The Wolverine

baugh teased the possibility of Pep- pers playing offense before camp commenced Aug. 7, but he has not followed up on record saying his po- tential star safety will definitely earn offensive touches. If the East Orange, N.J., native does dabble on offense, however, there is no better coach to do it for than Har- baugh. In his four years at Stanford from 2007-10, the mentor utilized a number of two-way players, most fa- mously starting fullback/linebacker Owen Marecic. "We have a really good group of experienced coaches, starting with the head coach, who has great expe- rience using guys in multiple spots," defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin said. "Just look at his history. I was with him in Stanford when you look at the guys we used both ways, in different roles. "I think it's one of the best things he does — he doesn't see things through a narrow tube. He looks at the big picture and asks how these guys can help us. "Jabrill won't be alone in playing multiple spots — we'll have many guys [doing so]. And we have a good formula on how to do that." Perhaps enough Michigan skill players will emerge at the wide re- ceiver and tailback positions in fall camp that U-M simply does not need Peppers to play both ways, but the former class of 2013 five-star recruit They Said It: Jabrill Peppers "Peppers was such a highly regarded recruit that he's stoking nearly as much optimism about his redshirt freshman season as he did for his true freshman debut. After appearing in only three games, suffering a leg injury and redshirting last year, Peppers is switching positions — from cornerback to safety — but has strong cover skills and is versatile enough to function as a sort of rover in the back end of Michigan's defense. "The East Orange, N.J., native also maintains that he's comfortable playing on the other side of the ball and could help out on special teams. However Michigan uses him, expect Peppers' second college campaign to go more smoothly than his first one. He seemed pretty excited about his future this spring." — SI.com's Chris Johnson on 15 freshmen that should contribute im- mediately this year "Try as he might, Jabrill Peppers can contain his confidence for only so long. Tell him his Michigan coach, Jim Harbaugh, said he likely will play on offense and possibly special teams, in addition to safety, and he'll shrug it off. "'I actually haven't heard anything about that,' he said. 'I just know what they tell me. I just want to do what is best for the team, what will help the team.' "Given Harbaugh's reticence to share information, his endorsement of Pep- pers' versatility is close to a guarantee Peppers will play more than defense." — The Detroit Free Press' Mark Snyder on Peppers' possible role offensively

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