The Wolverine

ines have not gotten enough produc- tion from the linebackers so far in the 2012 season. Fifth-year senior middle linebacker Kenny Demens, redshirt sophomore strongside linebacker Jake Ryan and sophomore weakside linebacker Des- mond Morgan came in as returning starters, but youngsters such as fresh- man middle linebacker Joe Bolden and freshman outside linebacker James Ross have pushed them, both in practice and in games. That's encouraging for Michigan. The more proven players the Wol- verines have on the roster, the better. "The young kids have come in and fenders in the game. He hasn't fin- ished a game with more than seven tackles (Air Force). through the non-conference slate. Projected across a 13-game schedule, Demens is on track for just 58.5 tack- les. He had a team-high 94 tackles last season (19 more than safety Jor- dan Kovacs, who finished second), notching 7.2 tackles per game. As a redshirt sophomore, he finished with 82 tackles in 11 games (7.5 per contest). He averaged 4.5 tackles per game created competition," Smith said. "Competition is good. So, do I think it's where it needs to be? No. Are we playing up to the expectations that I have or they have or this pro- gram has? No, and they understand that. They're not going to be shocked when they read this. But it's really nice to have more depth that you feel good about putting out there and playing." featured most heavily in the Wol- verines' linebacker rotation through five games, Demens is the lone up- perclass veteran. Of course, Ryan and Morgan cut their teeth last season as starters, but they are still young players with plenty to learn. UNDERCLASSMEN MAKING VITAL CONTRIBUTIONS Of the five players that have been more important. "He has played a lot of football," Smith said. "And that's important, particularly when we play in big games — like Notre Dame — be- cause he's been on the big stage be- fore. He's played under the lights and he understands the stage that he is playing on — versus guys like Joe Bolden and James Ross, it's still new to them." That makes Demens' role even The middle linebacker — espe- cially a veteran one — is expected to be the quarterback of the defense. And Smith wants to see more from his leader. better," Smith said. "He understands that. He needs to get better at recog- nition of plays and football — the "Ken, in my opinion, needs to play fundamentals of the position. "I would like to see Ken make more plays, be more productive when he is in there. He has had opportunities to make plays when he's in there and he hasn't made them as often as he needs to." Although Demens' play has not yet been satisfactory, Smith was also quick to point out that his numbers have taken a hit because Michigan has employed a much heavier line- backer rotation this season. And that has less to do with De- mens' deficiencies and more to do with the talent the Wolverines in- herited in the 2012 recruiting class. Bolden has played a critical role in spelling Demens for long stretches at middle linebacker. suppress the potent triple-option at- tack of Air Force, Bolden checked While the defense struggled to But Smith has been highly critical of Demens' play thus far. Through the Wolverines' first four games, the fifth-year senior has tal- lied just 18 tackles, none of which came behind the line of scrimmage. He has yet to lead the Wolver- ines in tackles in a game. Against Alabama in the first game of the year, Demens tallied three tackles, which was ninth-best among Michigan de- True freshman middle linebacker Joe Bolden had 12 total tackles, including a tackle for loss and a sack, in U-M's 2-2 start to the season. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN OCTOBER 2012 THE WOLVERINE 37

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