The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1083898
12 THE WOLVERINE MARCH 2019 INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS TY LAW IS INDUCTED INTO THE PRO FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME On Feb. 2, the Pro Football Hall of Fame inducted eight new members to its hallowed residency, and former Michigan and longtime NFL cornerback (1995-2009) Ty Law was one of them. Law played at U-M from 1992-94 and earned first- team All-America honors from the Walter Camp Football Foundation as a junior in 1994, and was a two-time unanimous All-Big Ten selection. He fin- ished his three-year tenure in the winged helmet with 161 tackles, eight interceptions and 19 passes broken up. U-M went 25-8-3, and won the 1992 Big Ten championship and all three bowl games (Rose, Hall of Fame and Holiday) during Law's career. The Aliquippa, Pa., native was next selected by the New England Patriots 23rd overall in the 1995 NFL Draft, and enjoyed a successful tenure with them un- til 2004. Once his days in New England ended, Law spent time with the New York Jets (2005, 2008), Kan- sas City Chiefs (2006-07) and Denver Broncos (2009). When his pro career finally came to a close, the cornerback was a three-time Super Bowl champion, five-time Pro Bowl choice (1998, 2001-03, 2005), a two-time first-team All-Pro (1998, 2003), a two-time NFL interceptions leader (1998, 2005), and a selec- tion to both the NFL 2000s All-Decade Team and the New England Patriots Hall of Fame. Law's final professional statistics saw him compile 838 tack- les, 169 passes broken up, 53 interceptions, five sacks and seven touchdowns during his 15 standout seasons. The induction ceremony will be held Aug. 3 in Canton, Ohio. SIX WOLVERINES EARN INVITATIONS TO THE NFL COMBINE The NFL revealed its list of the 338 collegiate players who received invitations to this year's NFL Combine (Feb. 26 to March 4 in Indianapolis), and six Wolverines made the cut: linebacker Devin Bush Jr., defensive ends Rashan Gary and Chase Winovich, tight end Zach Gentry, running back Karan Higdon and cornerback David Long. The Maize and Blue's six invitees tied for 17th nationally and marked the fourth-highest total in the Big Ten, trailing Ohio State's 10, Wisconsin's eight and Penn State's seven. All six of the aforementioned players had outstanding 2018 campaigns in the winged helmet, with several of them achieving noteworthy accomplishments. Higdon's 2018 season was perhaps the most significant of the bunch, with his 1,178 rushing yards making him the first Wolverine running back to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark since Fitzgerald Toussaint in 2011. Bush, meanwhile, led the club in tackles (80) for a second straight year, and earned the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year award and consensus All-America honors at season's end. Winovich paced the squad in tackles for loss (17) and was named a third-team All-American by the Associated Press. On the flip side, a few notable graduating Wolverines hop- ing for an NFL future did not receive combine invitations, including wideout Grant Perry, right tackle Juwann Bushell- Beatty, defensive tackles Bryan Mone and Lawrence Mar- shall, cornerback Brandon Watson and safety Tyree Kinnel. FIVE U-M FOOTBALL PLAYERS TAKE PART IN POSTSEASON ALL-STAR GAMES Right tackle Juwann Bushell-Beatty and safety Tyree Kin- nel kicked off U-M in postseason all-star games when they participated in the East-West Shrine Game Jan. 19 in St. Petersburg, Fla., while cornerback Brandon Watson and defensive tackle Lawrence Marshall kept the action going by competing in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl just hours later in Pasadena, Calif. Running back Karan Higdon, meanwhile, wrapped up the all-star action when he played in the Senior Bowl Jan. 26 in Mobile, Ala., carrying five times for 18 yards. It should also be noted that his five totes were the third most on the victorious North squad, while he also received another carry (that gained no positive yardage) on a two-point conversion attempt in the fourth quarter. Chase Winovich was also se- lected for the game but could not participate due to injury. Kinnel made the next biggest impact of the former Wol- verines, playing 42 snaps for his West club and returning a fumble 33 yards in the second quarter to the opponent's 2-yard line, setting up a touchdown run for his squad. Kinnel wasn't the only former U-M player to recover a fumble in all-star action, though, with Marshall also grab- bing one for the American team in their 10-7 victory over the National squad. As for the other two former U-M athletes, Bushell-Beatty started at left guard but only saw 20 snaps in the East-West Shrine Game, while Watson played the most snaps of any American defender (55 snaps) in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl. — Austin Fox MAIZE AND BLUE NOTEBOOK Law is the ninth with ties to U-M to be elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the first since longtime Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson Jr. — a Michigan Law School student before leaving to serve in World War II — in 2009. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN