The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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30 THE WOLVERINE FEBRUARY 2021 MICHIGAN FOOTBALL who will be a fifth-year senior with the program this upcoming fall. It's also worth noting Fresno (Ca- lif.) Central four-star wideout Xavier Worthy was not included in the video U-M released, despite the fact he had originally planned on enrolling early and graduated early from high school. — Austin Fox FORMER MICHIGAN STAR KWITY PAYE HAS HIGH EXPECTATIONS FOR AIDAN HUTCHINSON Defensive end Aidan Hutchinson announced this offseason that he will be returning for his senior season in Ann Arbor, after playing in just three games this past year. Hutchinson suf- fered a leg injury early in the third contest against Indiana that forced him to miss the rest of the shortened six-game campaign. Hutchinson brings back his 29 career appearances, 98 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks. His former teammate, Kwity Paye, who is currently preparing for the 2021 NFL Draft, praised Hutchin- son's abilities and forecasted that the 6-6, 269-pounder will earn big-time accolades in the near future. "Freshman year when he came in, you can ask all the linemen on our team and they would say, 'Aidan Hutchinson is a dog,'" Paye said while appearing on PFF's '2 For 1' Podcast. "… A very hard worker, ded- icated to his craft, and it was unfortu- nate when he got injured, because this season was going to be crazy. "He's going to have another op- portunity to go back, and I'm telling you right now, that's a future All- American, automatically [in the] first round. That guy's going to be a dog next year. I'm excited to see what he does." One of the things that makes Hutchinson such a special player, Paye explained, is his practice habits, specifically the way he takes every single rep and drill seriously. "Aidan's a real dog, man. Like in practice, he would hate to lose any rep," Paye said. "And if he were to lose that rep, he'd watch the film and make sure he wouldn't lose that rep again." — Clayton Sayfie FORMER INDIANA RUNNING BACK OFFERS HIGH PRAISE FOR MIKE HART Michigan's hiring of Mike Hart to coach the Wolverines' running backs has been hailed by many around col- lege football, with U-M's all-time leading rusher having produced 1,000-yard rushers in three of his four coaching stops (Syracuse in 2016 is the lone exception). The Wolverine caught up with former Indiana running back Morgan Ellison to get a better understanding of what Hart will bring to the table in Ann Ar- bor. Ellison, a Pickerington, Ohio, na- tive, led the Hoosiers with 704 yards and six touchdowns rushing in 2017. "Playing for him was great," Elli- son said. "He's like a father figure to me and a great mentor. I don't have a dad so Coach Hart isn't a typical father figure in that sense, but he is in terms of leading me. "He taught me about everything — not just about football, but also about the real game of life. We had a very good relationship, and I was close with his wife and kids too. I really en- joyed hanging out with them. It was such a family-oriented atmosphere around him, and that's what Coach [Tom] Allen built at Indiana. That was the reason Coach Hart liked it so much there, and was why he treated our running back unit the way he did. "He's just a motivator and a guy you wanted to do good things for. Coach Hart was someone you wanted to help make look good, be- cause of the way he helped all of us running backs out so much." Hailing just 22 minutes east of Co- lumbus, Ohio, Ellison admitted with a laugh he's an Ohio State fan and was a little bitter about Hart heading to Michigan. He quickly added he'll nevertheless be rooting for his former position coach in Ann Arbor though. "Coach Hart will do good any- where he goes," Ellison predicted. "You know why? Because he's a win- ner — that's what he does. I'm going to shoot him a text and say congratu- lations, but also 'Go Bucks.' "We still reach out to each other every now and then, and I'll see how his family is doing and he asks me about mine. If I have a question for him or ever need anything, he al- ways picks up the phone or hits me back up soon after." — Austin Fox Former teammate and top NFL Draft prospect Kwity Paye predicted Hutchinson would be an All-American and first-round draft pick following his senior season in Ann Arbor. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL