2016 Will Be Michigan's Last Quiet NFL Draft Under Jim Harbaugh

As the 2016 NFL draft approaches, there's been no shortage of attention placed on the Big Ten.

At Ohio State, the Buckeyes are preparing to send a potentially historic draft class to the NFL.

In East Lansing, Michigan State will likely lay claim to multiple first-round picks, as well as one of the draft's biggest question marks at quarterback in Connor Cook.

Even at Penn State, Indiana, Maryland and Illinois, pro teams having been poking and prodding at players expected to be taken within the first three rounds of the selection show.

But when it comes to Michigan, the place Wolverines are most often popping up on the NFL's radar is on game film where they served as the opponents of the more highly touted prospects in their conference. That shouldn't be the case for long, however, as Ann Arbor should soon find itself an NFL factory once again.

That was always expected to be the case when Jim Harbaugh returned to his alma mater, and not just because of his previous four-year stint as the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, but also his penchant for putting players in the pros while on the sideline at Stanford. One year may have been one too few to expect similar results at Michigan, and if the Wolverines' current crop of draft hopefuls is any indication, that certainly seems to be the case.

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Graham Glasgow, ranked by Bleacher Report's Matt Miller as the draft's No. 7 center, should hear his name called this weekend, as should 14th-ranked defensive lineman Willie Henry. That, however, might be it when it comes to Michigan players picked in 2016, save for a team taking a late-round shot on quarterback Jake Rudock or defensive lineman Mario Ojemudia.

All things considered, the Wolverines' streak of not having more than three players picked in a single draft is likely to extend to an eighth year. It's also likely to be the last lean draft under Harbaugh's watch at Michigan given both his current roster and the way he's recruited in his first year-plus in Ann Arbor.

"You knew that the day he took over he's going to win," ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. said on a conference call last week. "He's well on his way. He's got prospects for this draft."

In fact, this year's class of Wolverines prospects could have seen a boost, if not for a few players opting for an additional year of seasoning from their head coach.

That rings particularly true when it comes to the case of cornerback Jourdan Lewis. According to Kiper, the All-Big Ten selection would have been one of this year's most highly touted corners, a status in draft stock that shouldn't change over the course of the next 12 months.

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"If he had come out, he'd have certainly been one of the top corners," Kiper said. "Next year's draft, if you look at the top five right now and you look at a corner, you'd have to put him in there."

Instead, Lewis, who CBSSports.com already ranks as its No. 4 cornerback in the 2017 draft, will return to Michigan alongside tight end Jake Butt, the same site's top-ranked prospect at his position for the upcoming season. The reigning Big Ten Tight End of the Year, Butt would have almost assuredly been selected had he opted to enter the 2016 draft, which features an uninspiring crop of tight end prospects, according to Miller:

And then there's defensive lineman Chris Wormley, who also bypassed the upcoming draft in order to receive one more year of development under Harbaugh. Add in potential draft picks in wideouts Jehu Chesson and Amara Darboh, defensive end Taco Charlton, defensive tackle Ryan Glasgow, running back De'Veon Smith and offensive lineman Erik Magnuson, and the Wolverines' 2017 draft class should be their most robust in recent memory—and that's before mentioning safety/corner/linebacker/jack-of-all-trades Jabrill Peppers will also be draft-eligible a year from now.

"There's no question there's going to be athletes produced. You've got the receivers who can run, you're going to have talent coming in," Kiper said. "Look at the recruiting class coming in."

That class, Harbaugh's No. 5 nationally ranked haul, includes 5-star defensive tackle Rashan Gary, as well as 4-star quarterback Brandon Peters, who Harbaugh has already compared to arguably his most famous pro product, Andrew Luck.

And while it may be too early to project players who are yet to officially begin their college careers, let alone their senior seasons of high school, Harbaugh's 2017 class ranks seventh in the nation and should bode well for a continuing pipeline from Ann Arbor to the professional ranks.

"Tremendous difference from what they were and what they are," Kiper said of the Wolverines program. "You've got some young players, some studs from this recruiting class."

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This draft is just a start, and while a modest one, it still serves as a testament of Harbaugh's ability as a player developer. Soon enough, he'll be putting his own recruits in the pros, which could be reminiscent of what's occurring at his Big Ten counterparts.

"What Jim's doing there, it's going to put pressure on Ohio State, who just lost a gazillion players to the NFL," Kiper said. "There's no question it's going to be Urban Meyer and Jim Harbaugh going up against each other every year."

Losing "a gazillion" players to the NFL, however, can be a good problem to have, as big draft classes serve as an indicator of the top talent your roster possessed and your staff produced.

It's also one the Wolverines should be experiencing soon enough, given their second-year head coach's propensity for putting players in the pros.

Ben Axelrod is Bleacher Report's Big Ten lead writer. You can follow him on Twitter @BenAxelrod. Unless noted otherwise, all quotes were obtained firsthand. All statistics courtesy of cfbstats.com. Recruiting rankings courtesy of 247Sports.