The Wolverine

versatility, while Taylor brings ath- leticism and playmaking ability. "Courtney has done a nice job com- peting in there. He gives you every- thing he has," Mallory said. "He's had little injuries that have hampered him a little bit, but he's come along. "We're going to need them both at the corner spot. Courtney is an older, more experienced guy who can han- senior cornerback J.T. Floyd and the safeties. Gordon, for one, has more to give, Mallory said,. Creating more turnovers, too, will be paramount if the defense hopes to realize its po- tential. off a pass until the two they corralled against Notre Dame, something Hoke said had to change if Michigan hoped Michigan defenders hadn't picked Junior cornerback Courtney Avery "Obviously we have a lot of improving to do, but we're work- ing each day to get better and better." dle two positions. He's a natural fit — plus, he played it all last year." Hoke added, "Courtney is a smart football player. That's one of the things that best describes him — Courtney has football intelligence. We'll still use him some in the nickel situation as an inside player. The competition outside with him and Ray will continue." More will be asked of them in the Big Ten season, as well as of fifth-year to compete for a Big Ten title. Taylor recovered a fumble as time expired in the first half against Ala- bama, the only other turnover of the season besides a late fumble recovery on a punt against UMass. that one time you don't, it'll be that one play you had an opportunity to make a play." Floyd had a chance for a big play against UMass, but he stopped short and the ball sailed over his hands. "Football is a game of inches, and that can be the difference between a catch, an incompletion and an inter- ception," he said. It's coming, though. The second- ary allowed only six of the 11 Irish receptions in limiting Notre Dame's passing game to 145 yards, though 38 came on a backbreaking reception on third down in the waning moments. Teams expecting to exploit a weak- ness on the other side of Floyd have found it's not nearly as easy as they'd hoped. "It's not necessarily bad habits once you get in the moment," Floyd said. "It's sometimes a lack of focus on that one particular play. On that one play, you might not focus as much as you want to when you read your keys — Blake Countess Remains Involved While Rehabbing Michigan sophomore cornerback Blake Countess' season ended early when he went down with a torn ACL on punt coverage in the opener. He was on crutches and set for Sep- tember surgery when last spotted on the sidelines against UMass Sept. 15, but his signature smile was as wide as ever. The 5-10, 180-pound Countess has been visible in team meetings and quick to offer advice to his fellow corners, including junior Courtney Avery and sophomore Raymon Taylor, while watching from a different perspective. "He's been very good, you fear they are going to be down, distant from the team, but he's been right there with us. He's in the meetings with us, still watching film, going over things he picked up on from our different opponents. " Avery said. "When guys get injuries, Countess figured to be an All-Big Ten candidate after earn- ing the John F. Maulbetsch Award, given to a freshman based on desire, character, capacity for leadership and future suc- cess both on and off the field. He continued his outstanding play through the fall to earn frequent mention from both head coach Brady Hoke and secondary coach Curt Mallory as one they expected to excel after earning ESPN.com and BTN. com Big Ten All-Freshman Team honors last year. "We're certainly looking forward to getting him back, " lory said. "Losing him, you lose a lot because of his experi- ence. You can't put a price on that, and he's also a great character guy. What he's done a tremendous job of doing is helping not only Courtney, another great young man, but Ray, who is just getting his feet wet. " Mal- Countess is expected to make a complete recovery and be back in time for spring ball in 2013. " Countess (shown in the spring game) was lost for the season when — Chris Balas he tore his ACL on punt coverage in Michigan's loss to Alabama. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL OCTOBER 2012 THE WOLVERINE 35 Avery said before the Notre Dame game. "Obviously we have a lot of improving to do, but we're working each day to get better and better. We need tighter coverage, and everyone just needs to improve on that." u "I think we're playing all right,"

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