ANN ARBOR, Mich. — After being somewhere between questionable and a liability for years and years, Michigan football now appears to have a linebacker corps that’s deep and primed to impress in 2023.
Former position coach George Helow definitely elevated the group and did what he could considering there were few top-flight recruits in the room. But now with Chris Partridge back coaching the position, there is more ample personnel to go along with those who have cemented themselves recently.
One player who really improved over his career is Michael Barrett. The former high school quarterback at Valdosta (Ga.) Lowndes really came into his own late last year, but there are some challenges this year given how deep the room is.
Though junior Junior Colson is considered the leader of the group, Barrett sees two others who are standing out now in fall camp.
“Jaydon Hood — I feel like he’s made a big step from last year,” Barrett said. “He’s coming along I feel — like really fast. Learning and being able to help us step into that next spot. Ernest (Hausmann) — like I said, he’s jumped coming along fast. He’s really impressed me just by how fast he’s been able to pick it up. Moving around as being comfortable in the defense already just being here, what, six months? So that’s really impressive.”
Hood is a former four-star who has really taken his time to develop, but there’s perhaps no more exciting name than Ernest Hausmann. A transfer from Nebraska entering his second year, Hausmann impressed in the spring game and is fighting Barrett for playing time.
What’s made him so good and such a formidable fall camp opponent in Barrett’s eyes? The sixth-year positional journeyman sees a young buck who has latched on quickly to what the defensive coaches are looking for.
“A quick learner, came in ready to learn, ready to work,” Barrett said. “Yeah, we push each other every day, just in our room. And in general, I feel like we just all kind of pushing each other, helping each other get better. It’s never any tension in the room, it’s always one to help the other, one be better and set up ourselves get better. So he’s just came in with just that will to learn, that grind that we’ve been looking for. And he’s definitely gonna help us a lot this year.”
Hausmann is up 17 pounds to 237 after weighing in at 220 for his freshman year in Lincoln. Expect to see him early and often throughout the year. And if Hood has come along, it will be interesting to see if he or sophomore Jimmy Rolder is one of the premier reserves who gets his name called early.
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