The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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THE WOLVERINE 2017 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 99 DEFENSIVE LINE On the other side, redshirt junior Chase Win- ovich enters his second season at end with high expectations after an impressive season in which he played in all 13 games, starting two, and finished with 35 tackles (24 solo), 9.5 tackles for loss, five sacks and a forced fumble. The 6-3, 245-pounder's best days are ahead of him, Wormley said before spring ball. "That kid works his butt off," Wormley noted. "He didn't play much, but he was very productive. He had five sacks and only played mostly on third downs. It was his second year playing D-line, and he'll learn a lot more." He'll be tested more, too. His play against the run will be critical, and he's sure to be chal- lenged by teams running right at him. "He's got another year of conditioning on that body, and he got a lot of good reps last year, a lot of good playing time," Skene said. "There will be a lot more asked of him this year, but I think he's as good as [former Wolverine end and current Baltimore Ravens practice squad player] Brennen Beyer was already. I thought Winovich surpassed Beyer's performance last year, and he looks to be a nice contributor." He should benefit from the wealth of talent along the line. Double teams won't come his way, Skene said. On the flip side, expectations go up when he only has one man to beat. "He's not the guy opposing offenses are go- ing to slide protections to," Skene said. "The focus is going to be on Gary, especially if he comes out as good as expected, which allows one-on-ones for Winovich. "He's going to have to develop more of that hand violence to get off blocks, but he's got moves and will have all kinds of opportunities to get pass pressure. "It's how he fares when a lineman comes straight at him in the running game that will determine how good he'll be." Redshirt sophomore Reuben Jones is among those vying for time after moving between linebacker and end his first few years. The 6-4, 222-pounder notched two solo tackles and two assists last season. Redshirt sophomore Shelton Johnson (6-5, 212) is also hoping to take the next step. Sophomore Carlo Kemp (6-3, 255), though, is the guy to watch after an impressive spring. Defensive coordinator Don Brown was among his biggest supporters after struggling with him last year. "When we first started spring practice, I said, 'I don't even know who this guy is any- more,'" Brown said. "Last year, I would have traded him away for two used footballs." Kemp laughed when he heard it and agreed, "I would have traded me for two used foot- balls, too. It's good that maybe we're up to three this year." His spring game performance capped a very good showing. He was all over the field and registered five solo tackles, an assist and a half tackle for loss. "He looked good. He'll be a contributing factor," Skene predicted. "But the spring game is the spring game. I want to see him play against live teams. He'll be in the rotation for sure. "He's a tall, athletic guy, and you can see the physical ability is there. He's going to have to give Gary and Winovich a blow, and dare I say present some competition there. It's dangerous when you have no one pushing them to make them better, but Kemp seems to be able to do that." They've got several guys now who look the part, Skene said, and now it's time for them to produce on the field. They'll be young in many areas, but they've got some of the nation's best, most proven coaches to help bring it out of them. ❏ ROSTER No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Year Elig. Hometown (High School) 50 Michael Dwumfour DT 6-2 300 So. Fr. Wayne, N.J. (DePaul Catholic) 37 Dane Drobocky* DE 6-3 234 So. So. Bowling Green, Ky. (Bowling Green) 3 Rashan Gary DE 6-5 287 So. So. Paramus, N.J. (Paramus Catholic) — James Hudson DT 6-5 294 Fr. Fr. Toledo, Ohio (Central Catholic) 73 Maurice Hurst Jr. DT 6-2 282 5th Sr. Westwood, Mass. (Xaverian Brothers) — Deron Irving-Bey DL 6-5 271 Fr. Fr. Flint, Mich. (Southwestern Academy) 95 Donovan Jeter DT 6-3 260 Fr. Fr. Beaver Falls, Pa. (Beaver Falls) 17 Ron Johnson DL 6-4 245 So. Fr. Camden, N.J. (Camden) 7 Shelton Johnson DE 6-5 212 Jr. So. Delray Beach, Fla. (Atlantic Community) 4 Reuben Jones DE 6-4 222 Jr. So. Lakeland, Fla. (Lake Gibson) 2 Carlo Kemp DE 6-3 255 So. So. Boulder, Colo. (Fairview) 53 Salim Makki* DT 6-0 264 Sr. Sr. Dearborn, Mich. (Fordson) 33 Corey Malone-Hatcher DE 6-3 245 Fr. Fr. Saint Joseph, Mich. (Saint Joseph) 93 Lawrence Marshall DL 6-4 268 Sr. Jr. Southfield, Mich. (Southfield) 54 Carl Meyers* DT 6-3 268 So. So. Grand Rapids, Mich. (West Catholic) 55 Garrett Miller* DE 6-4 271 5th Sr. Adrian, Mich. (Sand Creek) 90 Bryan Mone DT 6-4 310 Sr. Jr. Salt Lake City (Highland) — Phillip Paea DT 6-4 280 Fr. Fr. Berrien Springs, Mich. (Berrien Springs) — Kwity Paye DE 6-4 234 Fr. Fr. Providence, R.I. (Bishop Hendricken School) — Aubrey Solomon DT 6-3 305 Fr. Fr. Leesburg, Ga. (Lee County) — Ryan Veingrad* DE 6-4 248 Fr. Fr. Boca Raton, Fla. (Spanish River) — Luiji Vilain DE 6-4 238 Fr. Fr. Ottawa, Ontario (Episcopal [Va.]) 15 Chase Winovich DE 6-3 245 Sr. Jr. Jefferson Hills, Pa. (Thomas Jefferson) * — Walk-on Redshirt junior tackle Bryan Mone recorded 12 tackles in a backup role last year, but will be called upon to contribute much more in 2017. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN