The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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38 THE WOLVERINE AUGUST 2017 wanted to do." DeLoof did more than anyone might have ex- pected in her junior sea- son. She also earned All-America honor- able mention in the 400-yard free- s t y l e re l a y, f o l l o w i n g a B i g Te n c h a m p i o n - ship performance in the 800-free- style relay. The first-team All-Big Ten honoree took a big step up in her third season in the pool for the Wolverines, with another yet to come. Male Breakout Performer Of The Year — Jabrill Peppers, football: Peppers wasn't exactly an unknown as a redshirt freshman in 2015, earn- ing first-team All-Big Ten honors. He took a meteoric leap last fall, though, becoming a Heisman Trophy finalist and the first player in the history of the Big Ten to earn three individual awards. Peppers captured hardware as the Nagurski-Woodson Defensive Player of the Year, the Butkus-Fitzgerald Linebacker of the Year and the Rod- gers-Dwight Return Specialist of the Year. He also earned the 2016 Paul Hornung Award as the nation's most versatile player. That last honor probably wasn't close. Peppers played more than a dozen positions for the Wolverines, from kick and punt returner to hybrid linebacker to safety to quarterback, running back, receiver and more. He wound up with 72 tackles, 16 tackles for loss, four sacks and one interception against Ohio State on defense, along with 167 yards and three touchdowns rushing, a 26.0 average on kickoff returns and 310 yards in punt returns (14.8 average), including a 54-yard touchdown. Peppers became a key fac- tor in defensive coor- dinator Don Brown's aggressive scheme, helping the Wolverines become the nation's leader in total defense. "He's everything," Brown said. "He can do anything he wants. Basi- cally, I took my brightest guy and gave him a bunch of things to do, and he did them all and he was great at them." BEST TEAM WINS Best Female Team Win — Women's Gymnastics Regional: Michigan's always strong women's gymnastics squad had its hands full getting through the NCAA Regional this season in Morgantown, W.Va. The Wolverines squared off against a very strong Alabama crew, among five tough competitors. The No. 7-ranked Wolverines held back the Tide and everyone else, posting a winning score of 197.350, advancing to the NCAA Champi- onships for the 23rd time. The win marked Michigan's 12th NCAA Re- gional championship. Alabama finished second at 196.625 and stood poised to steal the victory away from the Wolverines. Michigan junior Paige Zaziski turned that tide, winning the all-around competition with a score of 39.575. She posted individual titles in vault (9.875) and bars (9.950) on her way to that crown. Michigan head coach Bev Plocki talked about what it meant, not to just be among the top two teams and make it to the NCAAs, but to secure an overall victory. "It is one thing to come with the goal of qualifying, but we came with the goal of winning, so it is nice to be able to accomplish that goal," she said. "Alabama is one of the most storied programs, so this helps us a great deal with our confidence." Best Male Team Win — Men's Basketball Over Oklahoma State: Beilein's team had already been through the harrowing experience of a plane skidding off an airport runway and the thrilling response — a four-day rampage to a Big Ten Tournament title. But in taking on Oklahoma State in an NCAA Tour- nament-opening contest, the Wolver- ines were looking to certify their elite status. The Cowboys were ready to ride around, through and over the Wol- verines at a full gallop, one of the most potent scoring teams in the NCAA. Michigan could rack up points itself, and what resulted was one of the most entertaining contests of the tournament. The teams fought to a last-second shootout, Michigan surviving, 92-91, to avoid a first-round ouster and set up a victory over Louisville, which sent them on to the Sweet 16. The Wolverines almost didn't get there, with OSU's Jawun Evans pour- ing in 23 points and dishing out 12 assists, while Jeffrey Carroll cashed in 19 more points. Michigan answered with a strong-scoring quartet, led by senior point guard Derrick Walton Jr., who racked up 26 points, 11 assists, two steals and three blocks. Redshirt sophomore forward D.J. Wilson tossed in 19 points, while se- nior forward Zak Irvin and junior guard Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rah- kman scored 16 each. Walton's effort made him the first NCAA Tourna- ment performer to post at least 25 points, 10 assists and five rebounds at the Big Dance since Dwyane Wade in 2003. The Wolverines also fired in 16 three-pointers. "If somebody would have ever said that we're going to give up 91 and we were going to win, I wouldn't have thought that was going to hap- pen," Beilein said. "We had enough firepower to withstand their incred- ible offensive talent and get enough points." MOST IMPROVED TEAM Most Improved Team — Women's basketball: Michigan women's bas- ketball enjoyed an okay season in 2015-16. The Wolverines went 21-14 overall and 9-9 in the Big Ten, but got bumped out of the Big Ten Tourna- ment in one game and eventually lost in the WNIT. This year, head coach Kim Barnes Arico's crew took a major step for- ward, even though it didn't get fully rewarded for what it accomplished during the regular season. Michigan stepped up to finish 28-9 overall, setting a new program mark for most wins in a single season. The Wolverines went 11-5 in the confer- ence, climbing to third place in the Redshirt sophomore linebacker Jabrill Peppers was named a unani- mous All-American, Heisman Trophy finalist and Michigan's Bo Schembechler MVP, and was the first in league history to win a trio of Big Ten awards — D e f e n s i v e P l a y e r, Linebacker and Return Specialist of the Year. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN