The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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MICHIGAN FOOTBALL most important on the team. The key to this whole defense is the nose, given how the defense is run. It's important because whether it's taking on the double team or doing our assignment, it's always big in the trenches. That's where it counts. I want to blow up the run and just make plays." He'll now likely have to wait a while to make that happen. THE BIG HOUSE IS STILL THE BIGGEST Michigan Stadium will remain the biggest college football stadium in the country, but for 2015, the seating capacity has been slightly reduced, from 109,901 to 107,601. U-M main- tains its advantage over No. 2 Penn State (106,572) by 1,029 seats. The changes were made to ac- commodate ADA accessibility, with some seats eliminated to widen aisles and install hand railings around the entire bowl, except for the student section. "Our facilities group has done a phenomenal job in increasing the accessibility of Michigan Stadium while minimizing the reduction in seat locations," said Kurt Svoboda, Associate Athletic Director for Ex- ternal Communications and Public Relations. "These shifts have taken place over several seasons; each adjust- ment causes a ripple effect in seat- ing due to the large number of sea- son ticket holders at U-M. We are incredibly thankful to the response of fans who have been affected by changes in seat locations." IOWANS BELIEVE JAKE RUDOCK CAN WIN STARTING QB JOB AT MICHIGAN Fifth-year senior quarterback Jake Rudock surprised many when he transferred within the conference, but it didn't stun his former Iowa teammates. Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz said he had mixed emotions about the grad transfer rule but spoke positively about his former quarterback at Big Ten Me- dia Days. "He's a great young guy. I've got nothing but respect for him," he said. "He was totally on board his entire time at Iowa. I wish nothing but the best for him. I know things are going to work out for him aca- demically, and I hope things work out for him athletically." He was a valued teammate, cen- ter Austin Blythe added, and re- mains a good friend. "He's a great guy. I still stay in touch with him," Blythe said. "He's going to be a friend for life. He's just that kind of guy. He'll do anything for anybody and is just genuine … he was a leader here at Iowa. I think he'll get to be that at Michigan. "Michigan is getting a smart guy who is obviously skilled enough to win games at a program in the Big Ten. He's a good quarterback. He's going to be a game manager; he's going to be a guy who can win games … and he can definitely