The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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APRIL 2022 THE WOLVERINE 25 But a lot of it's about the guys leading them into battle, too. Losing Hutchin- son is a blow in that respect. The Heis- man Trophy runner-up was one of Michigan's best, and Smith is one who will be asked to fill that role. " Eve ry yea r l ea d e rs h i p c h a n ge s hands," Smith said. "You've got to go out there and get it. "Some people like to lead by exam- ple. Some people like to talk. Go get it. I'm not a leader yet, but if I do every- thing right, I will be." LINEBACKERS In the middle, Michigan will return three linebackers with a lot of expe- rience in sophomore Junior Colson, sophomore Nikhai Hill-Green and red- shirt junior Michael Barrett. Colson finished fourth on the team in tackles, while Hill-Green was one of the more improved players on the team heading into the season. He notched 50 tackles, including two for loss, and started six of the 14 games in which he appeared last year. Barrett came on strong at the end of the season, and his versatility was key down the stretch. He could earn his spot back in the middle after starting just one game last year. DEFENSIVE BACKS The coaches will have to replace three starters in the secondary in cornerback Vince Gray, and safeties Daxton Hill and Brad Hawkins. They're a bit thin back there, even moving veteran receiver Mike Sainristil to nickel corner for some work this spring. Sainristil was one of the Michigan of- fensive skill position players of the year last year and could be used in a number of different ways this season. "He has right now, yeah," Harbaugh confirmed of the move to defense. "So, Mike has been playing corner and nickel corner for the start of this spring ball. We project him as a two-way player, maybe even a three-way player." He has also returned punts in the past. "It's his skill set. He's got the skill set for it, for receiver, for corner and nickel corner," Harbaugh said. "His skill set reminds me a lot of Jimmie Ward [of the San Francisco 49ers], what he had in college." Two players, sophomore Rod Moore and redshirt freshman Ja'Den McBur- rows, are out this spring after surgery, but both have great potential. Moore showed his last year in 11 games (four starts at safety), notching 32 tackles. He notched a career-high nine tackles in a win over Ohio State. "He won't be draft-eligible next year, but I think he'll make a great impact in the secondary," Gray said of Moore in Indianapolis. "He's [173 pounds], but he's not scared to throw his stuff in there. He's got good technique, good speed, and I think he'll be a really good player for Michigan." Third-year sophomore R.J. Moten is projected as the other starting safety after opening five of 14 games last year and notching 34 tackles with four passes broken up. All told, Harbaugh said, they're all on the same page and learning in the same defense they ran a year ago. That bodes well for a team looking to repeat as Big Ten champs. "It's a great, positive thing," the Michigan coach said. "The coaches we had on defense, the players … the struc- ture and terminology would be very close to, and in a lot of cases, exactly the same [under Minter]. So [it's] a good deal." ❏ Redshirt sophomore end Mike Morris played in all 14 games last year, but made only 17 tackles. However, graduated linebacker Josh Ross raved about him when talking about the talent that remains, noting: "That dude's about to be elite. People are going to know his name real soon." PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN