Nichols is another player to watch on Michigan’s already loaded defense, but what kind of impact can we expect?
This week, 247Sports released a list of 100 first-year players who will influence the 2024 college football season. Included on the list is Michigan freshman Dominic Nichols, a 6-foot-5, 251-pound Edge. The early enrollee had a chance to play in the spring game in April.
Nichols will wear No. 33 for the Wolverines this season and is coming off an impressive senior season. Not only did he help his team finish undefeated, but he had 84 tackles on the year, including 15.5 sacks in his final year. He’s his high school’s all-time leader in sacks now with 27 during his high school career.
14-0 @OHSBearsFB onto the next @CoachMikeElston @CoachD_Roney @Coach_Minter pic.twitter.com/jNHtPKz8CL
— Dominic Nichols (@DominicNichols_) December 8, 2023
You can see in his tape that he’s a big guy. Given that Nichols will have months to work with Michigan’s nutritionists and strength and conditioning team, it seems likely he’ll have the strength to make some big plays in the fall. He’s certainly got attributes that seem like they’ll fit in with a Wink Martindale game plan on defense — Nichols has experience getting to the quarterback, and if he’s not getting the sack, he’s at least getting pressure.
The only thing that might get in his way are the guys ahead of him.
The Edge position is one to keep an eye on this fall after the Wolverines lost Jaylen Harrell and Braiden McGregor to the NFL. Michigan has two proven guys starting at the position, with Josaiah Stewart and Derrick Moore who both have a lot of expectations this season. Behind Stewart and Moore is another guy getting a lot of offseason praise, and that’s TJ Guy.
Michigan had so many guys to rotate on defense last season that there’s still room for a talented freshman to step up and make some plays. The Wolverines have solid players returning in Moore, Stewart, and Guy, but that doesn’t mean the team won’t make room for Nichols in the rotation if he’s playing well.
Another major thing that could hold Nichols back this year is the schedule; Michigan’s schedule this season is much more of a challenge than it was in 2023. Last season, the coaching staff could rotate young guys early and give them some significant snaps in a real game. Michigan won games by 21+ each week last season until the game against Penn State.
This fall, Michigan plays Texas in week two. The Longhorns have lost some of their receivers to the NFL Draft, but they’re returning quarterback Quinn Ewers, a guy who helped Texas beat Alabama and may have had two wins, had it not been for an injury in 2022.
Under first-year head coach Sherrone Moore and new defensive coordinator Wink Martindale, it’s tough to know exactly what the rotation will look like this fall, but you can see why Nichols is getting a lot of attention.