How Worthy Is Nico Collins To Wear The No. 1 Jersey?

If Anthony Carter is the standard for the No. 1 jersey, how does everyone else measure up? Let's take a look on a scale of 1-5 ACs. 

Braylon Edwards - AC, AC, AC, AC, AC

By the time Edwards switched to the No. 1 jersey before his junior season, he had become just the third Wolverine in school history to amass 1,000 yards receiving in a sophomore season, catching 67 balls for 1,035 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2002. He furthered his own legacy and that of the No. 1 jersey with record-setting performances as a junior and senior, culminating with a Biletnikoff Award-winning senior year in which he caught 97 balls for 1,330 yards and 15 TDs. 

Many fans seem to take issue with Edwards (for a variety of reasons) but there is no denying his dominance at Michigan, where he still holds the program records for career receptions (252), yards (3,541) and touchdowns (39). 

David Terrell - AC, AC, AC, AC, AC

Terrell wore the No. 1 jersey right from the get-go and didn't disappoint, catching 14 balls as a true freshman in 1998. In 1999, he set U-M sophomore-year records for catches (71) and yards (1,038) that still stand. He capped off his career as the first Wolverine in program history with back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving seasons, hauling in 67 balls for 1,130 yards and 14 touchdowns in 2000. Had he returned for a senior season (and his QB, Drew Henson, too), Terrell very well could own all the career records that currently belong to Edwards. 

Greg McMurtry - AC, AC, AC, AC

Big, big fan of McMurtry as he was the wide receiver at Michigan when I was growing up, but how do you rectify his career numbers - 111 catches, 2,163 yards and 15 touchdowns when five years earlier Carter was significantly better (161 for 3,076 yards and 37 touchdowns)? 

During McMurtry's era from 1986-89, U-M's second-best pass catcher (teammate John Kolesar, 1985-88) caught 61 balls for 1,425 yards and 12 scores. Perhaps that's how. 

McMurtry was Michigan's top target each of his final three seasons and one has to wonder what he was capable of had he played with better quarterbacks his middle two years (Demetrius Brown and Michael Taylor).  

Nico Collins - AC, AC, AC

Compared to the players listed above, Collins has accomplished far less. His career numbers of 78 catches for 1,338 yards and 17 touchdowns would look awfully better as a singular All-American junior year, but Collins has never caught more than 38 balls in a season or had more than 729 yards, numbers that rank 55th and 33rd, respectively, in the U-M single-season annals. 

But ... Collins might be the most underutilized receiver in Michigan history, a physical specimen that has never been the most targeted wideout on the team. Shea Patterson's lack of a big arm and proper timing also prevented Collins from being the true deep threat he has the potential to be. In other words, with the right opportunity in 2020, Collins should produce at a level worthy of four ACs.  

Derrick Alexander - AC, AC, AC

On physical talent alone, Alexander ranks up there with Steve Breaston for athleticism and versatility - like Breaston he returned punts (four career TDs), kickoffs (averaged 23.4 yards on 27 returns) and ran the ball (9.7-yard average on 11 career rushes). As a receiver, he had 31 catches for 450 yards and six touchdowns as a sophomore, showcasing what he was capable of. 

A season-ending injury one game into 1991 and subsequent flare-ups in his redshirt junior and senior years limited Alexander to 85 catches for 1,361 yards and 15 touchdowns his final two seasons, including a disappointing senior year in which he had only 35 receptions and four TDs. 

Every other receiver on this list had the benefit of good health, had Alexander been as fortunate he would likely have a fourth 'AC.' 

Devin Funchess - AC, AC

Funchess began his career as a tight end, dazzling with a five-touchdown true freshman campaign in 2012. Five games into his sophomore season he moved outside to wide receiver (though somehow managed to be named Big Ten Tight End of the Year in 2013). In his 22 games as a wide receiver, including 13 wearing the No. 1 in his junior campaign, Funchess caught 103 balls for 1,366 yards and nine touchdowns, second-team all-conference type of numbers. 

Funchess is a bit of an enigma. For someone his size (6-5, 230), there was no cornerback that could defend him, but his 2014 campaign was riddled by QB issues, coaching issues and his own attitude issues. He had a single touchdown reception in the final 12 games of the his career ... hardly No. 1 worthy. 

Kekoa Crawford - AC

In two seasons, Crawford had 21 catches for 290 yards and two scores before leaving Michigan for greener pastures. He didn't fare much better at Cal in his first season, catching 16 balls in 2019. 

Tyrone Butterfield - AC

When the thing you're most famous for is dropping a ball that leads to a game-winning touchdown (the 1995 Virginia contest) that says a lot about your tenure. Butterfield returned kickoffs for Michigan as a junior in 1996 but his final career tally of four receptions drops him to the bottom.