ANN ARBOR, Mich. — It’s a different world coming from Bloomington to Ann Arbor given the considerable upgrade in talent. That’s not to impugn Indiana players, but there’s a reason why the Michigan Wolverines are ranked No. 2 in the preseason compared to its Big Ten East counterpart.
Entering his fifth year, tight end AJ Barner is getting a fresh start with the maize and blue, and in doing so, he’s competing against some of the top defensive linemen in the conference, if not the country, in fall camp.
So, who has been standing out to him? What battles have challenged him the most?
“I would say I’ve seen a lot from — just because I go up against him every day — Jaylen (Harrell) is a really good player,” Barner said. “Kris Jenkins, a very good player. But like I said, this team so deep that somebody might make a great play on one play and the next play get beat, just because everyone’s very, very good. So I think me going up against the D-lineman a lot, they’ve stood out to me.”
Michigan has a lot of different types of edge rushers at the moment, with five who all have very unique skill sets. Some are bigger and more powerful, some are smaller, sleeker, and faster, others are a combination of traits.
Barner shared a little about some of his fall camp competition and why he expects them to be more than a challenge for opposing linemen this season.
“Yeah, I think that’s definitely one of the biggest strengths,” Barner said. “Braiden’s a bigger guy, Jaylen’s a longer guy, Josiah Stewart has very strong hands, TJ Guy’s a very good player, D-Moore. And I think the ability to just rotate those guys and have fresh guys would just be a nightmare for any Big Ten team and then that’s not even talking about the interior guys also that can play in four-Is or go inside and play in the A-gap.”
That said, who gives him the most trouble in fall camp? Barner is a bit mum about that, but notes that a pair of defensive linemen are the ones sharpening his skills the most.
“I wouldn’t say give me trouble, but I definitely love going up against Kris and I love going up against Jaylen, too, just because I know I’m gonna have to bring it and that we both make each other better.”
Fans will get a chance to see Michigan football take the field in just over two weeks with the Sept. 2 noon kickoff against East Carolina taking place at The Big House.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3]
[affiliatewidget_smgtolocal title=”An offer for Wolverines fans” description=”For the best local Detroit news, sports, entertainment and culture coverage, subscribe to the Detroit Free Press.” url=”https://cm.freep.com/channeloffer?gps-source=CPSMGMIDARTICLE&utm_source=smg&utm_medium=inline&utm_content=wolverineswire&utm_campaign=smgtolocal&offer=W-SF&barBuild=atoms-pid” button_text=”$1 for 3 months”]