The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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NOVEMBER 2017 THE WOLVERINE 29 I'm going to set this guy this way, every time.' Some guys are so one-di- mensional that you can set them the same way every time and go through the whole game like that." The versatility represents a weapon in itself, the former NFL offensive lineman assured. "When you've got a guy who can get the edge on you, you've got to be able to set back with a lot of quick- ness and speed," Jansen said. "The problem is, you're running back- wards and he's running forwards. All of a sudden, he has the ability to stick a foot in the ground, come right downhill on you and square you up. "It's really hard to stop a guy in his tracks. Even though I'm bigger than he is, I'm still running backwards." Winovich is still charging forward, and doesn't intend to slow down anytime soon. "I'm always watching film," he said. "At my house, I'm always on my iPad, just watching, learning, see- ing what I could pick up. If I'm go- ing through any doorway — people will laugh — I'm always working on club/rip [moves]. "I'm willing to do what other peo- ple maybe aren't." GEARING UP FOR GREATNESS Winovich's bite of the loaf tastes exceptionally good these days. He's performing well on the No. 1 de- fense in the nation, in terms of yards allowed per game (223.8), with no signs of slacking off. He's also having fun doing it. While extremely serious about his craft, Winovich can always be seen with a smile and a laugh, appreciat- ing everything about his surround- ings. "We're nasty," he said of Michi- gan's defense. "We just have fun. For a lot of people, it's almost a job. For us, we're a bunch of kids, having at it. We're disciplined, so backyard football is not the word to use. We're just having fun. "We're all hungry, and we're all just constantly trying to learn and get better. We're doing that." He insists he's not surprised at the midway point results in 2017. "We knew we were tough," Winov- ich said. "We knew we were young, and we were fast, and we're a phys- ical team. Every chance we're out there, we feel like we prove it to our- selves a little more." Winovich doesn't expect a host of Wolverines to copy his hairstyle. He does see a crew in which enthusiasm proves infectious, and he breathes that characteristic. "At the end of the day, I'm a nor- mal person: a fun-loving, hard-work- ing individual, trying to make my family proud out here," he said. "But you've got to be a little crazy if you going to do what I plan to do." He definitely plans to keep on emerging victorious, both in team and personal battles. "It's weird," he said. "I've been this way my whole life. No matter what I've done, I like to consider myself a winner. With the name thing — Win- ovich — it's probably in the blood." He broke into a broad grin at that moment. It's good to be Winovich these days, chasing quarterbacks with abandon. ❏ Michigan defensive line coach Greg Mattison wouldn't mind another Chase Winovich or two, or six. Players like him make infinitely easier the task of whoever is drawing up the X's and O's. Winovich certainly harbors high goals and dreams for himself. Every player does. He keeps all of that in line, though, and channels his ener- gies into making Michigan's defense even better, according to Mattison. "He improves every day. The thing about Chase Winovich that every young man should have is, he has a burning desire to be the best he can be," Mattison said. "He always wants to be the guy, and that's what you want from your defensive line. "He always puts the defense ahead of his own personal goals. If every player prepared and played as hard as Chase, you'd have one of the greatest defensive lines you could ever have." M attison recalled Winovich's roundabout journey to his position group. "Chase came here as a linebacker. I recruited him," Mattison said. "I re- member being in his home with his family and at the high school. I remember his first year as a linebacker and then Coach [Jim] Harbaugh taking him as a tight end. "I spent a whole year looking at him, thinking, this guy's going to be a good defender." Mattison requested a return to the defense for Winovich, following his season on offense. It proved a good move for everyone. "There was a play in that Michigan State game where they broke a run," Mattison recalled. "Chase Winovich ran around that entire defense and ended up making the tackle, 50 yards downfield. "There were secondary guys run- ning as hard as they could also; it wasn't that other guys weren't. It's just Chase's burning desire to be the best he can be. That's what he does, in everything he does on the field. "I'll be asking Chase during every game, 'Chase, do you need a break?' "'No, I feel great, Coach. I feel great.' "'Okay.' "You know what? That's what you see." — John Borton D-Line Coach Greg Mattison Marvels At Winovich's Efforts Veteran U-M assistant Greg Mattison has seen a lot of Wolverines succeed on the defensive front in his 12 years at the school, but he said Winovich is unique for a number of reasons. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN