College Football Network recently unveiled their preseason All-American honors for the 2024 season, spotlighting players from the defending national champion Michigan Wolverines. These standout athletes from the back-to-back hopefuls received significant national attention last year and are looking to back it up in 2024.
Who are the Wolverine players singled out for high praise ahead of the 2024 college football campaign? Let’s take a look!
Which Michigan Players Earned CFN All-American Honors?
Michigan will enter the 2024 season with four players and their defensive line receiving CFN All-American Honors. The Wolverines look to win back-to-back national titles like the Georgia Bulldogs in 2021 and 2022.
Defensive Tackle Mason Graham and Cornerback Will Johnson highlight the Wolverines’ inclusion on the defensive side of the ball. Graham was tabbed as the Preseason Interior Defender of the Year, while Johnson was selected as the Cornerback of the Year and the overall Defender of the Year in the Big Ten.
Graham will lead a Michigan defensive front that was selected as the Preseason Defensive Line of the Year, honoring what many believe will be the best defensive front in the country in 2024.
Wolverine Tight End Colston Loveland was selected as the Big Ten’s Preseason Tight End of the Year and also received Preseason All-American Honorable Mention honors. Here’s what CFN Executive Director Cam Mellor had to say about Michigan’s All-American honorees.
Defensive Line of the Year: Michigan
The Wolverines take the cake as the top defensive line in the country mainly because of their interior duo of Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant. It doesn’t hurt, however, to have Josaiah Stewart, Derrick Moore, and Rayshaun Benny in that defensive front.
The Wolverines possess an elite run-stopping unit, but it’s the pass-rushing flashes that each have shown that give them a significant advantage in 2024. Graham earns the top spot on the defensive line in Ann Arbor as a do-everything type defender on the inside.
But the remaining players have also shown to possess top-notch skills as well. Stewart is likely the most underrated of the group after he transferred in from Coastal Carolina in 2022. A season ago, Stewart came on strong down the stretch and started to realize his full potential, similar to Moore.
With this group, depth is the key to their success, but their talent at the top is unmatched across the country.
Defensive Interior of the Year: Mason Graham, Michigan
When you speak of big man with incredibly gifted athletic traits, you think of Mason Graham. Guys that tip the scales at 6’3″ and 318 pounds shouldn’t be able to move as fast as he does or as low as he does, as Graham just simply dominates at the point of attack.
Graham’s block shedding is arguably the best in the country and he’s a pitbull when it comes to getting after ball carriers. If interior pressure is more valuable than edge pressure, then you better believe Graham is as valuable as any, if not more so, than any other defensive lineman not named James Pearce.
Cornerback of the Year: Will Johnson, Michigan
At a time in college football where coverage is king on defense, Will Johnson reigns supreme. Johnson’s brand of sticky coverage is matched at elite levels by his athleticism, range, and shear football IQ.
No pass is easily completed on Johnson in man coverage and he’s a sure-fire candidate to break up passes not in his area in zone coverage. The talent he flashed in 2022 was exemplified in 2023 where he limited quarterbacks to lower than a 50% completion percentage when testing him.
For cornerbacks, sometimes it’s not about interceptions or plays on the ball. But for Johnson, it’s about his total plays on the ball and his ability to lock down an entire side of the field. Few can do what Johnson does on a per-play basis and he gives new meaning to lockdown coverage.
Full List of Michigan Players Earning CFN All-American Honors
- Defensive Line of the Year
- Mason Graham, DT (Interior Defender of the Year, First-Team All-American)
- Will Johnson, CB (Cornerback of the Year, First-Team All-American)
- Kenneth Grant, DT (Third-Team All-American)
- Colston Loveland, TE (Honorable Mention All-American)
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