The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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[ D E F E N S I V E L I N E ] 98 ■ THE WOLVERINE 2021 FOOTBALL PREVIEW "Hinton needs to come out of his shell and have an explosive year. I see a guy there who has all the physical tools in the world," Skene said. "He could even be the starting nose tackle in this defense, but like Smith it's about consistency. "You have to cause problems on every play for an opposing guard and center. It's a re- quirement." That also requires incredibly good strength and conditioning and a stamina to stay out on the field late into football games and continue to cause problems for interior offensive line- men, he said. "That's their job, and it's absolutely criti- cal for this defense to be successful," Skene reiterated. While Hinton is taller and skinnier than a lot of dominant defensive linemen, he's got one trait in particular he can use to his advantage. "Hinton's got longer arms, but more im- portantly he's got a butt like a bulldozer and a huge lower body," Skene said. "Now he needs to improve his technique, stop playing high at times. That could be about strength and conditioning. That becomes one of the first things to happen if you get a guy who is not strong in his core and lower body … you start to stand up because you just can't do it. You can't stay in a squatted football position for an entire game. "As soon as you start to stand up, good offensive linemen will eat you alive. We saw some of that some last year with Hinton. That's got to be eliminated. But skeleton wise, just his width and lower body mass, he reminds me of some of the better nose tackles." The Wolverines will need another five- technique on the field, too, and redshirt ju- nior Donovan Jeter has the inside track here with plenty of game experience. Now 6-3, 318 pounds, Jeter has received offseason praise a few years now, but he hasn't yet met the hype. Part of the problem, Skene noted, is Jeter's tendency to play too high. That's allowed of- fensive linemen to get underneath his shoul- der pads and move him backward too easily, too often, something that needs to change if he's going to be part of U-M's solution up front. "I don't know where he fits into an odd- man defensive line," Skene said. "He's un- dersized to play the nose, and probably for the five-technique because of his body structure." He also worries about 6-4, 256-pound end Taylor Upshaw and his fit. "These guys were recruited to play in a four-man front, and now they'll be asked to be play odd man," Skene noted. "I'm sure [Macdonald] is not going to force square pegs into round holes that way. It would not go well. That's why they say they're multiple. We'll see some four-man stuff and variations, for sure. "With Jeter, his strength last year he showed, when he made all of his plays, was when he could jump a gap, get into some- body's edge and cause a problem in the back- field. If an offensive lineman got squared up on him and got his hands on him, he was too easily blocked." The same could be said for Upshaw, who struggled when thrown into action replacing an injured Aidan Hutchinson against Wiscon- sin. He wasn't alone, of course. The entire Michigan line struggled that day, and the concern this year is whether or not they'll have enough beef to change the narrative in that series. Skene had a front-row seat last year to watch the Badgers handle U-M up front, not- ing that's where change needs to start. "Upshaw was on roller skates way too of- ten," he said. "I remember vividly in that game, he was being blocked way too often. For him to play five-technique in an odd front, he's going to have to find a way to get stronger. "If you look at defenses that run the odd front, Wisconsin is the one that comes to mind the most. Your five-technique tackles are like 6-4, 6-5, 280 pounds." Which is why Upshaw will likely be back- ing up Hutchinson in a hybrid end/outside linebacker position in which they'll be used like former All-American J.J. Watt was at Wisconsin — to secure the edge, rush the passer and even have some responsibilities in the flats in the passing game. The breakdowns against the Badgers last year came when the defensive ends were being blocked with ease, Skene noted, with Wisconsin's big guards and tackles also scoop blocking the tackles and front side lineback- ers too easily. "At the point of attack, the defensive line was getting knocked into the shoes of the linebackers, and [the Badgers] were crack- ing six, seven, eight yards per play without a problem," he noted. "If an offensive lineman is going to combo block a defensive tackle to the front-side linebacker, that defensive tackle has to make it darn hard for anyone to get to the second level. "You have to protect those linebackers." And you have to have someone to secure the edge. Hutchinson should fit that bill. Now 6-6, 269 pounds, "Hutch" will be the leader of the front seven and is one of the most im- portant pieces on the team. "It's a little different for him just because it's a different scheme [under Macdonald]," Nua said. "There are different things you ask them to look for … what their vision allows Donovan Jeter saw action in all six 2020 contests and made four starts with 11 tackles. PHOTO COURTESY U-M ATHLETICS