The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/729750
42 THE WOLVERINE OCTOBER 2016 MICHIGAN FOOTBALL ing a helluva job," he pointed out. "Wilt is poised, more than what any- body even expected. He's progressing super fast, and our wide receivers are all on the same page. Protection-wise, we're doing a really good job. It's all just coming together." Kalis well remembers not so long ago, when the offensive line drew considerable derision. Michigan led the nation in tackles for loss allowed during the 2013 regular season, and critics assailed U-M linemen as over- rated coming out of the prep ranks. The fifth-year senior assured he didn't think the critics were correct at the time, and he doesn't believe they were accurate in retrospect. "A lot of times, people speak when they're really not that informed," Ka- lis noted. "They don't look at the big picture and what was happening. "People were not correct in what they were saying. We weren't perfect, but it was the whole entire team. You can't blame it on one position group. "I feel like we were kind of scape- goats. That's fine. That's life. I never lost sleep over it, I can tell you that." Asked if those old assessments crop up more easily now at the first sign of a rushing issue, Kalis took a moment to consider his answer before deliver- ing it. "I kind of think that they do," he said. "For whatever reason, they keep going back to that. Hopefully, one day, the old stink will be gone. We're doing a good job of trying to eliminate that. "As much as they want to keep bringing it up, it's not there. It's not real anymore." MIKE MCCRAY MAKES STATEMENT WITH EARLY BIG TEN HONOR Doubters regarding Michigan's new set of linebackers received something to think about in the early going of the 2016 football season. Michigan redshirt junior linebacker Mike McCray was named the Big Ten's Defensive Player of the Week, following the Wolverines' dominant season opener. McCray, new to the starting lineup this year, began the season in a flurry, posting a team-high nine tackles in Michigan's 63-3 rampage past Hawai'i. His effort included a pair of sacks among 3.5 tackles for loss, along with a forced fumble. McCray paced a defense that posted a 35-0 shutout over the open- ing 20 minutes and kept the Rainbow Warriors completely off the board, except for a 55-yard field goal. "We talked about it all week — go- ing out there and showing every- body what we were about," McCray said afterward. "We had a great de- fense last year, and we want to do better than we did last year. I felt we made a big statement." McCray had been talking all along about Michigan's new linebackers holding up their end of the bargain in a strong defense. His effort backed that desire with action. "We talked about going out there and sending a message," he said. "We lost three seniors last year at the linebacker position. We just wanted to go out there and prove something — that we belong." McCray entered the season with just two career tackles; he eclipsed that with nine stops, including two sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss, in the season opener. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN OFFENSE Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. WR 82 Amara Darboh 6-2 215 5th-Sr. 9 Grant Perry 6-0 196 So. LT 77 Grant Newsome 6-7 318 So. 74 Ben Bredeson 6-5 310 Fr. LG 71 Ben Braden 6-6 335 5th-Sr. 74 Ben Bredeson 6-5 310 Fr. C 52 Mason Cole 6-5 305 Jr. 57 Patrick Kugler 6-5 303 R-Jr. RG 67 Kyle Kalis 6-5 305 5th-Sr. 74 Ben Bredeson 6-5 310 Fr. RT 78 Erik Magnuson 6-6 305 5th-Sr. 70 Nolan Ulizio 6-5 291 R-Fr. TE 88 Jake Butt 6-6 250 Sr. 89 Ian Bunting 6-7 252 R-So. WR 82 Jehu Chesson 6-3 203 5th-Sr. 85 Maurice Ways 6-3 217 R-So. QB 3 Wilton Speight 6-6 243 R-So. 8 John O'Korn 6-4 215 R-Jr. FB 80 Khalid Hill 6-2 263 R-Jr 19 Henry Poggi 6-4 257 R-Jr. RB 4 De'Veon Smith 5-11 228 Sr. 32 Ty Isaac 6-3 230 R-Jr. or 12 Chris Evans 5-11 200 Fr. DEFENSE Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. DE 33 Taco Charlton 6-6 285 Sr. 15 Chase Winovich 6-3 245 R-So. DT 96 Ryan Glasgow 6-4 299 5th-Sr. 99 Matthew Godin 6-6 294 5th-Sr. DT 43 Chris Wormley 6-6 302 5th-Sr. or 73 Maurice Hurst 6-2 282 R-Jr. 99 Matthew Godin 6-6 294 5th-Sr. DE 43 Chris Wormley 6-6 302 5th-Sr. or 3 Rashan Gary 6-5 287 Fr. SLB 5 Jabrill Peppers 6-1 205 R-So. 59 Noah Furbush 6-5 238 R-So. ILB 9 Mike McCray 6-4 248 R-Jr. 10 Devin Bush Jr. 5-11 232 Fr. ILB 42 Ben Gedeon 6-3 247 Sr. 52 E. Mbem-Bosse 6-3 215 Fr. FS 25 Dymonte Thomas 6-2 199 Sr. 23 Tyree Kinnel 5-11 206 So. SS 44 Delano Hill 6-1 215 Sr. 23 Tyree Kinnel 5-11 206 So. CB 8 Channing Stribling 6-2 175 Sr. 34 Jeremy Clark 6-4 206 5th-Sr. CB 26 Jourdan Lewis 5-10 186 Sr. 28 Brandon Watson 5-11 203 R-So. MICHIGAN DEPTH CHART (UNOFFICIAL) Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PK 91 Kenny Allen 6-4 222 5th-Sr. 3 Quinn Nordin 6-1 205 Fr. P 91 Kenny Allen 6-4 222 5th-Sr. 3 Quinn Nordin 6-1 205 Fr. KO 91 Kenny Allen 6-4 222 5th-Sr. 3 Quinn Nordin 6-1 205 Fr. H 15 Garrett Moores 6-5 217 Sr. Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. LS 31 Scott Sypniewski 6-1 231 R-Jr. 50 Andrew Robinson 6-0 221 R-So. KR 26 Jourdan Lewis 5-10 186 Sr. 86 Jehu Chesson 6-3 203 5th-Sr. PR 5 Jabrill Peppers 6-1 205 R-So. 12 Chris Evans 5-11 200 Fr. SPECIAL TEAMS