Introducing the Two-Deep: Brennen Beyer

Today we're going to look at sophomore DE Brennen Beyer. I like front seven guys. Much more consistency here.

The Story

Hailing from Canton, Beyer's a lifelong Michigan fan who committed to Rich Rodriguez in 2010. The coaching change obviously didn't sway him in the slightest. Despite being a relatively early commit, Beyer never wavered. Despite playing for my alma mater's rival Plymouth HS, he managed to put together a very impressive high school career, landing right around most sites' top-200 national rankings. The considerable hype he garnered from dominating Kensington Valley quarterbacks landed him as the #12 DE recruit in the country and a consensus four-star. He was also a dominant tight end in HS, with stats befitting a 6'2, 225-pound man with quick feet and a nose for hard contact. This earned him top-10 player in Michigan honors as a senior, with some papers rating him as high as third.

Beyer came to Michigan competing at one of the DE/LB spots, and saw decent action his freshman year, playing as a backup LB in 11 games, including brief action in the Sugar Bowl. This makes sense given his size - as he continues to bulk up, look for Beyer to play a similar role to Craig Roh or any of Michigan's hybrid DE/LBs.

The Outlook

This is tough. Michigan still has a paucity of depth along the D-line, and the enigma that is Will Campbell continues to befuddle me. Ideally, Beyer turns into a consistent Craig Roh type beast - he has that kind of speed. I actually did a little homework on this one and watched a couple plays of Beyer's last year - like you would expect, he got pushed around by some of the Big 10's more solid O-lines and even a tight end or two. It's understandable that a slightly undersized end would have trouble dealing with tackles, but Beyer's gotta be able to get around tight ends. His scouting reports and the coaches seem to indicate that he's got the intelligence and speed to play as a standup DE or along the line, but it really depends on the development of the rest of the line. The linebackers are more firmly established, but the depth chart has Beyer starting right now at one of the DE spots, along with Craig Roh.

Expect Beyer to be pushed by the veterans Nate Brink and Frank Clark, two bigger guys with more experience. I'd venture a guess that there will be a four-to-five way platoon at DE, with Beyer, Clark, and Roh garnering the most snaps. If Beyer bulks up, consider him a lock to get a starting nod, at least at the beginning of the season. We'll see how Coach Hoke, obviously a D-line guru himself, decides to play him, but I'm pretty optimistic for Beyer.

Twitter Entertainment Level

I'm honestly wondering if I should keep doing this. Low. Where are the fantastically entertaining Tweets? I guess it's a good thing Beyer tweets inspirational verses and pumps up his teammates, but where are the burning OSU offers? Gaah.