Tag: mike Barrett

Michael Barrett picked in seventh round of 2024 NFL draft

Great to see Mike B. in the NFL! #GoBlue

It was a long, long road for Michigan football linebacker Mike Barrett.

A 2018 recruit from Valdosta (Ga.) Lowndes, Barrett played quarterback at the high school level but came to Ann Arbor as an athlete. Though he could have been used as an offensive weapon, he was moved to the defensive side of the ball where he initially started at safety, while also being groomed for the hybrid linebacker position, VIPER, in Don Brown’s defense.

With the departure of Khaleke Hudson after the 2019 season, Barrett got his chance to start in 2020. He acquitted himself well in Week 1, but was shaky the rest of the season. Then-DC Don Brown was relieved of his duties and the defense changed to the current scheme, then under Mike Macdonald. He didn’t see much time to start, but after Michigan struggled to keep pace with Michigan State’s personnel changes late in the season, Macdonald had a solution: bring in Barrett as a linebacker.

The dividends didn’t come quickly. Sure, Barrett was good and a pleasant surprise, but it was late the following season, 2022, when suddenly the lights turned on for Barrett. His multiple interception game against Rutgers set the tone for what would be the rest of his Wolverines career. By the time Barrett left, he was a stellar linebacker, and all-around playmaker, a starter, and a team captain.

And now Barrett can add NFL player to his resume, as he was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the seventh round of the 2024 NFL draft with the 240th pick overall.

Barrett departs Ann Arbor as a fan favorite, known not just for his defensive prowess, but also the quote he often said: ‘We’re in the (expletive deleted)-kicking business, and business is booming!’ With his experience next to linebacker Junior Colson, the duo dominated en route to Michigan’s national championship in 2023.

Barrett’s selection marks the 10th Wolverine selected in the 2024 NFL draft.

ESPN draft analyst thinks people are sleeping on Mike Barrett

He’s gonna go higher than most think on draft day. #GoBlue

Michigan football fans are well aware of linebacker Mike Barrett’s prowess on the football field, because they watched his long, arduous journey.

Barrett, formerly a quarterback in high school, came to Ann Arbor and took three years before he started to see the field as Don Brown’s viper in 2020. But with Brown’s firing and the retooling of the defense, Barrett fell back into obscurity. Until rival MSU’s quick tempo repeatedly caught the defense off-guard in 2021, and Barrett was then-coordinator Mike Macdonald’s solution to having to make fast personnel substitutions.

In 2022, Barrett started rising as a key linebacker, with the November game at Rutgers being his coming out party. By 2023, his sixth year, he was a starter, a team captain, and an indispensable member of the defense. Now NFL draft scouts are starting to see how good he is.

ESPN NFL draft guru Matt Miller took to X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday to share that Barrett’s performance in the Rose Bowl was top-notch and that perhaps people aren’t recognizing just how good the former Wolverine is.

Though Barrett isn’t going to get a lot of publicity by most draft gurus, it wouldn’t be surprising if he’s made a stronger impression on NFL general managers, coaches and scouts. Certainly, some who know him well (ahem — Jim Harbaugh or Mike Macdonald) would make a case to selecting him earlier than some others might?

Perhaps even Miller will have a change of heart from his latest seven-round mock draft (subscription required) where he slotted Barrett in the sixth round to the Seahawks.

Mike Barrett on Sherrone Moore: ‘I think a lot of people really underestimate him’

The team is in really good hands. #GoBlue

Former Michigan football linebacker Mike Barrett knows a little something about being underestimated.

Once a quarterback at the high school level in Georgia, Barrett came to the north and languished on the bench on the defensive side of the ball for years. He finally had his turn to thrive in 2020, but the defense was a step behind as a whole, and then-coordinator Don Brown lost his job as a result. With a schematic change defensively, Barrett, again, was sentenced to the bench — at least for a long while.

Then, over the course of the past two-and-a-half years, he made one play after another. It became clear in late 2021 that he had something, and by the end of his sixth year, 2023, fans didn’t want to see him leave.

While Barrett’s story is one of patience and perseverance, he doesn’t believe new Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore will need much of the former, because he’s got a ton of the latter.

At the NFL scouting combine, Barrett was asked about Moore being elevated to head coach. Though the reaction from the national media was tepid, the former Wolverines team captain is sure Michigan has the right guy leading the team moving forward.

“He’s gonna give it everything he has, man. He’s probably more than anybody in the country, I think,” Barrett said. “Coach Moore — I think a lot of people really underestimate him because they don’t really know him as much, know him as much of a coach. But now I feel like he’s gonna be — that’s probably the best hire they could have made. Honestly, when I heard that, I was in there jumping around, I was in there talking with him.

“But yeah, coach Moore, he’s a guy who’s gonna get everybody fired up regardless of offense, defense, regardless of the position, he’s gonna get everybody — when it’s time to lock in, he gonna get them locked in. He knows the game plan, he’s gonna get the guys ready to execute the game plan. And yeah, I’m excited to see what he’s gonna do.”

While many think the Wolverines will be good next year, just about everyone expects them to take a step back from the national championship season in 2023. Given the personnel losses, that makes sense, but the foundation is still there for the team to be elite, Barrett believes.

When it comes to what Moore, the new coaching staff, and the players Barrett and his ilk have passed the torch to need to do, the outgoing linebacker believes that the best course of action is to keep doing what the team has been doing. If Moore can do that, the team should be in good hands.

“Just keeping the culture,” Barrett said. “I feel like over the years I was there, it was a culture that was built and just being able to really just lock into that. Not really get deterred by everything that’s going on. Just kind of stay on that one-track mind that we always talked about and just being able to focus on the job at hand and just going out there and kicking (expletive deleted) every week-to-week.

“So yeah, it’s just keeping that in front of the mind, just not letting everything — outside noise really getting in and just continue to grind. They know the kind of work that it takes, what kind of work it takes on a day-to-day basis and just continuing to do that.”

Two Michigan football starting defenders impressed by Jadyn Davis in bowl practice

QB1 of the future is already making a move! #GoBlue

LOS ANGELES — Though the excitement surrounding Jadyn Davis has died down since he committed to Michigan football in the winter months, the new Wolverines quarterback doesn’t intend to rest on his laurels.

A five-star at the time of his commitment in March 2023, despite impressing on the final day of the Elite 11 in the summer, Davis has seen his star drop, as well as his ranking. But now the prized possession of the maize and blue in the 2024 class is officially wearing a winged helmet, practicing with the team as it prepares to face Alabama in the Rose Bowl on January 1.

Eight early enrollees have made it to Los Angeles to work with their new team during the College Football Playoff semifinal practices, and Davis has made a strong impression on the Michigan defense. At a podium session for the Rose Bowl, sixth-year linebacker Mike Barrett singled Davis out to WolverinesWire as the midyear enrollee who has impressed him the most in practice.

“I saw Jadyn Davis — I was able to see him throw the rock around a couple times,” Barrett said. “He looked good, especially not really even knowing what was going on. Just him going out there and kind of just throwing in a couple of 7-on-7 drills with us. He was out there kind of joining the fray but yeah, he looked pretty good.”

But what’s made him look so good so early? The Wolverines have only had one practice in California to this point, but Barrett saw a poised signal caller who has accuracy and isn’t afraid to make mistakes at this stage.

“His confidence back there in the pocket, his movements,” Barrett said. “Saw him doing some at quarterback drills, his movements in the pocket. Just the smoothness of his release and just his confidence and his throws. I feel like he was out there running with the ones and the twos a couple of times for some of our 7-on-7 drills and the confidence he threw with, that’s kind of the first thing that I saw.

“He wasn’t really scared to throw it away but or scared of somebody getting a PBU or anything like that. He was just out there playing confident.”

Barrett isn’t alone in being impressed by Davis. Junior linebacker Junior Colson also came away from Wednesday’s practice enthused by what he saw, noting that the Michigan offense isn’t exactly an easy concept to grasp. Yet, Davis appears to already have a pretty good handle on it and has made the most of his limited opportunities to date.

