The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1094509
APRIL 2019 THE WOLVERINE 43 2019 SPRING FOOTBALL PREVIEW. LINEBACKERS BY THE NUMBERS 3 Former walk-on Glasgow brothers who turned into significant Michigan con- tributors, with fifth-year senior backup viper Jor- dan Glasgow readying for his final season. He made 28 stops with two sacks and a forced fumble last year. 17.5 Tackles for loss in 2017 for Khaleke Hudson, com- pared to 3.5 last fall. The total from two years ago ranked 12th in U-M an- nals since the stat began being tracked in 1978. 22 Less tackles Devin Bush totaled in 2018 from the year prior, in part because of the injury at OSU and missing the bowl game. 166 The combined number of tackles returning from Michigan's primary line- backers in 2018 — Hud- son, Glasgow, Devin Gil and Josh Ross. POSITION BATTLE TO WATCH The battle here involves the inside linebacker spots, and how they're filled. Ross gets first crack in the middle, but McGrone's push toward the end of bowl workouts has him in position to make a move. Redshirt sophomore Jordan Anthony, a former Rivals five- star recruit, could also be ready to assert himself. No jobs are completely safe, so the competition should re- main high in the spring. WHO'S GONE INSIDE LINEBACKER (ILB) DEVIN BUSH Bush became an absolutely integral part of Michi- gan's defense over the past two years. He wound up with 194 career tackles, 182 of them as a sophomore and junior when he led the team in stops. He ac- counted for 20 tackles for loss and 10.5 sacks, and took Michigan State's attempts to intimidate head on. WHO'S BACK JUNIOR ILB JOSH ROSS Ross wasn't technically a starter in 2018, rotating in at weakside linebacker. But the second-year Wolver- ine wound up the most productive 'backer behind Bush, securing 61 tackles, five tackles for loss, one sack and three quarterback hurries. He doesn't have Bush's speed (who does?), but could bring power to the middle linebacker spot, where he started in Bush's place during the bowl. REDSHIRT JUNIOR ILB DEVIN GIL Gil started all 13 games on the weakside, produc- ing 33 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks and a fumble recovery. He'll look to take the next step, coming back with experience, including some hard knocks for the defense at season's end. SENIOR VIPER KHALEKE HUDSON Hudson experienced an odd junior year, follow- ing a record-setting sophomore campaign. He got tossed from two games for targeting, and saw his numbers decline significantly. Hudson still finished with 44 tackles, 3.5 stops behind the line of scrim- mage, two sacks and three quarterback hurries. Still, he'll be looking to regain the sophomore form that saw him top Jabrill Peppers' numbers in his final year. TOP NEWCOMER REDSHIRT FRESHMAN ILB CAMERON MCGRONE McGrone learned behind the scenes last year, wait- ing his turn. The former consensus top-206 recruit nationally could potentially force his turn this spring, depending upon how well he steps up and per- forms. He was on the move in bowl practices, and that could continue. BY JOHN BORTON "It's going to be a challenge, because Devin Bush did so much. You might not get all he did from one guy. But we've got all the components we need from the guys that are there." — Former U-M All-American Jon Jansen QUOTABLE M ichigan lost only one of its three starting linebackers from last season, but the hole is an All-American-sized one. Devin Bush provided one of Michigan's fastest — if not the fastest — linebackers ever. The two-time All-American, a consensus first-teamer in 2018, covered up plenty of potential big plays on defense simply by running down a ball carrier like a cheetah in full attack mode. He suffered an injury during the Ohio State game, sat out the bowl and left for the NFL after his junior year. That's a loss Michigan will feel. Whether it's a serious wound for 2019 depends on who steps up and how the defense plays together. Defensive coordinator Don Brown rarely concedes steps back, but the group must take this one forward. KHALEKE HUDSON PHOTO BY BRANDON BROWN