Tag: Daxton Hill

Prospects for Jags fans to know: Michigan S Daxton Hill

For this week’s prospect preview, @DanDGriffis discusses the traits that makes Michigan’s Daxton Hill stand out.

Coming off one of their best defensive performances in quite some time, some might forget how much work the Jacksonville Jaguars’ defense still has to do. While many are hopeful for the eventual development of secondary pieces, such as cornerback Tyson Campbell and safety Andre Cisco, those players shouldn’t eliminate the possibility of selecting a defensive back in the upcoming draft.

One player who has flown up draft boards and shown vast improvement from last season is Michigan safety Daxton Hill. Hill was no doubt on the radar of scouts entering the season, however, his level of play and role in Michigan’s impressive season hasn’t gone unnoticed.

Hill (6-foot-0, 192 pounds) has put his athleticism on full display week after week this season for the Wolverines. Through nine games, Hill has racked up 48 total tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, six pass breakups, and nabbed a career-high two interceptions. In short, he’s been anywhere and everywhere at all times.

Starting with Hill’s athletic profile, it’s otherworldly. Coming out of high school, Hill already had recorded a 4.3 40-yard dash, 43-inch vertical, and a SPARQ rating in the 99th percentile. He posted those numbers three years ago; with top-end training at Michigan, he might be poised to post better numbers come February at the combine.

With that kind of speed and burst, Hill can make plays other safeties only dream of. In a game against Nebraska, the star safety came up with the play of the game, tipping and intercepting a ball that helped Michigan seal its victory.

Later in that same game, Hill defended a slot fade beautifully that ended up being the last play of the game.

 

Hill has also been crucial as a run-defender. While his strength is in coverage, Hill’s ability to get off blocks and wrap up the ball-carrier is there. He isn’t afraid of physicality and his speed and quickness only aid him in his pursuit, evidenced by his 48 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss.

 

 

At the moment, Hill isn’t a household name in this draft class. As Michigan continues to make their claim to be in the college football playoffs and the combine nears, fans will see more and more of No. 30 and for all the right reasons. He’s an athletic anomaly, who’s developed into a true football player this year, not just an incredible athlete who happens to play the sport. As he continues to develop, the sky is the limit and his stock is certainly trending in the right direction.

Dax Hill shares if he felt he got the INT vs. Nebraska, explains the taunting penalty

Raise your hand if you also had a heart attack when you saw the flag come out!

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ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan football safety Daxton Hill played a big role in the Wolverines’ 32-29 win over Nebraska in Week 6, with an early interception that was tipped into the air before he managed to somehow secure it while falling to the ground. Certainly, it was a point of contention for the Husker faithful, but the replay showed that he was able to get a hand under the ball to make the catch.

Still, how did it feel in real-time to Hill? He explained on Tuesday whether or not he felt he actually had possession in the heat of the moment.

“At first, I kinda felt like it touched the ground, but I knew I had it!” Hill said. “I don’t know what happened, but all I know is I came up with it.”

But that wasn’t the most controversial moment.

Nebraska had the ball at midfield with enough time on the clock to at least get into field goal range. Though its kicker, Connor Culp, has been shaky, at best, this season, given the back and forth nature of the game, it appeared that the Cornhuskers had a shot to tie the game — or win it outright — as time expired.

The Michigan defense made a stand, forcing a fourth-and-long pass attempt, which went unconverted. After the play was over, Hill stood over leading Huskers receiver, Samori Toure, and drew a taunting penalty. Thankfully for the Wolverines, the turnover on downs had already happened, thus the maize and blue could just run out the clock on the timeout-less Nebraska Cornhuskers.

“We were just playing the game, kinda got in my head a little bit,” Hill said. “It’s the play we got to come through. It was a good play by all of us. We stopped them on fourth down, so. . .”

So, what happened in that moment, considering the usually reserved Hill found himself on the wrong end of what could have been an ill-timed penalty?

“I feel like — I mean, I kinda knew what I was doing!” Hill said. “But, at the same time — it was just how the game went. It was an exciting game. The crowd was all into it. We all, as players, being out there — just the heat of the moment.”

Was there any anxiety when he saw the flag, thinking he might have inadvertently given Nebraska one more shot at the tie or win?

“A little bit, not gonna lie! A little bit. But got the first down for the offense, so it was good.”

Michigan moves on now after the bye week to Northwestern, which it hosts at noon EDT at The Big House.

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3 things we learned about Michigan football after defeating Rutgers

A win is a win, but whoa.

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No. 19 Michigan continued its winning ways on Saturday after defeating Rutgers 20-13 to start out Big Ten play.

The Scarlet Knights were undefeated heading into the ballgame, but the maize and blue proved to be too much to handle for the up-and-coming team.

The Wolverines win for the fourth straight game, and it may have been an ugly win, but it’s a win nonetheless. The Wolverines looked like their dominating selves in the first half, but things changed in the second.

Michigan had 233 total yards in the first half compared to Rutgers 121, and those numbers dictated what the first half felt like — domination. The Wolverines entered the break with a 20-3 lead.

While the second half got a little close for comfort in the third quarter, the Wolverines were able to finish the deal and leave with a victory. The maize and blue forced a turnover late in the fourth quarter to win the game.

Here are three things we learned about Michigan.

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RECAP: Michigan football players (9/7) Washington week

Really good stuff from Joel Honigford, Roman Wilson, Chuck Filiaga and Daxton Hill!

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Sept. 7, 2021:

• Joel Honigford

• Roman Wilson

• Chuck Filiaga

• Daxton Hill

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In accordance with Michigan football policy, the media isn’t allowed to upload more than 5 minutes of footage from any press conference. But we found our way around that. Giving you the best of every press conference, we cut out the questions to give you the straight answers, with the most interesting parts of each media availability taking center stage.

WolverinesWire presents our new series: RECAP in five minutes or less.

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Topics include:

• How Joel Honigford switched from offensive line to tight end

• Playing against Giles Jackson

• Why Chuck Filiaga is playing with a nasty streak now

• Why Michigan is preparing for Ohio State, even as it prepares for Washington

And MORE!

The Big Ten’s top five safeties heading into 2021

A surprise #Buckeye makes this list of our top safeties in the Big Ten heading into 2021.

Ohio State football kicks off in less than a month, and we have been rolling through the best of the best of the Big Ten at each position. We have already completed our list of top five quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers, tight ends, offensive tackles, guards, centers, defensive ends, defensive tackles, inside linebackers, and outside linebackers.

I firmly believe that this Ohio State defense will be improved greatly, and I think that the defensive backs will be a huge part of that. This list may be shocking and a little different than others you’ll see, but hey, I’m always down for some hot takes. Let’s take a look at the top safeties in the Big Ten.

Michigan needs Daxton Hill ‘to be a jack of all trades’ on defense

#Michigan’s had one of those before on defense and it worked out pretty well.

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ANN ARBOR, Mich. — We’ve seen it before when it comes to a five-star Wolverines defensive player taking the field when former Michigan star Jabrill Peppers did more than just play the safety position that he was projected at in high school.

Peppers became Michigan’s do-it-all man, not just on defense, but also on offense and special teams. While the maize and blue aren’t asking as much of junior safety Daxton Hill, a fellow former five-star, they will look for him to play a handful of different roles.

It was learned before the season last year that Hill was trying his hand at a bit of cornerback, though he remained at his native safety position throughout the season. He got his start during his freshman campaign in 2019 playing the nickel position, which appears to be a part of where the Wolverines plan to keep the talented Tulsa, Oklahoma native.

New Michigan defensive backs coach Steve Clinkscale spoke about Hill moonlighting at multiple positions in the secondary, and while he didn’t provide much detail about where we might see the talented DB, he did confirm that the coaching staff is asking him to do multiple things on defense.

“Our plan right now is for Dax to do a little bit of everything,” Clinkscale said. “We’ve had a lot of situations where we’re teaching the game, so we’re focused on that aspect of it. Today, we had a little bit of slow down; yesterday – we had a break today. I talked to him a little more about getting him a little more positions in there. We’re gonna need him to be a jack of all trades. I think it might help his skillset. He has the ability to play corner with the ability to make plays at safety and a mindset of a safety. I’m really, really excited about all of the plays he can make and his demeanor, his championship effort – he’s a very, very good football player. Very instinctual. So I feel we can build stacking on top for Dax. The more we push him to learn, the better he can be.”

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The big concern, as mentioned, is putting too much on Hill’s plate so that he never quite reaches his potential. One of the knocks on Peppers in his Michigan tenure is that while he was excellent at a lot of different positions, he was never truly elite at any of them.

To boot, the Wolverines are already introducing a new defensive scheme under coordinator Mike Macdonald. So at what point does too much become too much?

Clinkscale says that the key to not overwhelming Hill is to make sure that each position has separate nomenclature, as to not confuse them if they’re learning multiple concepts.

“You teach them in families. You keep them in families,” Clinkscale said. “You keep the verbiage different in each family so it doesn’t spill over into the other one and confuse. And once they understand the menu and those families, they’re able to pull it out. Sometimes we learn from the players. Sometimes, they might do something that may not be in the playbook. But they learn from the menu in that coverage and they’re able to apply it as long as everybody is on the same page. They understand it that way. And then, repetition. Repetition over and over of film study.

“We do a lot of things like teach tape, offer NFL film, show them those guys the success they have and how they’re doing it. I think things like that will help Dax and things like that. It helped me! It helped me definitely. That’s the way I learn. I’m a visual guy. We walk through a lot and then we team them same as, same as. Like I said earlier, football is about 11 guys on offense, 11 guys on defense, special teams. And you have a variety of ways of getting to the same exact thing: the come and gos, protect the ball, score more points than the opponent, eliminate big plays, take the ball away, keep the ball, have a plus-10, 15, 20 turnover margin, play smart, be coached smart, have a good football IQ, play poised and win the big games by winning one game at a time. Stay healthy and be versatile. And the players understand that.”

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Michigan football player makes Rivals’ No. 1 Big Ten breakout player in 2021

Rivals’ Mike Farrell predicts that the former five-star at Michigan football will emerge as one of the best players in the Big Ten.

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If this comes to fruition, Michigan football’s defense will be solid in 2021.

The Wolverines retooled the entirety of the defense this offseason, with Don Brown being let go in favor of first time defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald, who is bringing the Baltimore Ravens’ attack to Ann Arbor. While big things are expected of defensive end/outside linebacker Aidan Hutchinson, there’s another player who is ready for his glow up.

Safety Daxton Hill had an up-and-down 2020 campaign, but the former five-star’s best football is certainly ahead of him. Last year, Hill was expected to be one of the breakout players in college football, and in looking specifically at the Big Ten, Rivals’ Mike Farrell is renewing optimism in the Oklahoma product’s talents.

In Farrell’s latest ‘Three-point Stance,’ he shared which Big Ten players he’s most excited to see in 2021, as they’re on the verge of a truly remarkable season. And in that list, Hill comes in at No. 1.

1. S Daxton Hill, Michigan – Hill was amazing in the spring and has become the leader of the defense. His five-star talents are coming together and that speed is much needed. Hill is going to have an amazing season, I can feel it.

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Considering that Michigan’s problems on defense last year were in the secondary and in the middle of the defense, while the Wolverines are looking for a mistake-eraser at linebacker, the various ways in which Hill could be deployed means that, while at safety, he could take on that role for Mike Macdonald.

If Hill does make this prophecy come true, the maize and blue defensive attack should take leaps and bounds — assuming that the players around him are serviceable at the very least.

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Did Daxton Hill ever consider transferring from Michigan football?

What the former five-star junior said about players who decide to transfer and if he ever thought about leaving Michigan football.

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ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Like any program, Michigan football has its share of outgoing transfers. But, sometimes, it feels a bit overwhelming when you see players thought to be promising leaders of the future depart the program.

The Wolverines lost several key players this offseason: quarterback Joe Milton, running back Zach Charbonnet, center Zach Carpenter, defensive end Luiji Vilain, running back Christian Turner and linebackers Ben VanSumeren, Adam Shibley and Adam Fakih. Each is departing for their own reasons — some because of playing time, others because of scheme fit, others for reasons that have little to do with football.

So, when one makes that decision to enter the NCAA transfer portal, the players who remain recognize that each has their own choice and their own path to follow. And they support them, regardless of them no longer being on the team.

“With that deal, you just gotta trust your gut,” junior safety Daxton Hill said. “Sometimes people do it because they think that’s the best decision for themselves. It’s really just all personal opinion. I really don’t have too much to say about that. Transfer portal – if they don’t feel like they can see themselves here, then that’s their deal. Really just staying true to yourself if you see that you can stick it out and be productive toward the team, then I’m all for it. But if not, if you see yourself playing somewhere else, then that’s their decision.”

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Hill, in particular, was a subject of offseason speculation as to whether or not he would remain a Wolverine or test the waters with a different program. However, Hill says that leaving Ann Arbor was never in consideration.

As far as he sees it, he committed to the program, and he fully intends on staying with that commitment to the very end.

“Nah, finish what I started, that’s my mentality,” Hill said. “That’s how I’ve approached it.”

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Michigan football grades from Big Ten Week 6 27-17 loss against Penn State

Michigan football lost 27-17 against Penn State in Ann Arbor. How did each position grade out in the loss to the Nittany Lions?

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Michigan football is back to its losing ways in the 2020 season. Despite it ending its three-game losing streak to Rutgers last week, Michigan couldn’t figure out what to do against Penn State this week, losing 27-17. The Wolverines couldn’t come back down 17-7 at halftime like they were able to last week as the Nittany Lions were too much for them.

Michigan had an injury with its starting quarterback in Cade McNamara early on in the game, which brought in backup Joe Milton for a while before McNamara returned. The return wouldn’t last long, though, as Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh pulled him in the fourth quarter due to his injury. The position needed some consistency, and it once again failed to live up to its expectations.

The defense made some stops and slowed down Penn States offense, but even with just two running backs, the Nittany Lions didn’t have trouble putting up points on the Wolverines. While the defense didn’t perform great, it wasn’t as bad as the offense was overall. Check out my grades from the loss to Penn State below.

Offense

Quarterback: C-

McNamara had a rough go at it as the starter. He had a good start with only one bad throw, but he started to perform worse once he got injured. McNamara couldn’t throw the football downfield, and the short throws weren’t moving the chains. He finished going 12-for-25 for 91 yards.

Milton came in for McNamara when he was injured and when McNamara was pulled in the fourth quarter. His performance wasn’t much better, going 1-for-3 for 21 yards. Milton’s two incomplete passes were poor throws and not what the team needed to see with him back in. Neither turned the football over, which is helpful, but it was not a great performance with under 100 yards for each.

Running Back: B

Michigan football has seemed to have thrown the running back committee type of ground game out the window this week. Hassan Haskins is the starting running back, and he won’t give that job up, finishing with 17 carries for 101 yards and two touchdowns. Chris Evans was the next man up with four carries for 35 yards, while Blake Corum had three carries for 27 yards. Zach Charbonnet never saw the field, out with an undisclosed ailment.

Wide Receiver: C-

No wide receiver could find the end zone this week, and there were very few plays from the group. Ronnie Bell once again led the group with four catches for 40 yards. Freshman A.J. Henning made a big catch for 28 yards, finishing with three for 31 yards. Cornelius Johnson had two catches for 15 yards. Mike Sainristil had a game to forget with a drop and a muffed punt.

Tight End: C-

After performing well last week, the tight end group was silent against the Nittany Lions. Erick All had a catch for eight yards, while Nick Eubanks had a catch for six yards. The blocking could’ve been better from the duo, but it wasn’t as bad as it was in weeks past.

Offensive line: C-

While starting left tackle Ryan Hayes was active, he didn’t play. Right tackle Jalen Mayfield and center Andrew Vastardis were still out with injuries. The line did a good job keeping both quarterbacks upright despite facing a strong Penn State front seven, but outside of the big 59-yard run by Haskins, they could only help muster up 115 yards on the ground. Short yardage situations on third and fourth down were challenging for the group to gain as they weren’t able to push the defensive line back when it mattered most in the fourth quarter on the fourth and one run by Milton.

Now onto the defense and special teams…

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What Penn State’s James Franklin said about Michigan football this week

As Michigan football prepares for Penn State, the Nittany Lions had plenty to say about the Wolverines earlier in the week.

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Michigan football was able to rebound after starting the season 1-3 and defeated Rutgers 48-42 in triple-overtime last Saturday. The win improved Michigan’s record to 2-3, and while a conference and playoff championship is out of the question, the Wolverines are still playing for pride and more. A win for Michigan this week wouldn’t be an upset of any kind as it takes on a winless Penn State team, but a win is still crucial and can be a stepping stone for the rest of the year for Michigan.

Penn State is coming in 0-5 and its worst start in program history. The Nittany Lions are having issues everywhere on offense and defense. It’s strange that this team was a top 10 team coming into the season and only losing by one point to Indiana to start the year out. It doesn’t only want a win to end the losing streak but going against a struggling Michigan team, it could see it as its best chance to win this season.

Before both teams hit the field on Saturday, Penn State head coach James Franklin spoke with the media and discussed things from his play at quarterback headed into the game and, of course, the Wolverines in Ann Arbor.

“We have to protect the football on offense,” Franklin said. “That is going to be, obviously, emphasized all week long going into our Michigan game. Going on the road. Coach Harbaugh and the University of Michigan football program. It’s going to be a tremendous challenge. I think the home team has won the last four games. If you look at the all-time record at Michigan Stadium since joining the Big Ten, I think we’re 3-8. So you know, we want to really find a way to swing that in our direction and find a way to get a win on the road at Michigan this year, which is something that’s been a challenge for us.”

Franklin is going up against one of his former coaches, Michigan football offensive coordinator Josh Gattis, once again after last year’s first battle. Gattis used to be the wide receivers coach for the Nittany Lions from 2014-2017 before leaving for Alabama in 2018 and coming to Michigan in 2019.

“Obviously, we know these people very well,” Franklin said. “Josh Gattis is their offensive coordinator. Josh was with me for a number of years at both Vanderbilt and Penn State, and that’ll be a challenge.”

Franklin also spoke about the Michigan football defensive coordinator Don Brown and went further in-depth about Michigan football players on the field.

“Don Brown, I’ve known for a long time,” Franklin said. “Don was the defensive coordinator when I was the offensive coordinator at University of Maryland. Don was the defensive coordinator. I think at UConn, when I was the head coach at Vanderbilt, we played them. And then, obviously, since joining the Big Ten, he’s done a really good job statistically since he’s been there.”

“On special teams, they’ve got Jay Harbaugh,” Franklin said. “They have a dynamic returner in Giles Jackson, which is going to be something that we’re going to have to find a way to limit his impact in the game. On defense, guys that stand out to you are Cameron McGrone, Daxton Hill, and Carlo Kemp. Offensively, they’ve got a bunch of guys. Giles Jackson again, Cornelius Johnson, Ronnie Bell, and Hassan Haskins. A number of guys that we have to be aware of. They run a very, very multiple defensive scheme. They always have. And then, they’ve obviously become a lot more multiple on offense recently with Coach Gattis coming. So, it will be a challenge, but our focus is on getting better today.”

Franklin also spoke about his quarterback battle between Sean Clifford and Will Levis, as it appears that both could end up playing on Saturday, which means Michigan should prepare for both and not expect just one to play the entire game.

“I think we’ve got two quarterbacks that are very passionate and very competitive and want to help the team win and be part of the solution,” Franklin said. “I have a tremendous amount of respect for Sean, and I have a tremendous amount of respect for Will. I expect them to play well on Saturday and help give us a chance to be successful.”

Overall, Franklin and the Nittany Lions have one thing on their mind, and that is beating Michigan. No matter how it happens, Franklin and his players know how big of a game this can be for them and that it needs to do whatever it takes to get the victory.

“I think we’ve got to do whatever we’ve got to do to beat Michigan,” Franklin said. “I think that has got to be our focus. We have to get better today, and we have to find a way to win on Saturday, obviously based on a lot of different factors. You know, there’s going to be more guys that get to play, some of that out of necessity. But, it’s all about getting better today, and it’s all about, what do we have to do to beat Michigan.”

Michigan takes on Penn State at The Big House in Ann Arbor this Saturday at noon EST on ABC.

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