“Jadyn Davis has been making great reads, especially like just coming in so he’s now understanding the offense very well, putting the ball in the right spot, putting the ball in the right guys’ hands,” Colson said. “So that’s how you know, you can tell he’s a quick learner. Especially on offense, we have a lot on our offense and being able to understand that.”

Davis will obviously not be making any appearances in the Rose Bowl, and incumbent starter J.J. McCarthy has yet to declare his intentions after the season. But if McCarthy does depart a year early, perhaps Michigan does have its starter in waiting for next year.

Having faced Alabama before, Mike Barrett notes the differences Michigan football will see

There are a handful of #Michigan players who were on the team in 2019 the last time they saw Alabama. #GoBlue

INDIANAPOLIS — Michigan football will be relying on several key players who have been to the College Football Playoff before, but not necessarily players who know what it’s like to play Alabama. However, there are some who have that exact experience.

The Wolverines have a few players still on the team who were a part of the Vrbo Citrus Bowl following the 2019 season — like wide receiver Cornelius Johnson, cornerback Mike Sainristil, and linebacker Mike Barrett. The maize and blue did not emerge victorious from that game, but familiarity can breed success.

After the announcement on Sunday that Michigan will play Alabama in the Rose Bowl, Barrett had some memories of that game and the team that the Wolverines went up against. Noting how loaded with talent the Crimson Tide were that year, though there aren’t as many household names on this year’s edition, it’s still a loaded team that will require Michigan’s best, Barrett says.

“The Alabama team in 2019 had some weapons on it, that’s all I can remember,” Barrett said. “DeVonta Smith, Jerry Jeudy, Najee Harris — I just know that team was loaded. That’s kind of all I could really hit on from that.

“This year, I know they got a lot of talent — they always have a lot of talent. Well-coached, one of the best coaches in the country. So you know we got to go execute, execute our game plan, preparing just like we’ve been preparing all week and all year.”

Even without having studied Alabama at that point on Sunday, Barrett already had a pretty good idea of what his team would be up against.

His quick reaction as to what the Crimson Tide will present is quite accurate, but Barrett is confident in what the Wolverine defense will present against the Alabama offense.

“They’re a physical team, pretty versatile,” Barrett said. “They can air it out, can run the ball, they’ve got a (great) quarterback. They can do a lot of things that can beat you. It’ll be a great test for us. We’re dominant up front, got guys in the back end that can fly around. So I feel like it will be a good test for us.”

Michigan and Alabama will kick off on New Year’s Day in the Rose Bowl at 5 p.m. EST.

Michigan football has an edge with experienced players familiar with beating OSU

If it’s a dogfight, will experience win out? #GoBlue

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — One thing that is important in rivalry games that perhaps doesn’t get spoken of as much as it should is experience winning in said rivalry. It can play a big difference, especially in a rivalry as big as The Game.

Think of the ebb and flow of the Michigan football vs. Ohio State rivalry. In the 1990s, lesser Michigan teams beat superior OSU teams. In the 2000s and 2010s, even in close contests, the Buckeyes would best the Wolverines. Winnable games such as in 2006, 2013, 2016, and even the surprising 2017 contest saw Michigan lose in dramatic fashion after having late leads or in striking distance.

The team that knows how to win in big moments often will pull it out.

So, with this 2023 iteration expected to be a close game, having a roster full of players who know how to win is a big edge. Because very few Buckeyes currently know what it’s like to beat the Wolverines, while most Wolverines know what it takes to beat the Buckeyes.

That said, senior defensive tackle Kris Jenkins knows that Michigan will get Ohio State’s best, which makes it more important for the maize and blue to play at their highest level on Saturday.

“Honestly, it makes things more interesting. Because, when it comes to that, each team’s gonna come prepared with that level of comfort, even more prepared to play for a different reason,” Jenkins said. “So whether it’s the winning team playing because the other team’s gonna come with 100% what they got and vice versa, like, it doesn’t really matter whether it’s a win or a loss because with this rivalry, each team is gonna give it everything they got.”

For senior linebacker Mike Barrett, it comes down to just a few things: who plays with the most heart and who’s the most prepared. Confidence is one thing, but playing with confidence through adversity requires both heart and preparedness.

“Honestly, just kind of going down to our preparation,” Barrett said. “When you get in those moments — I mean, you’ve got two great programs going head to head and when you get in those moments of who wants it more, and just how to have that heart you gotta have, you gotta be built into you, honestly.

“And I feel like over the past couple years, we just kind of been building that, stacking those pillars are stacking every day, and just kind of preparing that preparation kind of builds that confidence, which builds that heart, that courage, so I feel like that’s kind of what goes into it.”

Barrett knows more than most. He’s one of the few players on either team who’s experienced both wins and losses in this rivalry.

As a sixth-year player, he’s faced the Buckeyes four times and he’s 2-2. He’s hoping to end up on the winning side of the record once Saturday is in the books, but what makes him the happiest that Michigan went from hopeless against OSU to being the aggressor.

“It’s amazing man, just kind of seeing just being a part of the ups and downs being here for the lows and just watching the tide turn,” Barrett said. “It’s been a great experience to kind of just be a part of honestly just (the) experience. You see the ins and outs, the highs, the lows.

“I will just say that it’s good to be on top, honestly, but yeah, it’s been a learning experience to everything and go on but it feels good to finally turn that tide.”

Michigan and Ohio State will kick off at 12:17 p.m. EST on Saturday at The Big House.

Injury update after Michigan football lost multiple players at Maryland

No injuries all year, really, and then suddenly a bunch in one game. Unreal. #GoBlue

COLLEGE PARK, Md. — For the first time all year, Michigan football found itself having injury timeouts with players heading to the locker room banged up. With Ohio State coming up in a week, it’s not exactly the greatest timing.

Starting left tackle LaDarius Henderson didn’t make the trip to College Park to face Maryland, and his replacement, Myles Hinton (who started at right tackle, thus shifting Karsen Barnhart to left tackle) left the game with an apparent right knee injury.

Interim head coach Sherrone Moore said after the game he expects Henderson back next week and Hinton didn’t suffer any catastrophic damage to his knee on his injury.

“LD was working through something,” Moore said. “I think he’ll be back next week and Myles got a little knee — ended up (with) no structural damage, anything so nothing crazy.”

Perhaps just as key, especially considering how much the offense struggled against the Terps, was the injury to wide receiver Roman Wilson.

Wilson made the first catch of the game for the Wolverines, but the play was reviewed for targeting. Though the referees didn’t uphold the charge, Wilson immediately went to the injury tent and returned later to the sidelines in street clothes.

Moore isn’t sure the extent of the injury, whether it was precautionary or not, but he says Wilson appeared fine when he returned to the team’s sideline.

“Yeah, obviously was out. Not sure the exact knowledge what it is but the trainers ruled him out at that time, which was a responsible thing, I think, for us to do as a staff, medical staff. So they’re always on top of that stuff, especially when it comes to anything that could be the head. So he was fine. Talking and everything, everything was good. He was on the sideline afterward.”

While Moore didn’t update Mike Barrett’s injury, the sixth-year linebacker returned to the game after heading to the locker room. Barrett, who appeared in his postgame interview with an ice pack taped to his left shoulder, said it isn’t much to worry about as far as his future prognosis is concerned.

“Just a little AC sprain on my shoulder,” Barrett said. “I kind of got hit on one of the plays as I was making a tackle — somebody came in and kind of hit my shoulder.

“Just kind of came in and got it looked at. Got it padded up and went back out there. Nothing a little Tylenol won’t fix.”

Michigan and Ohio State will kick off next week at The Big House at noon EST with the game televised nationally on Fox.

‘We all know what time it is’ — Michigan football has Ohio State on the mind now

Now that Michigan football has beaten Maryland, all of the Wolverines’ focus now turns to rival Ohio State.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. — The game before The Game usually is a little closer, a little tighter than it should be. And the aftermath is usually not about what happened in the 60 game minutes prior. But with Michigan football being the first program at any level to reach 1,000 wins, the celebration over the win against Maryland took immediate precedence.

But once that was over, it was time to focus on the task at hand: Ohio State.

It’s no secret that both rival teams are clamoring for each other, with Michigan entering the game undefeated and OSU (at the time of this writing) likely to do so with a multiple-score lead over Minnesota. Despite all of the off-field adversity which was met with on-field adversity, really, for the first time all year at SECU Stadium, these Wolverines are ready for their crack at the scarlet and gray for the Big Ten East division title.

“We all know what time it is. Once this game was over, we knew where our attention was gonna go,” sixth-year linebacker Mike Barrett said. “It feels great to be a part of this kind of game, coming into the game undefeated with everything going on, how the team’s able to kind of face adversity, kind of work through adversity, keep that one-track mind that we’ve been preaching all year. And just being able to be here at this point — it’s a great feeling.”

Michigan looked uncharacteristically sloppy throughout much of Saturday’s contest. The offense didn’t move as it had been, and the defense gave up points in the third quarter for the first time this season.

It’s not unlike last year when the maize and blue hosted Illinois in the penultimate regular season contest and found themselves in a dogfight.

Blake Corum doesn’t think that looking ahead had any bearing on Saturday’s contest, but what he does know is that many of his teammates have been getting extra work in for weeks, if not months, in preparation for the Buckeyes.

“Individually, I know a lot of guys have watched film throughout the season, but, you know, like locked-in, locked-in,” Corum said. “Though you best believe tonight on the plane home and tomorrow and the rest of the week is about them.”

“We know that it’s that time, gotta lock in,” Barrett added. “We didn’t really want to shoot the gun too quick. You always got to play every opponent, prepare (for) every opponent just like they’re the same. So we didn’t want to get too far ahead, kind of worrying about them too early. But is that week. So we know what we have to do, we know how we need to prepare, and know things that we have to adjust on, get fixed within this next week. And I think we will be ready.”

Michigan will play OSU without Jim Harbaugh on the sidelines for the third straight week and sixth time this season. It’s not ideal, but that’s the reality that the Wolverines live in.

Sherrone Moore will continue to helm the maize and blue as the interim head coach. Coming off of the program’s landmark win, he hasn’t given much thought to what next week will entail, but he knows that by the time his plane lands back in Michigan, it will be on to The Game.

“I mean, the really the only thing that hit me is that my mom’s coming in next week, and then she’s probably gonna yell at me for cussing again,” Moore said. “Besides that, No, it hasn’t. I’ve just tried to take it a step at a time.

“It’s my daughter’s birthday today. So she’s here and when I go home, I’m gonna celebrate with her and that’s the thing I’m thinking about right now and we’ll prepare our tails off for that game starting tomorrow, bright and early. So probably won’t sleep a lot which is our — that’s kind of what we do anyway. But it has not really hit me and it probably will as the week goes.”

After recruiting Mike Barrett seven years ago, Chris Partridge proud of what he’s become

Such a great story! #GoBlue

Back in 2017, after his second year as an on-field coach for Michigan football, there’s no way that Chris Partridge thought he would be Mike Barrett’s position coach seven years later. But here we are.

Barrett came to Ann Arbor as a defensive player, despite having played quarterback at Valdosta (Ga.) Lowndes. He arrived in 2018 and struggled to find his footing, but making a name for himself in 2019 on special teams. He played directly under Partridge both on special teams and, at that time, as a safety, before the coach departed the Wolverines for Ole Miss in 2020.

Now Partridge is back in Ann Arbor coaching linebackers, as he was from 2016-18, and Barrett has grown up — as a player and into the linebacker position after being a safety as well as a viper. Now in his sixth year, Barrett has emerged as a starter and one of Michigan’s best playmakers.

“Yeah, really awesome. Mike was recruited as a defensive player that never played defense before when he got here,” Partridge said. “He was the high school quarterback. So his development through the years, it’s been incredible. He’s developed himself into a bona fide star linebacker and a guy that’s gonna play in the NFL for a long time. And it’s really awesome. Makes me feel really good. Because when you get a guy like that, and you see a vision for them, and then it actually comes to fruition and makes you feel good, right? You convinced him, you convinced his family, ‘Hey! Come up to Michigan, you can play linebacker,’ when they never, never played defense before.”

Barrett also got the honor to be named a team captain this year, one of six — all of whom are seniors, fifth-years, or in Barrett’s case, a sixth-year. Once he heard the news, Partridge really felt like he had seen the player he recruited from SEC country come full circle, and he even decided to have a little fun with it.

Thankfully for Barrett, Partridge didn’t let his prank go too far.

“I’m excited for Mike. And now to see him be a captain — it really is awesome,” Partridge said. “Really proud of him. We pranked his mom. When he got announced captain, I called her and I was like, ‘You need to call Mike right now! You need to tell–‘ She’s like, ‘What has he done now?!’ And then we got on the phone and told them but yeah — it’s a really cool thing to see his development.”

Fans will get a chance to see Barrett in action on Saturday when Michigan football hosts East Carolina for the 2023 season opener. The game will take place at The Big House at noon EDT and will be streamed live on Peacock.

Michael Barrett says J.J. McCarthy is tough to defend in practices due to his running ability

How awesome to have him on our team! #GoBlue

Michigan football started off the year 1-0 this past Saturday after it defeated Colorado State, 51-7.

But even after a dominating performance, there is just one thing that everyone is talking about. The quarterback controversy in Ann Arbor.

Jim Harbaugh started Cade McNamara against the Rams and he will start J.J. McCarthy this Saturday against Hawaii. Harbaugh has reiterated multiple times that he believes either quarterback could lead Michigan to a championship. But the best way to figure out who is more equipped to be the starter in 2022 is to see them both in action during games.

On Monday, Michael Barrett met with the media and he was asked if the rotating of the quarterback makes things uncomfortable for the team. Barrett said it does not, but he like Harbaugh, feels like both can lead Michigan to where it needs to go. The linebacker said that competition brings the best out of you and he believes that’s what’s happening now.

“Not exactly I feel like both of those guys could be a starting quarterback anywhere in the country,” said Barrett. “I feel like just going against those guys. Both of them are locked in and both of them guys are you know they want the starting spot. They’re both competing. They’re both competing at a high level. So I mean, I wouldn’t say that it’s kind of uncomfortable. I feel like it’s kind of bringing the best out of both of them. You know, I feel like just that competition at that, at that level. I feel like it’s kind of it has to bring the best out of, you know, whoever it is. And I feel like that’s kind of what’s going on.”

Earlier on Monday, Jim Harbaugh was asked about the running ability J.J. McCarthy brings to the table. Harbaugh stated that McCarthy runs a four-five 40-time and that he is faster than most linebackers. Which is a big upside to the Michigan offense.

“I think he definitely pulls defenders,” said Harbaugh. “They have to know where he is. I mean our defensive coaches are the same way. There needs to be a plan when  a quarterback can run in the four-fives and that gets to be faster than linebackers. So you’ve gotta have a plan to contain that. You can definitely see even if he’s carrying out fake somebody’s paying attention.”

Barrett reiterated how fast McCarthy is and how hard he is to defend during practices. He said there are times that the defense feels like they have him contained, or even stopped dead to rights, but the elusive quarterback finds a way to make a play with his feet.

“Yeah, I mean, you kind of got to make sure that your resume is perfect,” said Barrett. “You got to make sure you have your edges because if he gets outside and we’re in man coverage or something he can beat you with his feet.  He’s a fast one. So he can get out of there. You think you have him but he slips out of a couple of tackles. And we’ll laugh about it. Because we can’t really tackle him or touch him in practice. But yeah, we just have to make sure that we kind of keep an edge on and keep the pocket tight whenever. Whenever we rush in, don’t, don’t pass the quarterback, things like that. So you don’t get to escape on it. But it’s kind of something you got to kind of, you know, focus on when he’s in there.”

The Wolverines are set to take on Hawaii this Saturday at 8:00 p.m. EDT. It will be McCarthy’s first-ever collegiate start and all eyes with be on Michigan to see how the sophomore performs under the bright lights of the Big House.

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