The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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24 THE WOLVERINE SEPTEMBER 2018 BY JOHN BORTON T here's no question, it's still The Team, The Team, The Team, if a football aggrega- tion wants to get anywhere in the Big Ten. At the same time, ev- ery squad features essential compo- nents. That's what The Wolverine's annual Top 25 list is all about. Our staff votes individually on the best players in any given season, those Michigan could least afford to lose. Those lists are then combined and rank-ordered. There's plenty of room to move up or down during the course of a campaign, a fact attested to by our annual postseason Top 25. Heading into the 2018 battle, though, here's where they stood: 1. RASHAN GARY, JR., DE Head coach Jim Harbaugh referred to Gary as Michigan's best player more than once in the offseason, and it's not difficult to understand why. Combine his fierce leadership and his production — 66 tackles, includ- ing six sacks among a dozen tackles for loss in 2017 — and it makes for a powerful combination. The first- team (coaches) All-Big Ten performer should be one of the nation's best. "Rashan Gary is an awesome, awe- some young man," Harbaugh noted, talking about elements that extend beyond the football field. "You're talking about a guy who had a 3.8 grade-point average coming out of high school, and he's an Academic All-Big Ten player. He's the hardest worker on our team." Mike Wroblewski, a linebacker for the Wolverines the past several seasons, saw Gary's work up close. He also noticed Gary can provide an instant upgrade in the practice per- formances of many, which affects the team overall. "With Rashan, it's his intensity about practice," Wroblewski said. "These are day-in, day-out things. If something isn't going fast enough, or the intensity is kind of lacking, he'll be one of the first guys to pick it up and get after it." Gary's mother, Jennifer Shepherd, appreciates the kind words of others about her son. She amplifies them, especially when it comes to intan- gibles regarding his teammates. He's always stood out as a freak- ishly talented athlete, she acknowl- edged. He's learned to go beyond those skills in earning the praise of Harbaugh and others. "I think he means all-around," Shepherd noted regarding Har- baugh's assessment. "Not the fast- est or the strongest, but encourag- ing, motivating, supporting, coming in early, staying late. If somebody doesn't have a play, he'll sit there and work with them until they get it. "Just being an encourager, a mo- tivator, a leader, listening, taking correction, being coachable, but also giving what he's learned back to his teammates." 2. DEVIN BUSH JR., JR., LB Michigan's leading tackler from 2017 (102) secured five sacks and 9.5 tackles for loss a year ago, as well as breaking up eight passes. The first- team All-Big Ten 'backer (coaches) is one of the fastest players in the na- tion at his position, and will provide the Wolverines with superior pursuit and the ability for a quick-strike blitz any time defensive coordinator Don Brown chooses. 3. CHASE WINOVICH, 5TH-SR., DE Winovich provides the other book- end in what's expected to be one of the most dominant defensive end combos in the country. He finished MICHIGAN'S TOP 25 The Most Indispensable Wolverines Ready For Battle