The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1473191
[ D E F E N S I V E B AC K S ] 110 ■ THE WOLVERINE 2022 FOOTBALL PREVIEW RETURNING PLAYERS GEMON GREEN • CB Gr. • DeSoto, Texas Ht.: 6-2 • Wt.: 181 • Started six of his 12 games played in 2021, recording 24 tackles, a half-stop for loss, 1 pass breakup and 1 inter- ception. • Started all six games at cornerback in 2020, compiling 22 tackles and a team-high 9 passes broken up. • Made 5 tackles while playing in 11 games on special teams and one on defense in 2019. • Did not see game action his first year in Ann Arbor. • Tabbed as a four-star prospect and the No. 41 cornerback in the land by the On3 Consensus. Year GP/GS Tkls. TFL PBU INT 2019 11/0 5 0 0 0 2020 6/6 22 0 9 0 2021 12/6 24 0.5 1 1 Totals 29/12 51 0.5 10 1 GERMAN GREEN • CB Gr. • DeSoto, Texas Ht.: 6-2 • Wt.: 190 • Appeared in all 14 games on special teams and two at cor- nerback in 2021, notching 3 tackles. • Switched from safety to cornerback ahead of the 2021 season. • Appeared in all six games on special teams and played cornerback in one during the 2020 cam- paign, totaling 1 tackle. • Made his career debut in 2019, competing on special teams against Rutgers. • Redshirted his first season at Michigan. • Listed by the On3 Consensus as a three-star talent. QUINTEN JOHNSON • S Sr. • Washington, D.C. Ht.: 5-11 • Wt.: 200 • Saw action in all 14 games on special teams in 2021, con- tributing 3 tackles. • Played in two games on spe- cial teams during the 2020 campaign. • Did not see game action during his freshman season in 2019. • Competed in the 2018 Under Armour All- American Game, recording a tackle and 1 pass broken up. • Ranked as a four-star prospect, and the No. 34 cornerback and No. 357 overall talent in the country per the On3 Consensus. CADEN KOLESAR • S Sr. • Westlake, Ohio Ht.: 5-10 • Wt.: 196 • Appeared in all 14 outings on special teams and in six at safety during the 2021 cam- paign. Made 9 tackles, includ- ing 1 for loss, broke up 2 passes and notched 1 interception. • Saw action in all six contests on special teams in 2020, registering 1 tackle. • Appeared in three games on special teams and retained his redshirt in 2019. • Joined the program as a walk-on ahead of the 2019 season and has since been placed on scholarship. • Tabbed as a three-star recruit and the 67th-best athlete in the country on the On3 Consensus. Year GP/GS Tkls. TFL PBU INT 2019 3/0 0 0 0 0 2020 6/0 1 0 0 0 2021 14/0 9 1 2 1 Totals 23/0 10 1 2 1 JA'DEN MCBURROWS • CB So. • Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Ht.: 5-11 • Wt.: 197 • Played in four games at cor- nerback during his freshman campaign in 2021, retaining his redshirt year. • Registered 2 tackles and 1 pass breakup. • Named a MaxPreps first-team All-American as a senior and a first-team defender for Bro- ward County's 8A-6A schools by The Orlando Sentinel. • Regarded by the On3 Consensus as a three-star prospect and the No. 52 cornerback in his class. ROD MOORE • S So. • Clayton, Ohio Ht.: 6-0 • Wt.: 173 • Appeared in 11 games with four starts at safety and play- ing time on special teams. • Made 32 tackles and broke up 1 pass. • Received first-team Division I All-Ohio acco- lades as a senior and honorable mention status as a junior. • Ranked as a three-star recruit and the No. 35 safety in the nation by the On3 Consensus. Year GP/GS Tkls. TFL PBU INT 2021 11/4 32 0 1 0 PLAYER BIOS POSITION COACH Defensive backs coach Steve Clinkscale is entering his second season at Michigan and was pro- moted to co-defensive coordina- tor this offseason after serving as defensive passing game coordi- nator in 2021. Last season, he directed a secondary that ranked among the nation's top 30 in pass defense (27th) and pass efficiency allowed (16th), while contribut- ing to the nation's eighth-ranked scoring defense (17.4 points per game). He saw four U-M defensive backs earn All-Big Ten honors, led by Daxton Hill on the first team (69 tack- les, 11 pass breakups). Hill was the No. 31 overall pick to the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2022 NFL Draft. Clinkscale joined the U-M staff in 2021 following five seasons as Kentucky's defensive backs coach. UK finished among the top four in the Southeastern Conference for pass defense during Clinkscale's final three seasons, and the Wildcats led the league in 2019 and 2020. Prior to his stint in Lexington, Clinkscale worked at Cincinnati (including one season as defensive coordinator), Illinois, Toledo, Western Carolina and Ashland, his alma mater. Jay Harbaugh is in his eighth season with the Wolverines and his first handling the safeties, after previously mentoring tight ends (2015-16, 2021) and run- ning backs (2017-20). Jim Har- baugh's son is also entering his third season as Michigan's special teams coordina- tor, after serving as an assistant for that unit from 2015-19. Under Jay Harbaugh's leadership, U-M's tight end group achieved immense success in 2015 and 2016. Jake Butt became Michigan's all-time leader in tight end receptions (138) and yards (1,646), and won two Kwalick-Clark Tight End of the Year Awards as the Big Ten's best at the position. He was a con- sensus first-team All-American both years and took home the 2016 John Mackey Award as the nation's top tight end. Last season, Harbaugh saw two of his tight ends — Erick All and Luke Schoonmaker — earn All-Big Ten honorable mention nods. All was second on the squad in both catches (38) and receiving yards (437), while Schoonmaker tied for team lead with 3 scores through the air. U-M's special teams were named the top unit in the country by Football Scoop in 2021. Harbaugh also experienced success mentoring running backs in Ann Arbor, coaching a pair of 1,000-yard rushers in first-team All-Big Ten stand- out Karan Higdon, the Wolverines' first to reach the landmark in seven seasons, and 2022 fourth- round NFL Draft pick Hassan Haskins, who set a school record with 20 rushing scores and earned All-America honors. Harbaugh spent the three seasons prior to com- ing to Michigan under the tutelage of his uncle John in the NFL, including being part of the Baltimore Ravens coaching staff that won Super Bowl XLVII in 2013, beating his father's San Francisco 49ers.