The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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28 THE WOLVERINE MAY 2022 O n a cool and cloudy day in Ann Arbor, offensive line coach/co- offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore's Blue team outlasted secondary coach/co- defensive coordinator Steve Clinkscale's Maize squad, 20-12, in Michigan's annual spring game April 2. With sophomore J.J. McCarthy side- lined due to arm soreness, redshirt sophomore Cade McNamara, dressed in white, played quarterback for both teams. He went three-and-out on his first two drives, one with each squad, with the de- fense getting the better of him in the first quarter. McNamara would finish 3-of-7 for only 16 yards, with no touchdowns and no in- terceptions. Redshirt freshman Davis Warren took over at quarterback for the Maize on the second drive. He led a seven-play, 49- yard march that included a 39-yard wheel route completion to sophomore running back Donovan Edwards. The drive stalled, and the Maize took a 3-0 lead on a 25- yard field goal from grad student Rhett Anderson. Former Texas Tech transfer quarterback Alan Bowman took over for the Blue at the end of the first quarter and drove to the Maize 3-yard line. Redshirt freshman Tavierre Dunlap scored from three yards out on the first play to put Blue up 7-3, a lead that shrunk to 7-6 at the half. Late in the third quarter, Bowman found freshman wide receiver Darrius Clemons for a diving 35-yard touchdown to put the Blue team up 14-6. The Maize responded on its next drive when Warren found freshman wide receiver Amorion Walker for a 39-yard strike down the right sideline. The Maize had to settle for an- other Anderson field goal (33 yards). After trading punts, the Blue team pulled away late. It went 53 yards in six plays and got a five-yard touchdown from Bowman to junior walk-on receiver Sam Staruch with 4:33 to go. The Maize team was able to put another Anderson field goal on the board with 37 seconds remaining, but it couldn't con- vert on a bonus possession as the clock ran out. Warren finished 12-of-23 passing for 175 yards for the Maize, while Bowman went 9-of-19 for 100 yards, two touch- downs and the win. Clemons led all receivers with 52 yards and a score on three receptions. Junior receiver Cornelius Johnson notched three receptions for 43 yards to lead the Maize pass catchers. Dunlap had a game-high 18 carries and 73 yards for one touchdown, and sophomore running back Blake Co- rum rushed for 40 yards on seven carries, also for the Blue. Redshirt freshman linebacker Nikhai Hill-Green led the Blue with eight tackles, while redshirt sophomore safety Quinten Johnson led the Maize with seven. — Chris Balas JESSE MINTER REVEALS HIS VISION FOR IDENTITY OF U-M DEFENSE U-M is in 'Year 2' of its defensive sys- tem, even though Mike Macdonald left to return to the Baltimore Ravens and Jesse Minter is in his first year coordi- nating the unit. Minter, who coached with Macdon- ald in Baltimore and coordinated the Vanderbilt defense last season, brings a similar approach in both coaching style and scheme to what Michigan's players became accustomed to last season. One of those similarities is that the Wolver- ines' defense won't look exactly the same from week to week. The "menu" — fronts, coverages, strategy — will be different de- pending on the opponent. But one thing Minter won't budge on is the identity of his group. "I think it's a relentless, competitive group that thrives in situational football, plays with an edge, plays with a chip on our shoulder," Minter said. "I think it's going to be a team defense, where you do what's best for the team, but also where we'll try to do things to showcase different guys every week. And maybe a little bit more versatile in that regard, where you don't have that one guy that's going to get 12 to 15 sacks, or two guys. "It's just going to be a strong camara- derie of guys that play for each other and play really hard and play really fast. And hopefully, that's something that the fans enjoy watching." — Clayton Sayfie HOW GRANT NEWSOME FOUND PURPOSE THROUGH COACHING Head coach Jim Harbaugh made grad assistant Grant Newsome a part of the full-time coaching staff on Feb. 9, tab- bing him to coach the tight ends. This came just over five years after Newsome suffered a knee injury at Michigan that almost caused him to lose his leg. It was a long, strange road, but the 25-year-old embraces what it meant to his journey. "If you look at the totality of every- thing that happened, I'm really blessed to stand where I am today," Newsome told the media during a spring foot- ball media session. "And I think that it all really happened for a reason and I'm just trying to embrace that. It did take me a little while. I was bitter, I was angry — all those kinds of things MICHIGAN FOOTBALL Blue Team Tops Maize, 20-12, In Spring Game Redshirt freshman running back Tavierre Dunlap scored the first touchdown of the spring game on a three-yard run in the sec- ond quarter. He finished with a game-high 18 carries for 73 yards for the Blue team. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL