The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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gevity, productivity and starting 37 of 49 games are some of the main reasons he cracks this list. The two-time All-Big Ten standout and Michigan native finished his career with 172 tackles, 25 stops for loss and 10 sacks. He was a third-round pick by the Tennessee Titans and played five years in the NFL. Honorable mention: Frank Clark (2011-14), Chris Wormley (2012-16), Ryan Glasgow (2012-16) and Rashan Gary (2016-18) SAFETIES JORDAN KOVACS (2008-12) AND DELANO HILL (2013-16) Kovacs came to Michigan as a walk-on before being put on scholarship in 2010, and wrapped up his Wolverine ca- reer by being voted a captain in 2012 and taking home the team MVP award. Kovacs led the team in tackles in 2010 and finished second in both 2009 and 2011, and concluded his collegiate tenure with a whopping 334 stops (12th all time), 26 tackles for loss, six forced fumbles (tied for fourth) and five interceptions. The Curtice, Ohio, native grabbed second-team All-Big Ten honors from the coaches in 2012, and finished with one of the most productive ca- reers of any walk-on in school history. Hill started 26 of his 46 career appearances. Making an impact both in the box and in coverage makes him one of the Wolverines' best of the decade on the back end, contrib- uting 119 tackles, seven tackles for loss, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, three interceptions and eight passes broken up during his career. He was tabbed as second-team All-Big Ten by the coaches during his senior season in which the Michigan defense finished second nationally in total defense. Honorable mention: Jarrod Wilson (2012-15) and Josh Metellus (2016-19) KICKER BRENDAN GIBBONS (2009-13) Gibbons connected on 45 of 60 field goal attempts in his career (75.0 percent, tied for eighth all time), but earned the kicking honor on this list thanks to the four clutch game- winners he hit as a Wolverine — the 38-yarder to give U-M a 12-10 win over Michigan State in 2012, the 37-yarder he nailed to seal Michigan's 23-20 overtime triumph over Vir- ginia Tech in the 2012 Sugar Bowl, the decider in the 2013 win at Connecticut and a 44-yard blast to send the eventual Northwestern victory in 2013 into overtime. He is fourth in school history for made field goals, tied for sixth in 40-plus-yard makes (10) and boasts the longest field goal streak in program history (16 from 2012-13). Honorable mention: Kenny Allen (2012-16) PUNTER WILL HART (2016-20) Hart has averaged 44.5 yards per punt on 107 career attempts heading into his fifth-year senior season, includ- ing an impressive 2018 campaign that saw him average a school-record 47 yards per boot and be named the league's best at his position. Hart also own school records for highest punt average in a game (59.3) and career (45.5). Honorable mention: Will Hagerup (2010-14) CORNERBACKS JOURDAN LEWIS (2013-16) AND DAVID LONG (2016-18) Lewis concluded his U-M career with a school-record 45 passes broken up, landed on the Associated Press All-American squad in both 2015 and 2016, and was named a Jim Thorpe Award finalist in the latter. Long, meanwhile, didn't accumulate the national awards Lewis did (though he was a first-team All-Big Ten selection by the coaches in 2018), but Pro Football Focus revealed the former allowed just 18 re- ceptions on the 595 snaps he played in coverage during his three years at Michigan. Honorable mention: Lavert Hill (2016-19) and Channing Stribling (2013-16) Jourdain Lewis PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL THE WOLVERINE 2020 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 39