The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1265378
114 ■ THE WOLVERINE 2020 FOOTBALL PREVIEW DEFENSIVE BACKS said. "Everything you've seen of Andre Sel- don just looks like he's a dog and can battle. He's not going to be the biggest guy, but I like everything about Andre Seldon's film and everything you hear about him." Brown noted Seldon is indeed in the mix to perform as another Michigan cover man. He cautioned, though, not to forget about redshirt freshman DJ Turner, who found the field in four games as a true frosh for the Wolverines. "Andre is certainly in position to do that [play nickel]," Brown said. "DJ, if you can play corner, you can play nickel. Both of those guys have outstanding ability. I'm just very glad I'm going to get the opportunity to coach both of those guys. "We lost the spring, and I thought that was tough on DJ in particular. He had kind of an injury-plagued fall, which held him back. He's another guy, though, when you watch him run around and do things, he has come out of the freshman slump. Some guys go through that, especially when they get hurt. "I think we're going to see a guy that is ready to compete for playing time. I'm very anxious to see where he goes." Seldon, in Brown parlance, could use a cheeseburger or two at 5-8, 154 pounds. But the defensive coordinator made it clear he can play. "One of the reasons we signed him was his ability to play nickel," Brown said. "Ob- viously, we feel very strongly that he'll be able to make a run at that position. That position there is not one that requires crazy amounts of mental process. The physical challenge is the most important piece, and we think he's up to that. "I'm anxious to see him getting on the field. I'm certainly not putting any pressure on him. I'm excited about him." Besides Thomas, senior safety Brad Hawkins is Michigan's other four-year per- former in the defensive backfield. Hawkins finished sixth on the team in tackles last year, recording 53 with one pass broken up. Pro Football Focus listed him as the "flex de- fender" on its first-team All-Big Ten squad, noting he was "one of the most balanced de- fenders in the Big Ten, with grades hovering around 80.0 in run defense (80.6), tackling (83.9) and coverage (80.3)," and allowed a long catch of just 25 yards. Hawkins started Michigan's first 10 games, before an injury kept him out of — and shook up Michigan's secondary for — all but nine snaps over the final three contests. Karsch pointed out that Hawkins' fourth and final year for the Wolverines ought to be his finest. "He could be a great player," Karsch ob- served. "His high school film, as a receiver, there are very few players that I saw at the high school level that could go high point the football as well as he did. When that play happened against him at Notre Dame his sophomore year [a jump-ball touchdown pass thrown in front of him], I was surprised. "That's getting used to not being the guy who the ball is thrown to, running forward, downhill, as opposed to running backward. I think Brad Hawkins' career arc looks typi- cal. I would expect him to have his best year." There are a host of other competitors ready to provide depth and challenge for action. They include redshirt sophomores Sammy Faustin, Gemon and German Green; redshirt freshman Jalen Perry; and incoming freshmen Jordan Morant, Makari Paige, Dar- "They've got to play better in big games. There's just no doubt about it. Find a way to make some plays back there. Don't let people get over the top." MICHIGAN RADIO SIDELINE REPORTER DOUG KARSCH ON U-M'S DEFENSIVE BACKS Despite being listed at just 5-8, 154 pounds when he signed, Andre Seldon could make an immediate impact as a nickel cornerback dur- ing his true freshman season. PHOTO BY EJ HOLLAND ROSTER No. Name Ht. Wt. Year Elig. Hometown (High School) 41 John Baty* 5-11 170 5th Sr. Honolulu (Hilton Head Island) 30 Tyler Cochran* 6-1 206 5th Sr. Royal Oak, Mich. (Orchard Lake St. Mary's) 23 Jared Davis* 5-11 202 Sr. Jr. Frankenmuth, Mich. (Frankenmuth) — Eamonn Dennis 5-10 173 Fr. Fr. Worcester, Mass. (St. John's) 17 Sammy Faustin 6-2 195 Jr. So. Naples, Fla. (Naples) 31 Vincent Gray 6-2 185 Jr. So. Rochester, Mich. (Adams) 22 Gemon Green 6-2 180 Jr. So. DeSoto, Texas (DeSoto) 13 German Green 6-2 180 Jr. So. DeSoto, Texas (DeSoto) — Darion Green-Warren 6-0 183 Fr. Fr. Torrance, Calif. (Narbonne) 49 Keshaun Harris 5-11 176 So. Fr. Lansing, Mich. (Waverly) 20 Brad Hawkins 6-1 218 Sr. Sr. Camden, N.J. (Suffield Academy [Conn.]) 30 Daxton Hill 6-0 190 So. So. Tulsa, Okla. (Booker T. Washington) 22 George Johnson 6-0 193 So. Fr. Stuart, Fla. (Martin County) 23 Quinten Johnson 5-10 198 So. Fr. Washington, D.C. (St. John's College) 40 Caden Kolesar* 5-10 196 So. Fr. Westlake, Ohio (St. Edward) — Jordan Morant 5-11 212 Fr. Fr. Parsippany, N.J. (Bergen Catholic) — R.J. Moten 6-0 200 Fr. Fr. Delran, N.J. (Delran) — Makari Paige 6-3 192 Fr. Fr. West Bloomfield, Mich. (West Bloomfield) 3 Jalen Perry 6-0 190 So. Fr. Dacula, Ga. (Dacula) 27 Hunter Reynolds^ 6-0 198 Sr. Jr. South Orange, N.J. (Choate Rosemary Hall) 43 Andrew Russell* 6-2 190 So. Fr. Victor, N.Y. (Victor) 0 Andre Seldon 5-8 154 Fr. Fr. Belleville, Mich. (Belleville) 1 Ambry Thomas 6-0 182 Sr. Sr. Detroit (Martin Luther King) 5 DJ Turner 6-0 180 So. Fr. Suwanee, Ga. (IMG Academy [Fla.]) * Walk-on; ^ former walk-on