The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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has learned how to help guide the team. "Stu has made incredible strides in that area," Beilein said. "Zack has al- ways had it, and I'm so proud of him. But when you see a guy that did not really come in feeling comfortable in that area and they grow in that area, those are really the rewarding days. "It's like a kid who has never taken a charge taking a charge, or someone who has never dove on the ball diving on the ball. It doesn't make people bad people if they're not comfortable in leadership. He's very comfortable there now. When this is all said and done, he'll come out of here as an incredible leader for our program." Douglass already qualifies as one of the two coaches on the floor, Michigan's best on-ball defender as well as a constant three-point threat. "His intelligence for defense is re- ally good," Beilein noted. "He sees things that I don't see. He and Zack will make adjustments on their own in a game that we would probably do, but that we can't get to them in time. Their basketball IQ on defense, and in many parts of our offense, is exceptional." Their legacy is unquestionable. Four years ago, Douglass came to a program he didn't even know hadn't been to an NCAA Tournament for a decade. Back then, the only mark he thought about leaving involved minutes played and points scored in the stats book. Now, he sees everything so differ- ently. "Last year, Coach Beilein was talk- ing to Zack and I, about how All- Americans have come through here in the past decade, great players, guys in the NBA, and they didn't make it to the NCAA Tournament," Douglass said. "Here are two 6-3, 6-4 white kids from Indiana who nobody expected to play in the Big Ten, and now could be in the NCAA Tournament three out of four years. "It's kind of crazy to think about. With five games remaining in the regular season, Douglass was on pace to finish among U-M's all-time top 10 in games (128) and minutes played (3,615). PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL Everybody loves to rank talent against talent. We're not the most talented players, but to bring this program back … words can't really describe how good of a feeling it is. It wasn't the goal from the begin- ning, but it's the main goal at the end." ❑ MARCH 2012 THE WOLVERINE 89