ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Ernest Hausmann is excited about the possibilities with his new team. Not just because Michigan football is expected to be much better than the team he transferred from, Nebraska, but because some of the talent ahead of him on the field should provide significant opportunities to wreak havoc.
One of the purported strengths of the Michigan football team in 2023 is the interior defensive line, led by senior Kris Jenkins, who has earned some early first-round NFL projections. Hausmann sees plenty of future instances where offenses will do everything in their power to stop Jenkins, Mason Graham, Kenneth Grant, Cam Goode, and Rayshaun Benny from penetrating, which will, in turn, open up gaps for him and the fellow linebackers to make plays.
“With our incredible interior line, it’s our job to get them on the double teams,” Hausmann said. We know that offenses obviously are gonna counter with them, they need to double them because we know that a one-on-one on them, our D-line is gonna win that battle. So in return, we know that, obviously, the offensive line is gonna double them, so it’s our job to make sure we get them off the double teams, and in any way possible.
“So, that’s kind of how we just work hand in hand in that, and just make sure that we get them other double teams, and we know where they’re going to try to win and all these other things, so we can be a successful defense.”
Certainly, there will be offensive packages that will work to negate the defensive line throughout the season. The run-pass option has become more popular in college football, and if a lineman or a linebacker is too honed in on the run, a quarterback can pass it instead.
For Hausmann, his study of the intricacies of the game he feels will help because there will be moments where offenses provide a punch, so it will be particularly up to the linebackers to be smart and provide the counter-punch.
“That’s one of the things about being linebackers that I love is that we take charge of the defense, we have to make sure that we make everything right,” Hausmann said. “Like I said before, we give them the freedom to do sometimes what they need to do to be successful, right? They’re gonna cause havoc, they’re gonna get tight with the ball. And with that, we know how offenses are going to try to combat that with their aggression and be able to play them. So we should just understand that and be able to make them right and fit the gaps that they might go into when they’re not in there.”
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