Devy Digest: Freshman Friday – Jordan Marshall

The Devy Digest, Freshman Friday’s – featuring Michigan Wolverines RB Jordan Marshall.

• Jordan Marshall
• Position: Running Back
• Michigan Wolverines
  
• 5’10” 200 lbs
  
• Draft Eligible: 2027
  
• Devy Digest Freshman RB Rank: 4

Who is Jordan Marshall?

Jordan Marshall was a 4⭐️ in the composites who attended Archbishop Moeller High in Ohio. Marshall was a two sport athlete early in his high school career, but gave up baseball to focus on football. Marshall was named Ohio’s Mr. Football Player of the Year in 2023. He held 29 offers, but it was widely accepted that Michigan was favored to land him – and they did.

Jordan Marshall has excellent vision as a one-cut explosive running back. He possess lateral quickness to evade tackles and bounce runs to the outside once he gets to the second level. Marshall shows good explosiveness and contact balance with power as a runner. But the trait that will solidify his playing time early is his willingness as a pass blocker.

2024 4-star Michigan commit Jordan Marshall breaks 3 tackles then hits 20.5 MPH on this 64-yard TD run for Archbishop Moeller 😤@J_MARSH2024 @MoellerFootball

Get your on-field speed verified for free ⤵️ @RAanalytics https://t.co/Fc9fV7B3K4 pic.twitter.com/0vGFWLGqEp

— VNN Sports (@OfficialVNN) August 9, 2023

As a receiver, Marshall is a plus athlete and will catch the ball away from his frame. Marshall has good quickness with verified track times – including a 10.74 second 100-meter dash. Marshall has the traits to be the next every down back at Michigan.

Pathway to Success

Donovan Edwards returns for his Senior season but he has never handled a full workload. There are a lot of vacated carries left with Blake Corum entering the 2024 NFL Draft. While Kalel Mullings worked as a secondary running back last year (and returns on the depth chart), he’s more of a straight line runner to complement a shifty running back. Benjamin Hall has been in the program for a year and wasn’t able to carve out a niche last season. Jordan Marshall should the next running back in line.

Marshall brings all the traits and tools that Michigan typically prefers in a running back. It is not out of the question to believe he could begin the season as the RB3 on the depth chart. It would allow Marshall to slowly gain traction for more playing time and overtake Mullings during the season. After all, we’ve seen Michigan play true Freshmen if they belong.

Michigan had Zach Charbonnet split the backfield with Blake Corum when he was a true Freshman. While Donovan Edwards will likely be the lead back this year, expectations shouldn’t be more than 55% of the carries. There is enough workload for a couple of backs to get carries in each game, allowing Marshall to carve out a role.

Jordan Marshall is also a pass catching back. That would allow Michigan to be able to interchange Donovan Edwards and Marshall while using Kalel Mullings as the short yardage battering ram.

Michigan also loses a lot of receiving snaps going into this season. And, the outlook with a new quarterback could be very different. Michigan is likely to lean on their defense and use the run to shorten the game. This gives more opportunities for the running backs and Jordan Marshall.

In his introductory press conference, new offensive coordinator Kirk Campbell referenced using Donovan Edwards in space, outside, and as a chess piece. In essence, we could see Edwards and another running back on the field at the same time. That could create additional playing time Marshall could earn. Being a good pass protector will endear him to the staff and I expect him to earn playing time as a true Freshman.

Areas for Improvements & Concerns

Quarterback play is a big concern for the Michigan Wolverines. Alex Orji and Jadyn Davis are the two likely competitors for the job by the start of the season. If neither can prove themselves to be adequate passers or receivers aren’t able to create plays, opposing defenses could stack eight in the box and force Michigan to throw. There’s also a concern if Orji loses the job, he would be used as a wildcat option for short area and goal line situations. That could take away snaps from the running backs.

We also have to see how the new coaching staff treats playing time, and whether they continue to play the best players or lean towards seniority. If they lean to seniority, Benjamin Hall might be given the first shot to earn the RB3 spot in the rotation. If the Wolverines struggle this year and Jordan Marshall doesn’t see the playing time that he expects, he could look at another program with Michigan’s weak NIL collective.

Devy & C2C Value

In Devy drafts, Jordan Marshall should be in consideration in the third round. For deeper formats, it could potentially be the second round, depending how depleted the pool is.

In a C2C supplemental draft, Marshall will likely be taken between rounds two and three. After the top two tiers of wide receivers and top three quarterbacks are taken, Marshall could be as high as the fourth running back taken. Marshall could be a good college producer as a Sophomore and become an every down back for Michigan. It gives the possibility of being a 20+ carry player and a big producer on the campus side of your league.

NFL Outlook

We see the running backs get devalued at the NFL, and to a lesser extent in college. Day 2 draft capital is now the pinnacle of expectations for even some of the best RBs. With Jordan Marshall having all the tools necessary to be successful, there is a range of outcomes where he comes a Day 2 pick. Marshall already comes in as a true Freshman at a good playing weight (200 pounds), and may add another 15 pounds during his collegiate career without losing speed and agility.