks had a big drop against Illinois, but in the passing game, the four have been good contributors. As blockers ... meh. Which is why none of these guys are sporting better grades. 

Offensive Line: C

Jalen Mayfield: B+

Jon Runyan Jr: B

Ryan Hayes: B

Ben Bredeson: C+

Michael Onwenu: C

Cesar Ruiz: C-

Compared to preseason expectations, no position group other than quarterback has fallen as flat. There has been an uptick lately, especially in pass protection, but until Week 6 at Illinois, the ground game had been on pace for record futility. As it is, the Wolverines still only average 156.2 yards rushing per game (78th nationally) and their 4.06-yards-per-carry average leaves them 84th in college football. 

After so-so performances early, Mayfield has been an ascending player in his redshirt freshman campaign, pushing classmate Ryan Hayes to the sidelines after it appeared they might split snaps with the return of Runyan in Week 3. 

Runyan had a great game neutralizing Iowa's AJ Epenesa in U-M's Week 5 win over the Hawkeyes, but was completely overwhelmed by Wisconsin's pass rush (he wasn't alone). The fifth-year senior has had three strong efforts and one lousy one. He still needs to prove he can adequately handle speed rushers and will see plenty between PSU, ND, MSU and OSU in the coming weeks. 

Take your pick of the most disappointing OL on the team. Bredeson was a preseason All-American and talk about going in the NFL 2nd Round but he's been below average against strong defensive interiors. 

The adjectives get louder and uglier to describe Ruiz and Onwenu, especially the Wolverines' junior center. Ruiz has the lowest season-grade among Michigan's offensive linemen per ProFootballFocus.com and has not had a single week thus far where he wasn't ranked U-M's fourth-best OL or worse. 

What do you think of our report card? Who was given a grade too high? Too low?