Maize n Brew’s Bracket for the best offensive player of the Jim Harbaugh era: Round 1 Results

Maize n Brew’s Bracket for the best player of the Jim Harbaugh era is underway with the first round of the offensive region completing this week.

There were two upsets in the bunch and quite a bit of discourse over the rankings of some of the players and matchups.

Here is a look at the full bracket, once again, for your reference:

Now, let’s look at how things panned out for the offensive region!

No. 1: Blake Corum vs No. 16: Cade McNamara

Winner: No. 1 Blake Corum

With a whopping 99% of the vote, it’s clear that Blake Corum is the top dog of the offensive region. Everyone is looking up at the top runningback on the board who is a Heisman-hopeful heading into 2023.

What we said:

Cade McNamara has to be on this list, even with the transfer for what he did for the program. Especially because Shea Patterson is in a 13-seed. - Maize N’ Brew’s Dan Plocher

No. 8: Jon Runyan Jr. vs No. 9: Trevor Keegan

Winner: No. 8 Jon Runyan Jr.

The legacy name of Jon Runyan Jr. eeks out an upset bid from current Wolverine and fellow offensive lineman Trevor Keegan. Runyan is the No. 3 offensive lineman on the board, but will have a tough matchup with Corum in the next round.

What we said:

(Runyan) was a monster in 2018 (after the ND disaster)... lol - Maize n’ Brew’s Andrew Bailey

No. 5: J.J. McCarthy vs No. 12: Karan Higdon

Winner: No. 5 J.J. McCarthy

The current quarterback staved off the classic 12-over-5 upset with a convincing 87% of the vote. Could we have a sleeping giant at the 5-seed on our hands with the former five-star J.J. McCarthy?

What you said:

Offense (winner): J.J. McCarthy - Bob on Facebook

No. 4: Olu Oluwatimi vs. No. 13: Shea Patterson

Winner: No. 4 Olu Oluwatimi

Michigan’s first Rimington Trophy Award winner and current Seattle Seahawk brought home the bacon against former quarterback Shea Patterson. Oluwatimi garnered 81% of the vote and was the top offensive lineman on the board. But, he’ll have to take down J.J. McCarthy, his quarterback from last season, to move into the final 8 players in the bracket.

What we said (there was a lot of discourse about Patterson):

Fans will for sure vote Patterson out in Round 1. lmao. But he’s a Top-16 offensive player, I think. - Maize n’ Brew’s Luke Ghiardi

No. 6: Ben Bredeson vs. No. 11: Ronnie Bell

The winner: No. 11 Ronnie Bell

Our first upset, and by less than 15 votes, Ronnie Bell moves on to the next round! Bell was the top wide receiver on the board, and he took out the second-ranked Ben Bredeson in a surprising finish. This one was neck-and-neck until the hypothetical buzzer-beater from Bell.

What you said:

Bell at #11 is very overseeded. He was a decent, but not great receiver IMO. I’m floored the majority of you have him over Bredeson. - DualThreat

No. 3: Jake Butt vs. No. 14: Cesar Ruiz

The winner: No. 3 Jake Butt

Butt cruised to an easy win over Cesar Ruiz, taking 80% of the vote. He’s easily the best tight end Michigan has had in the Harbaugh era, and he’s got a great chance to make a long run in this tournament. A second-round matchup with Bell will help determine who the best pass-catcher has been since Harbaugh took over.

What you said:

Final Four for me: Hutch and Chase on D, Corum and Butt on O. - Christian on Facebook

No. 7: Zak Zinter vs. No. 10: Donovan Edwards

The winner: No. 10 Donovan Edwards

Positional player value skyrockets here as another offensive lineman gets taken off the board. Back-up Donovan Edwards has never been a starter at Michigan (without injury). But the win speaks to how much talent the Michigan back has. Is a Cinderella run brewing?

What you said:

Oooh, Edward’s feels under-seeded at #10. Maybe less total on-the-field accomplishments at this point than some others, but if we’re strictly talking about ‘best player’ ... this guy is already in conversations as a potential 1st round draft pick as a RB next year for a reason. Talent out the roof. - Acala

No. 2: Hassan Haskins vs. No. 15: Nico Collins

The winner: No. 2 Hassan Haskins

This was the second-most lopsided contest of the week. Haskins hit 95% of the final vote over Nico Collins in a blowout victory. The hype for a second-round contest between Haskins and Edwards is maybe the best matchup we have had in the early stages of this bracket.

What you said:

I’m going Hassan Haskins all the way. Not saying Blake or Donovan won’t be better by the end of this year, but Hassan carried this team past Ohio State to the CFP to break what seemed like eternal futility. - MicrobrewFan

Our focus turns to the defense next. Make sure to check back into Maize N’ Brew on Sunday to cast your vote for the first round of the Defensive Region!

Drop your comments below for a chance to be featured in this series as well!