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Not only do we not know who will be those to take the mantle for some of Michigan’s departed players, we aren’t sure when they’ll be able to get to work in earnest this year.
Due to the novel coronavirus, the Wolverines were never able to hit the practice field, as spring ball was canceled less than a week before it was set to begin. Though, there was a full period of winter conditioning. So, essentially, guys got into shape, but then could do nothing on the field with it.
Thus, when Michigan does return to State St. and eventually Main St., it’s important, particularly on defense, where there’s a lot of rotation, to get a large number of players right and ready to go in.
And defensive coordinator Don Brown sees quite a few players ready to step up.
The maize and blue lost five defensive starters to the NFL draft, plus Lavert Hill, who was signed as an undrafted free agent quickly after the culmination of the draft. So there are a lot of shoes to fill. Brown told Jon Jansen on the In the Trenches podcast that he’s not only seeing the guys who had started to step up last year take that step forward, but also some of those role players who are up and coming.
“I’ve watched them a lot from afar during winter workouts,” Brown said. “We had one winter workout, and it’s funny how you say, ‘Well, it’s only one work out,’ but you can tell when a guy makes a jump. You just look at his body language. The way he carries himself. He’s not looking all around with nervous energy. He’s much more focused and confident. That’s what you’re searching for out of your young guys, because you know they’re coming of age. You can see that definitely on the horizon for several of our guys in that area.”
Given the lack of spring practice and a likely shortened summer conditioning/fall camp period, Brown notes that it’s pivotal for those role players and new starters to be ready to move in and out of the lineup.
The depth has to be there perhaps more than in some years, given that players won’t necessarily be in the same football shape as they likely would have been. Winter conditioning aside, Brown notes who some of the players are who seem ready to take the mantle this upcoming season.
“Obviously, it’s something we were able pay attention to to some degree last fall where we had some surplus of talent,” Brown said. “For example, the Khaleke Hudson, Josh Uche and trying to keep Uch fresh on some of those big money pass downs that he’s so elite at. So when you have those areas – I see it developing.
“I see the Christopher Hinton. I see the Donovan Jeter. I see the David Ojabo jumping in as a pass rusher. Taylor Upshaw. A lot of these guys are outstanding athletes and we just better make sure we have them ready to compete at a high level and especially mentally for those young guys so obviously we can stay efficient and minimize mistakes.”
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Hinton and Jeter are particularly important as Michigan will be seeking to replace Michael Dwumfour at defensive tackle, as he transferred this offseason to Rutgers. Currently, the Wolverines return the other three starters along the defensive line — ends Kwity Paye and Aidan Hutchinson and fifth-year tackle Carlo Kemp. Upshaw started getting some time late in games, and seems poised to be one of the next men up.
Ojabo is an interesting player, as he didn’t begin his football career until recently. A Scotland native, he moved to New Jersey and managed to become a four-star prospect with little experience. His teammates frequently noted him as a freshman a year ago who was making a strong impression.
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