The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/901162
32 THE WOLVERINE DECEMBER 2017 "Also, we've got some nice backs that can run the football. But I'm old school. I want to see a back that can block really, really well. We're not quite there, either." Jansen: "There's no question about it. It's got to be upgraded play by the offensive line. A little bit of that de- pends on recruiting, if there are any transfers available and just talent de- velopment of the guys that we have. "We've got three or four young guys that have played and are getting ex- perience. Now what happens when they start winter conditioning? I know there is limited contact in the offsea- son that the coaches can have with the players, but who is going to be that junior or senior who says, 'Hey, we need to watch film. We need to run these drills.' "There are always great gains that can be made with the guys in the off- season. The biggest help would be if [redshirt sophomore tackle] Grant Newsome can come back and play. Having him out there, and the confi- dence he brings to that offensive line, would be a huge boost." Ray: "Offensive line play. Offensive linemen are at a premium at the Power Five level. I just don't think you can miss. Michigan experienced a lot of at- trition at that position group. I believe there were five linemen in that 2013 class that would be fifth-year seniors now. They're not here, for whatever reason. "Offensive line play, in the run and pass game, is going to be vital to Mich- igan's success." Karsch: "I'm not a coach, but I would say offensive line play. It's get- ting better this year, and maybe this group has come together. "But it felt like, for decades, Michi- gan just rolled out great offensive line after great offensive line, with some hiccups here and there. I don't know if it's coaching, scheme, recruiting or what, but something hasn't meshed quite right, even though this group is coming together — and I don't think that should be discounted. "Maybe they have turned the cor- ner. Quarterback is fine, running back is fine, they're loaded at tight ends and receivers. I hope the line has turned the corner." The Wolverine: What's the next step for the Michigan defense? Jansen: "In the short term, obvi- ously, eliminating the big play. The last few weeks, they've played great defense. You hear [defensive coordi- nator] Don Brown talk about Rutgers, where it was 44 plays and the defense played great, but there four plays where they didn't execute as well. "It's shoring those things up. I'd like to see some more depth and a little better coverage skills in the secondary. "The linebacker position, with [sophomore linebacker] Devin Bush and those guys that are there, my goodness, that's a good group of players. "Up front, we're going to lose [fifth- year senior defensive tackle] Mo Hurst. I want to know if [freshman defensive tackle] Aubrey Solomon is the guy who steps in there. "There are a couple of guys who are starting to get reps, who I think are go- ing to be very good players for us. The front seven is going to be extremely good. It's the back end where I want to see a little bit better of execution and assignment, and I think we'll be a top-three defense again." Ray: "They need consistency. They need to be a little more versatile. I think they have the players, the pieces, when you look at the young second- ary. Some of those guys are going to be good, and you've still got guys like [freshman] Joshua Ross. We haven't seen him at linebacker yet, but he's going to be good. "You've got Bush and those guys. They've got the right caliber athlete. They need to find a way to show more versatility against who they might face. You can't just dominate the bad teams. "They need to replenish that defen- sive line. I'm a little concerned with the depth moving forward. I just haven't seen flashes from some of the younger guys. The guys you see out there right now were the second group to [Chris] Wormley and Taco [Charl- ton] and some of those guys. Now they're starters. "They need to build another wave up front." Karsch: "Probably cutting down on the big plays. But I don't particularly know that there is a next step. They're really good. Games like Penn State happen, but they only lose two seniors [Hurst and linebacker Mike McCray]. "Next year's defense should be even better. To me, this is keep the train on the track and try to avoid some of the big plays they gave up against Penn State." Skene: "The defense is stepping along pretty doggone well. Devin Bush is a young star in the making. This kid can run so fast. "If you can complement him with another linebacker with his speed and nose for the football, and you've got a whole group of them who can play at that level, that's going to be really good. "Maybe if you can replicate Devin Bush and put another inch or two on that kid's skeleton, that would be the Our experts were in unanimous agreement that the offensive line play up front needs to improve. Through 10 games, the Wolverines have allowed 27 sacks, an average of 2.7 per game that is tied for 104th among 130 teams nationally. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN