The Wolverine

October 2016

The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports

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OCTOBER 2016 THE WOLVERINE 17   INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS Fifth-year senior defensive lineman Matt Godin wasn't sure he'd be back for a fifth year with the Wolverines, but he is — and he's playing better than ever. "He is a steady, high-perform- ing guy, tough guy, always in the lineup," head coach Jim Har- baugh said recently. "I'm really, really impressed with him." He's grateful for the opportu- nity, he said in this recent Q&A: The Wolverine: Was there a time you thought that you wouldn't be asked to stay dur- ing the coaching transition, maybe go somewhere as a graduate transfer? Godin: "Yeah, it came into my mind. You never know. Anyone would have that thought. It's a new coach; you don't know what he wants to do. "I just kept working hard every day, just kept my head down." The Wolverine: You've had three different defensive coor- dinators since you've been here. How do you adapt to — and learn from — the different styles? Godin: "Coach [Greg] Mattison says, 'You're either going to have armadillo skin or you're going to have rabbit skin.' So you take their coaching no matter how they dish it out to you — you go on the field and you fix it. "That definitely correlates with high school — it was the same thing. It's not going to be pretty, the coaching all the time. The comments might not be the best thing in the world. But you've just got to take it and go get better." The Wolverine: You graded out well against UCF in a 51-14 win playing for injured nose tackle Bryan Mone. What's the mindset when it's your turn to step up? Godin: "For the last four years, or three, we've always had good depth. … Coach [Harbaugh] told us all camp, all spring: 'You've got to be ready, if you're second string, to play just as good as the guy who is starting.' "Mone went down, so that gave me an opportunity to start the game. I wanted to go out there and play the best I could." The Wolverine: You and fifth- year senior nose tack le R yan Glasgow seem to take the same approach to the game. What makes you similar? Godin: "We've grown together a lot in five years … it's crazy. We take a lot of pride in our tech- nique. We watch all the film to- gether and [learn] the tendencies of these other teams. A lot of times guys don't do that. They can go out there and not watch a lot of film and do their thing and make seven tackles. We both take pride in watching film and being pre- pared." The Wolverine: Coach Harbaugh said Ryan had one of the best de- fensive line performances he'd ever seen in the game with Central Florida. What makes him tick? Godin: "He has one of the best work ethics I've ever seen. Him being my roommate, one of my best friends, it's great to have him around with his work ethic — and it definitely rubs off on everyone else on the D-line." — Chris Balas Godin is part of a loaded defensive line for the Wolverines and has totaled nine tackles, including one stop behind the line of scrimmage, in the first three 2016 contests. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN JABRILL PEPPERS SCOOPS UP TWIN BIG TEN HONORS Redshirt sophomore linebacker Jabrill Peppers handles multiple roles for Michigan, so it only made sense that the Big Ten cited him more than once following Michigan's 45-28 win over Colorado Sept. 17. Peppers not only earned Big Ten Co- Defensive Player of the Week, but also Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week. Defensively, he notched 3.5 tackles for loss (including a sack) among nine overall stops, bumping his nation-leading tally to 9.5. He also recorded 204 all-purpose yards, including a 54-yard punt return touchdown and a career-long 55-yard kickoff return. Peppers led the nation through week three of the college campaign with 173 yards in punt returns. He's the first Big Ten player to ever capture two weekly awards out of the same game. Sitting Down With Michigan Defensive Lineman Matt Godin

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