The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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[ L I N E B A C K E R S ] 98 ■ THE WOLVERINE 2022 FOOTBALL PREVIEW "We even saw him rush the passer a little bit last year," Jansen said. "You can use him as a blitzing linebacker; you can use him in coverage. He's got the speed to be able to do that. He's going to be that Swiss army knife linebacker that can really make a big impact." Junior Kalel Mullings, too, made a huge step this spring. A hand injury hindered the 6-1, 236-pounder throughout spring a year ago. While he tried to play through it, the pain sometimes got the better of him, and it reached the point that some wondered if he might pursue a change of scenery. The only move he made was to offense, and that was part-time. Mullings, a two-way standout in high school, saw time at running back while also making significant prog- ress at linebacker. Harbaugh went so far to say Mullings was in the Hill-Green and Colson mold, high praise for a player who saw action in 13 games but notched only 11 tackles last year. "Just his ability to get on the field and get reps will help," Jansen said. "That's the one thing an injury like that pre- vented him from doing. They wrapped him up at times, and he was in there. But when you can't play with half your body at that age, it's a huge detriment, and you can develop some bad habits. I'm not saying he has a bunch, but to be able to play as a whole player and learn the game that way will benefit him." Sophomore Jaydon Hood needs to add weight and continue to get stronger, but he made an impression in his first season. He earned scout team player of the week on a few occasions and played in one game. Har- baugh called Hood a player he "continues to like a lot." "He was showing and flashing potential, and has continued to work on his game," the coach said. "He's not as physical or big as Junior or Nikhai, but he'll keep working on his craft there." Senior Joey Velazquez, too, had some good moments this spring, after starting to make plays last year. He became a solid special teams player, recovering a fumbled punt at Wisconsin to help spur a blowout win, and he is a two-sport guy, excelling on the baseball diamond. "He knocked it out of the park on the baseball field and has made a lot of strides in football," Harbaugh said. "He stayed with football the entire spring but would sneak over to baseball — get a pinch-hit or game-winning triple in baseball. How hard is that to do? "He bleeds blue — gives tremendous effort and has a motor. Finding the ball and developing a nose for the ball, he's working on that." Sophomore Tyler McLaurin is another looking to make a move toward playing time. The 6-3, 237-pounder played in one game as a true freshman and earned scout team player of the week honors twice be- fore Michigan's games with Nebraska and Northwestern. On the edges, finding someone to fill the Ojabo role won't be easy. Though he hadn't played a lot of football before he arrived at Michigan, the elite athlete always had the measurables and athleticism to become a pass rushing force. Nobody, though, could have predicted he'd emerge as an early-round draft pick, especially since he'd played sparingly in his first two years. But there's always a market for pass rush- ers with freakish measurables. Though he played primarily on passing downs, Ojabo became a force on the opposite side of Hutchinson. There might not be anyone on the roster with the same, freakish physical qualities — freshman end Derrick Moore (6-4, 250) could be the closest — but there are candidates to replace Ojabo, nonetheless. Tampa native Jaylen Harrell (6- 4, 242) is the best bet after a pro- ductive spring in which he con- tinued his ascent as a player. He's a "true Sam 'backer in a 3-4 defense," Harbaugh said this spring. "He's athletic, can drop into pass coverage, has a knack for the ball … and now he's starting to get to the quarterback." Harrell even made the big play of the spring game with a sack and forced fumble that all but sealed a win for his Blue team. In 14 game appearances with four starts last season, X-FACTOR X-FACTOR Only 16 percent of Michigan's sacks (5.5 of 34) in 2021 came from players who are still on the roster, and coordinator Jesse Minter said he's looking to generate pass rush from more than just the edge defender spots. Speedy sopho- more JUNIOR COLSON may be one that can step up as a blitzer. In just 42 pass-rushing snaps last season, he gener- ated 8 pressures, per Pro Football Focus. PHOTO BY EJ HOLLAND Junior Jaylen Harrell made 15 tackles last season, including 2.5 for loss. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL