Ahead of the NFL Scouting Combine, reporters asked players to pick their signature game from the 2024 college football season. Kenneth Grant and Mason Graham both picked the Wolverines’ 13-10 win on the road against the eventual national champion Ohio State Buckeyes.
Kenneth Grant, Mason Graham Think the Ohio State Victory Shows Who They Really Are
After their own triumph in 2023, Michigan was very much in rebuilding mode following the loss of a plethora of players and head coach Jim Harbaugh returning to the NFL to lead the Los Angeles Chargers. There was no surprise over them missing the playoffs and ended the season with a respectable 8-5 after a really tough schedule.
Defeats to the ranked Texas Longhorns, Oregon Ducks, and Indiana Hoosiers really showed that the Wolverines weren’t going to reach the levels they did in 2023. However, their final regular-season win on the road against the Buckeyes really showed there was quality still in the program, followed by a 19-13 win over Alabama in the Reliaquest Bowl.
Michigan’s national title in 2023 was built off of a strong defense and the 2024 team showed aspects of that too. Against Ohio State, Graham had seven total tackles, as they held their opponents to just 10 points, their lowest total of the season by seven points.
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In that game, Grant lined up alongside Graham, and the interior lineman went to work. Grant registered four tackles and said to reporters, “Coach Wink lined me up in that zero, and I was eating all game, to be honest. I was stopping the run pretty good, then I had the opportunity to rush the passer, so I was getting back there a lot.”
What Are the Draft Prospects for Graham and Grant?
Graham is expected to be a top-five pick in this NFL Draft following a 3.5-sack, 46-tackle season. When asked what game he would show to scouts, he offered a simple reply, “Just roll that Ohio State film, that’s all you need to see really.”
Like his teammate, Grant is expected to go in the first round, with some analysts and scouts having him as the second best interior lineman after Graham.
It looks like Grant will drop into the later stages of Round 1 — possibly even Roun 2 — but there is clear upside with the 21-year-old, and many teams will be looking to bolster their defensive presence with him.
It was a strong season for Grant in his junior year, adding three sacks of his own and 32 total tackles. What does stand out on his 2024 stat-line is the five pass deflections, something that only three defensive backs on his team bettered him in.
That athleticism to go from rushing to exploding up to tip passes away is a hidden art for defensive lineman and is something that NFL teams always wish they got more of.
CSN’s recent 7-Round NFL Mock Draft Sees Graham go as the fifth pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars. He would go in as an instant starter and help beef up a defensive line that has Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker coming off the edge.
Those two are already talented, but adding in Graham would really make that line a real problem for many teams.
MORE: Will Helms’ 2025 NFL Draft Big Board
Grant, however, dropped into the second round to the Cleveland Browns. If Myles Garrett is traded, then adding an athletic lineman really will help out a team who is desperately trying to find some sort of direction after a really poor 2024 season.
They both have shown throughout their college careers how dangerous they can be and, as a pair, were a nightmare for opposing offensive lines. That Ohio State game shows scouts just how good they are and how both are NFL-ready.
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