The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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12 THE WOLVERINE SEPTEMBER 2021 INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS Our chemistry, since the day we stepped in that locker room, has been the best. We all love each other. We all love being around each other. We hang out, with or without the coaches. We all make sure we're talking on the phone. We play games together; we do every- thing together. It's like a brotherhood here, for real." — Michigan freshman point guard Frankie Collins on the Defend The Block podcast with Brian Boesch BY THE NUMBERS 3 Michigan football commitments rank inside the updated August Rivals250 rankings (top 250 players in the class of 2022). Grosse Pointe (Mich.) South five-star cornerback WILL JOHNSON checks in at No. 16 nation- ally, while LaGrange Park (Ill.) Nazareth Academy four-star wide receiver Tyler Morris slots in at No. 142 and Tampa (Fla.) Gaither four-star defensive end Mario Eu- genio ranks No. 210. Is where former Michigan guard CARIS LEVERT showed up on The Athletic college basketball analyst Seth Davis' ranking of NBA players that wound up being better than he thought they were going to be coming out of college. "When the Pacers selected him [at No. 20 overall in 2016], here's what I tweeted: 'I like the LeVert pick. He's worth the risk at this stage of the draft,'" Davis wrote. "Note the two caveats: 'risk' and 'at this stage.' The first was a reference to the leg injury that prematurely ended LeVert's senior season at Michigan. A month after the draft, the Pacers traded LeVert to the Nets. "He quickly blossomed into a big-time NBA scorer, and last season the Nets traded him back to Indiana in the four-team deal that netted them James Harden. LeVert had some health issues last season, but hopefully he will recover and con- tinue surprising the world." For me, I think it's progressing well, albeit slowly. We're educating our student-athletes now as they get back. We did some over the summer, but it was July and hard for our kids to always connect with everything that they have going on. We are in talks with several companies about coming in as a partner to help manage it. Right now, we will keep talking to our student-athletes and keep trying to make sure that we are supportive. But again, there's a balance between supporting them and also making sure that we protect everything about Michigan in our logos." — Michigan director of athletics Warde Manuel while appearing on Jon Jansen's Conqu'ring Heroes podcast, discussing U-M's approach to Name, Image and Likeness He has what I lack in terms of experience as a player. I wasn't a first-round draft pick. I didn't play 14 years in the NFL. He can lend that perspective and help me with that. He has great perspective about quarterback play, and just wants to win. He's a problem solver, somebody who wants to figure out a solution to do something or make something better." — Michigan quarterbacks coach Matt Weiss in an interview with ESPN.com, talking about head coach Jim Harbaugh 9 PHOTO BY BRANDON BROWN PHOTO COURTESY INDIANA PACERS