The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1194003
JANUARY 2020 THE WOLVERINE 21 • Three Most Improved Player awards — redshirt freshman tail- back Hassan Haskins (561 yards, four touchdowns rushing) on offense, ju- nior safety Brad Hawkins (53 tackles) on defense and senior fullback/tight end Peter Bush on special teams. • Three Scout Team Player of the Year awards — Freshman offensive lineman Zach Carpenter on offense, freshman defensive lineman David Ojabo on defense and junior de- fensive back Jared Davis on special teams. • The inaugural President Gerald R. Ford Lifetime Impact Award went to Tom Maentz, who played at Michi- gan from 1954-56. An All-American who played on both sides of the ball and also punted, Maentz teamed with All-American Ron Kramer to form a pass-catching tandem dubbed the "Touchdown Twins," which landed on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Maentz went on to a highly suc- cessful business career, culminating in the Thomas S. Maentz (TSM) Cor- poration in Birmingham, Mich., with more than 180 employees. ❑ Michigan players agreed they're ready to take on Alabama in the Citrus Bowl. Junior defensive end Kwity Paye took it a step farther. "Once we got 'Bama, we're like, all right, it's a great oppor- tunity to play this game, for us to re-write the season, make sure we end on a strong note and get that 10th win," Paye said, following the Michigan Football Awards Show Dec. 15 at Crisler Center. Neither program figured to be in Orlando, Fla., at bowl time. Perennial playoff squad Alabama lost its quarterback and a couple of games along the way. Michigan dropped three Big Ten contests, derailing its hopes for a conference championship. The matchup with the Crimson Tide is huge on many levels, Paye assured. "This would be a way for us to end the season strong," Paye said. "Last year, we didn't end the season strong. This last game will be huge for us." Not to mention the fact that given the many future NFL performers among the ranks of the Crimson Tide — includ- ing some powerful offensive tackles and a sterling crew of wideouts — Michigan players can bump up their own cred- ibility for possible future employment. "After practice today, Coach [Ben] Herbert was talking about this is a money game," Paye noted. "There are a lot of first-round guys on that team. [Senior cornerback] Lavert Hill has the opportunity to play against first-round talent. Our D-line has a chance to play against first-round talent on their O-line. "It's huge for us, just getting the opportunity to play against that talent and show NFL scouts what we can do." Paye noted that while he's checking out his NFL prospects, he expects to return to Michigan for his senior season. He also assures he's going to be playing in the Citrus Bowl and expects few to no defections from the Wolverines heading into that game. "I don't think anybody is going to sit out," he said. "I feel like we should end the season strong. A lot of our seniors didn't end the season strong. This is another way to do that. "I don't think we had a team conversation, but a bunch of us talking in the locker room … we just expect to play in the game. There's nobody sitting out from practice." Paye spoke briefly about the loss to Ohio State that ended the regular season, mentioning the fact that Michigan wasn't at full strength in the middle of its defense. Senior captain and defensive tackle Carlo Kemp, Paye mentioned, really had to tough out the game, which wound up as a 56-27 loss. "A lot of it goes to playing with injuries that game," Paye noted. "Not making an excuse or anything like that, but Carlo, he's a dog. He's a warrior. He could barely walk. He was in boots. His feet are destroyed. "He was playing in that game, giving us everything that he had. He was just playing injured, and that was our captain. He wasn't able to play his best game that game for us because of the injuries." Paye indicated Kemp is rehabbing rigorously for the bowl and figures to compete like the rest of the Wolverines. "At the beginning of the season, if you would have told us we'd be playing 'Bama in the Citrus Bowl, a lot of us wouldn't have believed you," Paye said. "For us to get this opportunity is huge. We're all striving for that 10th win." — John Borton Senior guard Ben Bredeson (left) and fifth-year senior tackle Jon Runyan Jr. (right) were both named unanimous first-team All-Big Ten choices and shared the Hugh Rader Memorial Award as the team's best offensive linemen. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL Wolverines Ready To 'Rewrite' Season In Bowl