Michigan Football: 3 accurate, 3 inaccurate College Football 27 ratings
NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...
Happy College Football 27 Day to all who celebrate! After reviving the beloved franchise in 2024, this day in July has felt like Christmas come early for fans of the sport — an appetizer to temporarily satiate our hunger for next month’s opening season kickoff.
In honor of today’s release, let’s take a closer look at the roster of the Michigan Wolverines and discuss three accurate and three inaccurate player rankings.
3 accurate
- DE John Henry Daley (92)
John Henry Daley being the highest-rated player on the team is a no-brainer. He is the only returning first-team All-American on the team and is coming off a monstrous season where he finished with 11.5 sacks and 17.5 tackles for loss in just 11 games; both of which were top-seven in the country. The fact he is coming off an Achilles injury is the only reason he isn’t higher than a 92.
- S Rod Moore (90)
A healthy Rod Moore is, hands down, at least a 95-caliber player. The speed, ball skills, tackling and feel for coverage make him one of the best safeties in the country. However, a full healthy Moore hasn’t played in multiple years. He being the third-highest-rated player on the team is fair — although he should be second, but more on that later — and he will have a chance to outplay his ranking if he can stay on the field.
- RT Andrew Sprague (87)
Andrew Sprague is tied with center Jake Guarnera as the top-rated lineman on the team. An honor he should individually hold, but nonetheless, Sprague is quietly building a resume worthy of the next great Michigan tackle. Sprague has allowed only one sack and has taken only two penalties in 383 pass-blocking snaps over the last two seasons. His run-blocking, although still above average, could use some polish. And if it continues to improve this season, he will be in consideration for first-team All-Big Ten.
3 inaccurate
- CB Zeke Berry (82)
Are we watching the games? Among others, Zeke Berry is ranked below Nathan Efobi and Bryce Underwood, despite being one of only two returning Wolverines named to an All-Big Ten team last year. And the only returning defensive player to do so.
Berry is the third-rated corner on Michigan’s team, trailing Jyaire Hill (91)— whose PR team has a future in Washington — and transfer Smith Snowden (87). Let’s take a look at the numbers over the last two years for all three players:
- Berry: 70 tackles; 2.5 TFLs; three interceptions; 19 pass deflections; one forced fumble
- Snowden (Big 12): 85 tackles; six TFLs; four interceptions; 17 pass deflections; one forced fumble
- Hill: 71 tackles; 8.5 TFLs; two sacks; two interceptions; 13 pass deflections; one forced fumble
Does this production justify a nine-point gap to Hill or a five-point gap to Snowden, whose numbers come from a vastly inferior conference? Sure, Hill has better NFL upside because of his frame, but Berry is a positional-versatile chess piece who has flashed playing corner, nickel, and safety the last two seasons.
Berry sharing the same ranking with Andrew Babalola, who has never played one snap at Michigan and is coming off a season-ending injury as a freshman, makes zero sense. This ranking is for the player we saw for the first half of the season in 2024 and not the player he has developed into since.
- WR J.J. Buchanan (79)
Seriously, are we watching the games? J.J. Buchanan is Michigan’s WR2 with a bullet. Put it in Sharpie, lock it in, call your Kalshi guy… It’s Buchanan. Yet, he is ranked as WR3, trailing Jaime Ffrench by two points and sharing a rating with two incoming freshmen — Malakai Lee and Alister Vallejo — and a generic-name-generated kicker due to NIL restrictions. In fact, Buchanan is closer to freshman receiver Travis Johnson than he is Ffrench.
*deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep breath*
The numbers aren’t even a conversation between the two. Ffrench has one career catch for six yards, while Buchanan was the leading freshman pass-catcher in the Big 12 last season with 26 catches for 427 yards and five touchdowns. Moreover, he put up these numbers in Jason Beck’s offense, giving him a leg up on all other pass catchers on the team in terms of familiarity. With experience in the system, an uncontested power-forward receiver role, and a competent quarterback, Buchanan could finish the season closer to Andrew Marsh statistically than Ffrench.
- LB Chase Taylor (72)
Okay, what the hell, guys? Chase Taylor is ranked the same as defensive tackle Chibi Anwunah and trails players such as wide receiver Jamar Browder, quarterback Brady Smigiel (BRADY SMIGIEL) and punter Cameron Brown. He is the fifth-highest rated Michigan linebacker in the game, despite likely being the starting middle linebacker to open the season.
Taylor has the size at 6-foot-2, 237 pounds, and he has transformed his body to be ready to step into a starting role. And the only thing growing faster than Taylor is the chip on his shoulder.
Per CBS Sports, “Despite Taylor not ranking among the top 65 linebacker prospects in the 2025 recruiting class, there are high hopes internally at Michigan for the 6-foot-2, 235-pound Georgia native. Taylor recorded 10 tackles as a freshman last year. He’s going to be a good player,” a source said. “Seeing his frame fill out, his athleticism, his ability at the point of attack, he’s just a good player overall. And to see someone have that kind of poise and presence already at 19 years old is impressive.”
As recently as last week, linebackers coach Alex Whittingham was raving about Taylor to Jon Jansen. “… Chase Taylor, man, he’s going to be special. I think we should be really excited about him. He’s filling out, putting on weight, maturing as a student, as a player, as a person. He makes things look easy out there and just has so many athletic gifts that he’s been blessed with. And he’s going to be fun to watch, for sure.”
Taylor being rated 72 is insulting, but that will only add to the chip on his shoulder.
More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos