The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/835590
104 ■ THE WOLVERINE 2017 FOOTBALL PREVIEW "Once you become familiar with the game, everything just comes so easy." At least for those who have the talent and desire to be great. Bush Jr. didn't have to look far to find another one like him on the current Mich- igan team. He and defensive end Rashan Gary, Rivals.com's No. 1 player overall in 2016 (Bush was No. 182) and part of U-M's loaded class, were cut from the same cloth, and the two bonded immediately. "He's one of my brothers I love to practice with," Gary said. "Some people get down and then have a lack of energy. He always keeps going, and it pushes me. He holds me to a certain standard, and I love that. "I came here just for that — just to be great. For me to be great, he has to hold me to his standard. It's great seeing him make plays, and I'm happy for him like he's happy for me." Bush finished with only 12 tackles in 13 games last year, most of them on special teams, and admitted the game was still a bit fast for him even at the end of the regular season. But something clicked during bowl prac- tices. Everything slowed down, and he was relentless. When spring practice started, it was as if he'd spent an entire year on the field. "It's just being comfortable, trusting our D-line, trusting our D-coordinator, trusting the team," Bush said. "After the bowl game, I was watching film a lot, and Rashan and I would talk a lot. I got comfortable being in the meetings, seeing the things we saw last year. It was all familiar to me." In the spring game it "all clicked," he added — the stunts, the defensive line moving around, the timing and the communication. The offense scored some points, but the first- team defenders looked dominant at times, and Bush might have been the best of the best. He's exactly what head coach Jim Har- baugh envisioned when he set out in search of guys to take the defense to an elite athletic level. "This defense is fast, aggressive and loves to compete," Bush said. "We love to win and hate to lose. My goal is to communicate, be that leader out there when we need it; com- municate with my guys, make sure we're on the same page, do my job and make the plays I'm supposed to make. "This spring was a building block, and now it's time to take it to fall camp and take it into the season. That's the biggest thing for me." Ready To Break Out The guy who never seems to be fazed by a challenge has 10 starters to replace on his defense, but he had a grin on his face after the spring game. While playing at Pembroke Pines (Fla.) High for his father Devin Bush Sr., the younger Bush earned first-team all-state honors twice in 8A, Florida's largest classification, and as a senior he helped lead his team to its first state title in football. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN "Watching the spring game, he's got everything you're looking for in a linebacker. He gets to the ball fast and plays sideline to sideline. He's a player." FORMER MICHIGAN ALL-AMERICAN LINEBACKER RON SIMPKINS ON BUSH