Michigan football safety Rod Moore named an early player to watch for 2024 NFL Draft

On3 imageby:Clayton Sayfie01/20/23

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Michigan Wolverines football safety Rod Moore and others entering their third collegiate season aren’t yet draft eligible, but that hasn’t stopped ESPN.com from taking an early look at the top 2024 prospects at each position. Moore was named along with two other safeties, Ohio State’s Lathan Ransom and Miami’s Kamren Kinchens.

“The 2022 Michigan defense was basically an All-Big Ten roster, and many of those players are now headed to the NFL,” ESPN draft analyst Matt Miller wrote. “But Moore returns and has a chance to be an All-American performer. Moore grabbed four interceptions in 2022, and he continued to develop throughout the season. He played his best football against Purdue and TCU, and he heads into the 2023 season with a ton of momentum.”

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Moore was an honorable mention All-Big Ten selection and one of the most underrated players on the Wolverines in 2022. He ranked third on the team with 71 tackles, led the team with 4 interceptions and posted 3 pass breakups.

The ballhawk’s 4 interceptions are the most by a Michigan defender in a season since cornerback Channing Stribling posted an identical number in 2016. They’re the most by a Michigan safety since Dewayne Patmon notched 4 in 1998.

His 81.4 PFF coverage grade ranked sixth among Big Ten safeties, and he was only one of six safeties in the nation with 4 or more picks. His instincts and preparation level are off the charts and allowed him to make plays all over the field.

Surprisingly, Michigan running back Blake Corum, who decided to return for his senior season instead of go pro, did not make the cut. Miller listed Wisconsin’s Braelon Allen, Clemson’s Will Shipley and Ohio State’s TreVeyon Henderson ahead of him.

Corum was the Big Ten’s Player of the Year as voted on by the league’s coaches, a unanimous All-American and a finalist for the Doak Walker Award. He missed Michigan’s final two games and was limited in a pair of other contests, but still racked up 1,463 rushing yards and 18 rushing touchdowns on 247 carries.

Michigan LB Junior Colson named a ‘sleeper’

Michigan linebacker Junior Colson will also be draft eligible in 2024, and he was named a “sleeper” prospect by Miller. Colson was one of the Wolverines’ most productive defenders in 2022, leading the team with 101 tackles, 6 stops for loss, 2 sacks, 1 pass breakup and 1 quarterback hurry.

Just a sophomore, Colson became a vocal leader on a Michigan defense that lost a lot in that department from the year prior.

Colson and Moore are part of a star-studded class that will produce several NFL Draft picks when it’s all said and done. Other top candidates are running back Donovan Edwards and quarterback J.J. McCarthy. Neither appear to be on draft radars yet, but big junior seasons could put them in the discussion.

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