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Remember 2017, when Michigan not only led the NFL Draft with 11 picks, but also brought in the fifth-best class according to 247Sports?
Things have changed on that front, and while the Wolverines can still recruit, it seems like a rung below where it was back then. At the same time, that 2017 class has been decimated — through transfers, various departures, and now it’s the first year that those players can go to the NFL via the draft.
Looking at the 2020 NFL Draft, the expectation would have likely been that one of Michigan’s skill guys would be the one to go highest. Well, according to The Athletic‘s Dane Brugler, in his latest two-round mock draft ($), it’s an offensive lineman that will be first off the board — and at a position that many in the NFL tend not to prioritize.
Outgoing Michigan junior Cesar Ruiz surprised many when he announced he was leaving the program after just his third season. But, it looks like it could pay off, as Brugler has the former IMG Academy man in the middle going in the second-round of his mock draft — which according to Brugler, would make him the highest Wolverine takcn. He has Ruiz being picked late, at No. 60 overall to the Baltimore Ravens.
Looking at the rest of the mock, there’s plenty of names that will assuredly make Michigan fans’ skin crawl. With three Ohio State players in the first-round (five overall), and players like OT Isaiah Wilson, who was long a heavy Michigan lean before a late change of heart towards Georgia, at No. 25 or Louisville OT Mekhi Becton — who the Wolverines wanted, but didn’t pursue quite as heavily as they could have, likely because of the aforementioned Wilson — at No. 11.
While OSU’s five players seem like a ton to go in the first two rounds, Michigan’s most recent opponent even surpasses that. The Alabama Crimson Tide — which took a solid defensive second-half to ultimately put away the Wolverines — have an astounding eight players being selected in the first two-rounds according to Brugler.