The Wolverine

2021 Michigan Football Preview

The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports

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THE WOLVERINE 2021 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 111 said. "Some play faster because they know the game, read plays earlier, diagnose where to be earlier, so they're making quicker decisions. Some guys are just more physically gifted and look like they are shot out of the proverbial cannon. "I don't know why Dax Hill looks like that, but he always looks like he's at a different playing speed than anyone else. When I'm on the field and someone shoots across my field of vision — which has happened here and there over the years — it can vary. But in this cur- rent group, Dax Hill just plays at a different speed." It's up to the coaches to answer why, he added, but it's likely a com- bination of Hill's skills and his foot- ball IQ. That's how most preps end up rated as five-star athletes, after all, and Hill was ranked as one of the best of the best coming out of high school. Many of them have great leader- ship skills, too, and Hill is no ex- ception. While some look at last season as an indicator of things to come, the sophomore (eligibility wise) keeps it in perspective. "The season as a whole, with COVID and everything, I think the biggest struggle for us was just getting adjusted to the new schedule and stuff," he said. "I feel like we've over- come that new schedule and the new way of living, basically. I feel like the experience we had last year gave us more of an eye-opening perspec- tive of this year and how things are going to go. "I feel like last year was a learn- ing curve, and we've got the gist of that. Now we can focus more on the new things that have been implemented with our system. I feel like this year is going to be totally different." If it is, Hill will likely have played a huge role, and Michigan fans aren't the only ones excited to watch that possibility. Rivals.com national columnist Mike Farrell singled him out as the No. 1 Big Ten player he wants to see this year, noting he appears to be on the cusp of a remarkable season. "Hill was amazing in the spring and has become the leader of the de- fense," he said. "His five-star talents are coming together, and that speed is much needed. Hill is going to have an amazing season … I can feel it." So can his teammates and his coaches, ready to unleash their primary weapon on the rest of the Big Ten in ways they've yet to see. ❏ The Wolverines have had some great safeties over the years, but only a select few that were among the national elite. Daxton Hill should have a shot to join them this year, if his season goes as planned. Here are the Wolverines' last five All-Americans at the position: Jabrill Peppers, 2016: Though technically a viper (linebacker/ safety hybrid), Peppers did it all for the Wolverines in earning the Bo Schembechler MVP Award and finishing fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting. He was the Big Ten's Defensive Player of the Year and a unanimous first-team choice after notching a career-best 72 tackles, 16 tackles for loss, four sacks, one interception and one forced fumble. This came one year after earning second-team All- America honors from a few outlets in 2015. He went to the Cleveland Browns in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft, No. 25 overall, and currently plays with the New York Giants. Ernest Shazor, 2004: One of the Wolverines' biggest hitters in their storied history of safeties, the 6-4, 231-pounder started every game at strong safety and led the team with 84 tackles (17 solo), adding 10 tackles for loss, two interceptions and two fumble recov- eries. He became an Associated Press first-team All-American along with a nod from the Football Writers Association of America, Walter Camp Football Foundation, Sports Illustrated, ESPN, CBS Sports, College Football News and several others. He was also a finalist for the coveted Jim Thorpe Award as the nation's top defensive back. He went undrafted in 2005 but spent part of the season with the Arizona Cardinals. Tripp Welborne, 1989-90: A former receiver, Welborne made the switch to defensive back in his second year at head coach Bo Schembechler's request and became one of the dominant defensive players of his decade. He notched eight interceptions between the 1988 and 1989 seasons, and finished with 86 tackles, seven passes broken up, a fumble and an interception as a senior before blowing out his knee on a punt return in game 10 versus Minnesota. He was still named team MVP, college defensive player of the year and a unanimous first-team All-American for the second straight year. The two-time consensus All-American spent two seasons with the Minnesota Vikings as a seventh-round pick, but his knee injury shortened his career. Don Dufek, 1975: The son of a former U-M fullback and coach by the same name was a two-sport athlete (football and hockey) who could have played professionally in either sport, but he chose football. The Football Writers Association of America and the Walter Camp Foundation tabbed him an All-American, and he was a two-time All-Big Ten safety. He finished his career with 249 tackles, nine fumble recoveries and four picks, and played for the NFL's Seattle Seahawks from 1976-84. Dave Brown, 1973-74: The late Brown was one of the Wol- verines' best ever at the position, posthumously inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2007 after dying tragically of a heart attack in 2006. He was a unanimous All-American in 1974 after a career in which he notched 174 tackles, nine interceptions, 202 interception return yards, and 15 passes broken up. Michigan finished with a 30-2-1 record and tied for the Big Ten championship each year with Brown starting, leading the country in scoring defense twice. He went to Pittsburgh in the first round of the 1975 NFL Draft and played in the league until 1989. — Chris Balas Michigan's Last Five All-American Safeties Hill was a consensus five-star recruit coming out of high school, ranked as high as the No. 13 overall prospect nationally by ESPN. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL

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