The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/122487
to set the tone for this team. That's what I've been doing on the field and off the field. "It has to be in the weight room and the film room. It's taking the young guys under my wing and showing them the right way to do things." Redshirt junior cornerback Courtney Avery sees that happening with Gordon. He confirms the fifth-year senior will never qualify as chirpy, but notes Gordon will speak up when the defense requires a pickme-up. "Thomas Gordon definitely leads as an example," Avery said. "He's an example-type of guy. When he sees a guy slacking off or not having a lot of energy — one of the DBs, or the defense as a whole — he's the guy who says, 'Come on, let's go,' just to raise the morale of the defense." Also, Washington pointed out, it's never all on one player to lead. The Wolverines feature veterans who can work together to get the essential preparation done. "The senior leadership on the defensive side is doing really well," Washington said. "Our young guys are really coming along well. "I wouldn't put it all on him. As a senior group, we're in the meeting room together and we're all taking charge of each position. We all work with each other." According to Gordon, the defense itself is working well. All signs in the spring scrimmage backed that notion. The defense recorded five touch sacks on quarterbacks, moved well and looked very solid in spite of the absence of redshirt junior linebacker Jake Ryan. The biggest news of the day involved Hoke saying Ryan could be ready by mid-October, after many feared the anterior cruciate ligament injury to his knee, suffered early in spring practice, would keep him out the entire season. Even without him, though, Gordon loves the look of this defense. "Definitely, this is the best defense I've been on since I've been here," Gordon said. "We're so fast and so young. It's the third year in the system, as everybody has been saying, but you can really see how fast we get to the football. I'm really excited about that." Defensive coordinator Greg Mattison has been hammering home the point about not having to use pressure packages (blitzes) to get heat on the quarterback. Michigan is making major strides toward causing havoc with just a four-man rush, Gordon noted. The fifth-year senior smiled at that thought, especially as someone performing in Michigan's last line of defense. The more U-M can disrupt quarterbacks with four pass rushers, the more individuals it can employ in guarding the back exits, he stressed. "It's night and day," Gordon said of Michigan's improved pass rush. "It's clearly night and day. We used to do a lot of zone-blitz schemes, but this spring we've been able to fourman rush, and it just allows the defensive backs to play so much better. You don't have to worry about being hung out to dry. That's been helping us."