The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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side outside linebacker next season. Backup: Sophomore James Ross III Cornerback: Redshirt sophomore Blake Countess 5-10, 181 pounds Countess was a breakout star in 2011, starting the last six games of the year and posting 44 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, six passes broken up and a forced fumble. Unfortunately, Countess tore his ACL against Alabama in the first game of 2012. He has spent the last seven months rehabbing and he will be back in the fold for spring practice. Backup: Senior Courtney Avery Safety Thomas Gordon ranked tied for third in tackles on U-M last season (81) and he added two picks and a forced fumble. photo by per kjeldsen Cornerback: Junior Raymon Taylor 5-10, 186 pounds After Countess went down with his injury, Taylor stepped right in and did a fine job, setting a career high in tackles (seven) in that Alabama game in which Countess was hurt. Taylor posted 45 tackles, two interceptions, including one he returned for a touchdown against Purdue, a pass broken up and a fumble recovery as a sophomore. Backup: Sophomore Terry Richardson Strong Safety: Fifth-year senior Thomas Gordon 5-11, 208 pounds Gordon was tied for third on the team in tackles (81) last season. He also posted four tackles for loss, a sack, two interceptions, two passes broken up and a forced fumble. He has started 23 games at free safety over the last two seasons, but he also has experience closer to the line of scrimmage, starting four games as an outside linebacker in 2010. A move to strong safety will complement his skill set. Backup: Junior Marvin Robinson Free Safety: Sophomore Jarrod Wilson 6-2, 196 pounds Wilson helped add depth to the safety position last year, playing in 10 games and compiling eight tackles and a fumble recovery. That experience will help him transition into a starting role. Although the loss of strong safety Jordan Kovacs will be big, the combination of Gordon and Wilson has a lot of potential. Backup: Redshirt junior Josh Furman