The Wolverine

December 2019

The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports

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30 THE WOLVERINE DECEMBER 2019 M ichigan's defense lost plenty of talent to the NFL last year, but coordinator Don Brown has overcome some bumps to bring his group back into the top 10 of national rankings. As of Nov. 10, the Wolverines ranked seventh in the land in yards allowed per game (266.2) and fifth in yards al- lowed per play (4.08). Replacing a pair of NFL defensive ends in New England's Chase Win- ovich and Green Bay's Rashan Gary, a defensive tackle in Bryan Mone (Se- attle), a pair of cornerbacks in Brandon Watson (Jacksonville) and David Long (Los Angeles), plus a linebacker who is a leading candidate for Defensive Rookie of the Year honors in Devin Bush Jr. (Pittsburgh) took some time, but the defense has made huge strides since getting gashed for 35 points and 359 rushing yards at Wisconsin. "Sometimes your worst days help you get things straight, and we couldn't have been much worse against Wisconsin," Brown told 97.1 The Ticket in Detroit prior to the Mary- land game. "There were reasons for that, and I've talked about it a little bit, but we've been really laser-focused when it comes to the run game. "Somebody gave me a crazy stat … we're something like 160 runs for 260 total yards [allowed] … one-point- whatever since the Wisconsin game." Even after the Wolverines gave up 129 rushing yards to the Terrapins — and it should be noted that came on 46 carries, for a clip of just 2.8 yards per try — Brown's unit had still given up just 388 rushing yards on 208 car- ries, for an average of 1.87 yards an attempt, in the six contests since Wis- consin. The defense got its swagger back and have shut down some solid run- ning teams, including Iowa and Notre Dame, during that stretch. "Guys have really paid attention to the run game; they've really paid at- tention to the fits," Brown said. "I think the ability to run to the ball just got completely magnified [against Notre Dame] because their whole run game was edge, was to get on the perim- eter — and it's pretty frustrating when your two linebackers are as fast as those tailbacks. "We played really well. I just had a good feeling with this group. We've done a good job during the practice week of focusing on the things that are important and executing at a high level. We've had two, I think, really special defensive performances this year: Iowa and obviously Notre Dame. "I'm really happy with how the guys prepared. Obviously, nothing got in their way. Their focus was laser per- fect." Linebacker play has been a big rea- son for the improvement. Redshirt freshman Cam McGrone notched 12 tackles to lead the way in the blowout win over the Irish and earn Defensive Player of the Week honors from U-M. "He showed traits early. Now, I'll be honest — he wasn't using his hands great and all those things that you need to do as a Big Ten linebacker. But he's always had that ability to run," Brown said. "Now, he's using his hands, he's being physical and he's getting to the point of the attack." Fifth-year senior Jordan Glasgow, too, has surprised. After nine games, the linebacker ranked second on the team with 63 stops, and he was tied for third with four sacks. "We took him from hybrid and moved him to Will linebacker, and it's tough to get him out of there now be- cause he can run," Brown said. "He's got safety-type ability. We've trans- formed him. [Strength coach] Ben Herbert got him to 225 [pounds]. He's strong, fast, and nobody works harder. He really chases the ball well sideline to sideline. "He made a play on fourth down where they motioned the tailback out of the backfield to one side. Well, he tracked him. Then they brought him across the three receivers on the other side. He tracked them there and he bat- ted it down like nothing, like a safety would. That's why we moved him there. Boy, I'll tell you, I'm really happy with way that young man has played." Overall, Brown said he was most pleased with the team speed at every position on defense, along with their attitudes. "It's an unbelievable group to work with, a group football is important to. They have a chance to be good," he said. "There are a lot of good things in front of us." — Chris Balas JIM HARBAUGH SHOOTS DOWN MORE NFL RUMORS Once again, FootballScoop has thrown out a Jim Harbaugh to the NFL rumor. Once again, Harbaugh has shot it down. The same website that repeatedly insisted Harbaugh was not a candi- date to come to U-M from the NFL and that reported Duke head coach David Cutcliffe "turned Michigan down" (he   MICHIGAN FOOTBALL Michigan Defense Back In The Top 10 Nationally 2019 MICHIGAN SCHEDULE Date Opponent Time (ET)/TV Aug. 31 Middle Tennessee State W, 40-21 Sept. 7 Army W, 24-21 (2OT) Sept. 21 at Wisconsin L, 35-14 Sept. 28 Rutgers W, 52-0 Oct. 5 Iowa W, 10-3 Oct. 12 at Illinois W, 42-25 Oct. 19 at Penn State L, 28-21 Oct. 26 Notre Dame W, 45-14 Nov. 2 at Maryland W, 38-7 Nov. 16 Michigan State 12:00/FOX Nov. 23 at Indiana 3:30/ABC or ESPN Nov. 30 Ohio State 12:00/FOX After giving up 359 rushing yards against Wisconsin, defensive coordinator Don Brown's unit allowed just 388 rushing yards and 1.87 yards per attempt over the next six games. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL

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