The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1169070
OCTOBER 2019 THE WOLVERINE 21 to lead this team in the right way and help us be at the top at the end of the season." Getting to the top isn't easy. Hud- son learned that the hard way over the past three seasons. He knows leadership will count, when the tough moments arrive. "Just keep firing off all cylinders," he said. "Keep our heads down. Keep fighting. Adversity is going to hit at some point. Our reaction is go- ing to be the most important thing at that time. "Are we going to bend and break? Or are we going to stand up and stand tall and keep pushing? We're going to keep building, brick by brick, every day. We're not going to look two games later, or three games later. We're going to look at that next opponent, and we're going to be locked in on what we've got to do. "If we do that every week, we're going to be where we want to be at the end of the season." Linebackers coach Anthony Cam- panile expects neither bend nor break out of Hudson. "I don't know if I've ever been around somebody that practices that hard all the time," he said. "That's probably the best compliment I could ever give somebody as a coach. "I've coached some guys who have practiced like maniacs, who were awesome to coach. But you can turn on the tape, and that guy's running. There's no off switch. There's a motor that never stops. That's been really, really impressive to me. "That sense of urgency, yes, it's palpable. It's visible, when you turn the tape on. You can hear it in prac- tice. He's flying around, and there's impact. He's challenging people. He's doing a great job for us." THE ALTERNATES The role of the two alternate captains on the field cannot be overstated. Pat- terson has the football in his hands on every play, a new offense to run and a host of weapons at his disposal. He'll get an opportunity to guide the Wolverines to a potential breakthrough year under Harbaugh, if everything falls right. And Patterson has a lot to say about how everything falls. Metellus runs the show from the defensive backfield, in terms of mak- ing checks and various adjustments. He's not only a strong performer on the field — tying for the team lead with three interceptions a year ago — he also serves as an outspoken, fiery leader. In a secondary featuring a pair of new starters, Metellus can be expected to step it up even more. What they'll do as alternate captains hasn't been clearly defined, at least publicly. Patterson knows this — he and Metellus intend to continue lead- ing, regardless of the title. "An alternate captain? I'm not too sure," Patterson mused, regarding any duties involved. "But me and Josh are the alternate captains on this team. At the end of the day, I know the defense is going to follow him, and the offense is going to follow me and Ben. "I have the ball in my hands ev- ery single snap. It's my job to own the operation and control the offense. I'm going to do that to the best of my abilities." All five will get the chance to im- pact the 2019 team, both on and off the field. All of them have known the dis- appointment of near misses. All know the next steps they'd like to take. "We have a lot of guys back from that team last year," Kemp said. "You've been playing with a lot of these guys for four years. They're your brothers for life. "Now you look and you've got this one chance, you've got this shot. That's when you've got the perfect combina- tion of a team, when everybody on the same side has bought in and is believ- ing in the mission." ❏ Senior viper Khaleke Hudson "is as blue-collar as it gets — hard-working, violent, an old-school, throwback football player," according to assistant coach Chris Partridge. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL