The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/279958
have to evaluate every year on your team, who are the guys that can make plays, the most consistent playmak- ers?" Mattison started. "My feeling on Jake is he's one of our best defensive players. He's got to get to the football and he's a really good blitzer. "The biggest thing is we need to be a better blitzing team. Last year, people said we didn't seem as aggres- sive as were before. As a coordinator, I'm going to call them as long as pres- sures get there. The only thing a blitz or pressure does is gets people one on one, and then you've got to beat someone one on one." Ryan is a proven pass rusher and he has shown an ability to make plays in the offensive backfield when af- forded the chance — his 31.5 career tackles for loss rank fifth among U-M linebackers over the last 20 years, and he's only 12 shy of Crable's top mark — and putting him in the middle al- lows Ryan to be more involved than he was at Sam. "At Sam, I was on one side of the ball, and a lot of the time, the ball would run away from me," Ryan noted. "I would have to run about 100 yards to go and catch it. At middle linebacker, I am more in the middle of everything. As Coach Hoke said, I can be more prolific there. Hopefully, I can make more plays and get to the ball faster." There will be a learning curve for Ryan. However, he has all spring, summer and fall camp to learn the nuances of his new role, and what- ever he lacks in understanding he can make up with instincts.