The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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[ D E F E N S I V E B A C K S ] THE WOLVERINE 2023 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 109 Safety First There's less guesswork when it comes to the safeties, with Paige and Moore patrolling the middle of the field. They came up as a strong combo last season, especially when Paige grew more com- fortable in Michigan's defense. Paige, a Big Ten honorable mention performer by conference media, played in 12 games with five starts. He racked up 41 tackles, a sack, 1 interception, 2 pass breakups and a quarterback hurry. He saved some of his best for big games, picking off a pass at Ohio State, recording 6 tackles against Michigan State and posting 7 stops in the Big Ten Championship Game. "Makari Paige made a jump this past season," Minter mused. "He has the versatility to play all the spots back there. I think that itself is a major, major strength. "The safeties are always the traffic control cops. Having experience there — older guys that have played a lot, know what it takes to communicate at a high level — is a major advantage. Moore also delivered when it mattered most. Another honorable mention All- Big Ten performer by the media, Moore earned a share of the team's Defensive Rookie of the Year honors. He started in 13 of his 14 2022 appearances, pacing the secondary with 71 tackles. He also posted 1.5 TFLs, a shared sack, broke up 7 passes, notched a quarterback hurry and led the team with 4 intercep- tions. Moore picked off a pass in the Col- lege Football Playoff semifinal against TCU, along with making a dozen tack- les. His career high in stops occurred a game earlier when he notched 14 take- downs against Purdue in the Big Ten title game. "It's a tremendous group at the safety position," Minter said. "I just feel really good about Rod Moore, the amount of snaps he's played here, the big plays he's made in big moments. "The best part about Rod is that he has the mindset to be a high-end, domi- nant player. His skill set and his physi- cal tools match up with that. He has a chance to be high, high-end draft choice one day." Michigan's secondary did take a hit in late April when veteran R.J. Moten hit the transfer portal. Moten played in all 14 U-M games a year ago, with 31 tackles, 2.5 TFLs, 1.5 sacks, 2 quarterback hur- ries, an interception and a pass breakup. The Wolverines lost some depth there, but there's no shortage of hopefuls look- ing to provide more. Senior Caden Kolesar and grad Quinten Johnson are two who fit that description, while sophomores Keon Sabb and Zeke Berry each got a taste of the action last season. Michigan football radio play-by-play man Doug Karsch had this to say about the Wolverines' emerging secondary. "I don't know what to expect," Karsch noted of the question regarding the cor- nerback opposite Johnson. "The good thing is, there are four or five guys com- peting. There is no shortage of candi- dates. "I also really like Michigan's defensive scheme. You've got to love what Clink [defense backs coach and co-DC Steve Clinkscale] does back there. "There's buy-in, there's dedication, there's work ethic. I can't tell you who is going to emerge, but the last few years, it feels like when there have been questions at any position, somebody's emerged." ❑ BIOS POSITION COACHES Co-defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach Steve Clinkscale is entering his third season at Michigan (third mentoring the second- ary and second as co-DC). He helped the Michigan defense go from No. 90 nationally in passing yards allowed per game the year before he arrived (2020) to 27th and 20th in 2021 and 2022, respectively. In that span, his defensive backs have earned eight Big Ten honors, in- cluding NFL Draft picks Daxton Hill (first round, 2022) and DJ Turner (second round, 2023). Clinkscale joined the U-M staff in 2021 fol- lowing five seasons as Kentucky's defensive backs coach (2016-20). UK finished among the top four in the Southeastern Conference for pass defense during Clinkscale's final three sea- sons, and the Wildcats led the league in 2019 and 2020. Prior to his stint in Lexington, Clinkscale worked at Cincinnati from 2013-15, including one season as defensive coordinator. His previous stops were Illinois (2012), Toledo (2009-11), Western Carolina (2008) and Ash- land (2001-07), all of which included working with defensive backs and/or cornerbacks. He also served as special teams coordinator at Toledo. Jay Harbaugh is in his ninth season with the Wolverines and his second handling the safeties, after previously mentoring tight ends (2015- 16, 2021) and running backs (2017-20). Jim Harbaugh's son is also entering his fourth season as Michi- gan's special teams coordinator, after serving as an assistant for that unit from 2015-19. Among others, Harbaugh helped develop two-time first-team consensus All-America tight end Jake Butt (2015-16), running back Hassan Haskins (fourth-round NFL Draft pick, 2022) and tight end Luke Schoonmaker (second round, 2023). Before joining the U-M staff, he spent the 2012-14 seasons under the tutelage of his uncle John in the NFL, including being part of the Baltimore Ravens staff that won Super Bowl XLVII in 2013, beating his father's San Francisco 49ers. He got his start in coaching as an undergradu- ate assistant at Oregon State from 2008-11. RETURNING PLAYERS ZEKE BERRY • S So. • Pittsburg, Calif. Ht.: 5-11 • Wt.: 197 Free safety Rod Moore started in 13 of his 14 appearances in 2022, pacing the sec- ondary with 71 tackles and leading the team with 4 interceptions. He earned hon- orable mention All-Big Ten recognition. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER