It’s national signing day proper, but Michigan football signed the bulk of its class in December — before the coaching change and before Kyle Whittingham’s arrival. But shortly after he did arrive, he was tasked with not only retaining the roster and the signees, but also adding via the transfer portal.
Of all of those who came from other schools, Whittingham brought in four players who played under him at Utah — edge rusher John Henry Daley, wide receiver JJ Buchanan, cornerback Smith Snowden, and defensive lineman Jonah Lea’ea. Appearing on the Big Ten Network on Wednesday, Whittingham shared some thoughts on some of the players who followed him from Salt Lake City to Ann Arbor, starting with the biggest name of the group.
“John Henry Daley, he’s a guy that has an incredible motor,” Whittingham said. “He plays every snap as if it was his last. Tremendously talented young man. He was leading the nation in sacks last year before he went down with an injury. So we feel he probably would have led the nation last year had he stayed healthy all year. But he’s just a relentless, throwback type of defensive end. He’s just physical, but he’s got great pass rush ability.”
Of those who are joining Whittingham at Michigan, perhaps one of the most pivotal (and underrated) is wide receiver JJ Buchanan.
Buchanan was listed as a tight end pretty much everywhere, but even while with the Utes, he played as a big wide receiver. Announced by the Wolverines as a wideout when he signed, there’s a lot to like about his game and how he’ll fit into the fold now that he joins Bryce Underwood and the passing game.
“JJ Buchanan, he came in at the University of Utah in the summertime, was not with us in spring, and proceeded to catch a bunch of balls for close to four to five hundred yards, and just got better as the weeks ticked by,” Whittingham said. “And he’s a really athletic kid. He’s kind of a tweener in a way. He was almost a tight end-sized young man, but we kept him a wide receiver. He was about 215-220 pounds, but tremendously athletic, like I said. 40-inch vertical jump, and that really comes in handy when you look at the contested balls up the field. That’s where he really excels — at the contested ball.”
Michigan football is currently in winter conditioning, and will begin spring practice on March 17 with eyes on the April 18 spring game.
This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Michigan football: Kyle Whittingham on Utah transfer portal additions
