The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/382426
front when it came to leadership, Meyer said. "Not only in competition, but from the time we left campus and headed to Detroit Metro Airport to the time we came back on campus, Spike and Caris were very, very out front and communicating with our guys and the coaching staff," Meyer said. "They were very strong and vocal and posi- tive with their leadership. They're do- ing a great job for us." FRESHMEN SHINE IN FIRST TASTE OF COMPETITION Michigan's Italian tour and four- game exhibition swing was also the coming out party for a talented freshman class. A six-man group that otherwise wouldn't have seen com- petitive action in a Michigan uniform until October was able to get its its feet wet, and the results were some- times outstanding. Five with freshman eligibility — 6-4 shooting guard Muhammad Ali Abdur-Rahkman, 6-6 wing Aubrey Dawkins, 6-8 forward Kam Chatman, 6-9 center Ricky Doyle and 6-10 red- shirt freshman center Mark Donnal — had remarkably similar scoring num- bers. Doyle led with 11.5 points over four games (high of 15), Donnal 10.3 (20), Rahkman 10 (13), Chatman 9.5 (17) and Dawkins 9.3 (14). Doyle led all rebounders with eight per game despite being shut out in the opener. Shooting guard Austin Hatch (6-6), still recovering from a traumatic head injury suffered two summers ago, played, but didn't score. His presence alone, though, was like a fifth victory. He received a standing ovation from the Michigan fans in the crowd when he first hit the floor, and his grandfa- ther was one in attendance. "For freshmen, the first thing you have to do is learn how to practice be- fore you can really learn how to play and compete," Meyer said. "They did a really good job over the 10 practice days we had leading up to Italy. "Once we got to Italy — and the competition wasn't quite as good as we hoped until the fourth game — we were just encouraged with a number of things with the freshmen. I thought Ricky Doyle did a really nice job in the middle of the floor and venturing around the basket, running the floor, Guard Austin Hatch, who is still recover- ing from a traumatic head injury suffered two years ago, didn't score, but he did play, receiving a standing ovation from U-M fans. PHOTO BY TOM WYWROT/ COURTESY U-M SPORTS INFORMATION