The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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THE WOLVERINE 2025 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 73 "Watching him, he's a confident guy. He's played a bunch and has gotten a lot of snaps. I like the progress he made." So does Jansen, noting it's up to El- Hadi to set the standard for everyone in the room. The way he keeps his locker, what he does off the field, how he rep- resents on it with his nasty streak — ev- eryone's watching, and everything is a reflection of who he is and what matters to him. "If all the little things are important to you, you're going to do everything else," Jansen said. "It all reflects in how you play on Saturdays." That includes the "Smash!" mindset on the offensive line, "the only way we know how to do it," El-Hadi said. The NFL will be there waiting if he accomplishes what he plans to this year. "At the end of the year, that is my goal," he acknowledged. "I want to win as a team, and I'm not thinking about my [NFL] goal. But I also know everything I do and how my team does will help for my goal. "I've had it since I was a kid. I always promised my mama and my little brother that I'm going to make it for them. Noth- ing is going to stop me." Yes, it starts with his play on the field this fall, but it really began in March and April with what he called "my best spring ball yet." He's up to 320 pounds, he re- ported in June, and doing whatever he can to put himself in position to dominate this fall. "I know my boys on the team trust me, look up to me," he said. "I've just got to lead the boys and teach them how and what it means to play here, how impor- tant it is to be a Michigan player in gen- eral." It's a job he takes a lot of pride in, and he's ready to make his final year in maize and blue his best. ❑ Former Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh was always looking for coaches who could make his team stronger, whether it was a coordina- tor or a lower-level staffer. When he brought in longtime NFL assistant Juan Castillo in 2019 as an offensive analyst, many in the program believed it took the group to another level. The Wolverines weren't able to keep him — the Chicago Bears hired him away as their offensive line coach the following year — but U-M head coach Sherrone Moore brought him back as an analyst this offsea- son after Castillo left UCLA. The line struggled somewhat a year ago for various reasons, but second-year line coach Grant Newsome now has a right-hand man to help him, someone who's seen it all and taught it at the highest level. "He's a tremendous teacher," former Michigan All-American and NFL lineman Jon Jansen said. "He's a technician. He's a guy that when I was in the league, he would have been a determining factor for me if the opportunity would have presented itself as a free agent to go somewhere. If he was the O-line coach somewhere, that would have been a huge selling point, because he is a tremendous technician in both run and pass. "He was with the Philadelphia Eagles for a long time when I was play- ing. [Former Jansen teammate] Jon Runyan was there. We'd talk about it. [Current Detroit Lions O-line coach] Hank Fraley, who I'd gotten to know quite a bit, was there. Doug Brzezinski, who I knew from high school, was a part of that O-line for a few years. I'd start watching other guys, trying to pick up techniques, different things they're doing and ask them, 'How are you doing this?'" The answer was always, "Juan Castillo." He mentored hundreds of outstanding linemen in his long career, and his hands-on and simple but effective teaching methods have made him one of the most respected coaches in the game." Michigan veteran offensive lineman Giovanni El-Hadi insists the ana- lyst's teachings have already paid dividends. "Juan Castillo — he's the best," he said. "I wish he was here when I first got here. He really cares. I'm not saying the other coaches don't — they obviously do — but he's out there all day ready to help us with whatever we need. "If we need run work, outside zone work, pass pro, whatever it is, he's there. He sends us videos all day, is always teaching us. He's the best. I love that guy." He's been a huge help in one area in particular, Jansen observed. "A lot of these guys come in and run blocking is something they can do, something they've done. Pass blocking is where they need more development in their technique," he said. "That's really where he excels in teaching timing, sets, and awareness of what's going on around you. "He breaks everything down and makes it very easy for these guys to understand how to be successful, and how to make adjustments on the fly." Castillo spent only one season at UCLA before coming to Ann Arbor. The Bruins' loss is Michigan's gain, Jansen said. "He's still got a great reputation in the [NFL]," he said. "Michigan is very, very fortunate to have him as a part of this coaching staff." — Chris Balas O-Line Analyst Juan Castillo Is A 'Difference Maker' Castillo, who has coached 16 years in the NFL, was an offensive analyst with Michigan in 2019 before taking a job as an offensive line coach with the Chicago Bears in 2020. PHOTO COURTESY NFL.COM