The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/901162
DECEMBER 2017 THE WOLVERINE 37 MICHIGAN FOOTBALL man that wants to be good. He's gotten the opportunity, and when he's gone in, he's played very well." Paye is still working his way up, but he's provided pressure off the edge on a number of plays this year. He notched a tackle for loss and a half sack among his three stops at Penn State, where he looked the part of a potentially dominant pass rusher. "Kwity Paye is another one, just like Aubrey," Mattison explained. "He has just improved daily. And again, just before I'll say something to him you'll hear Rashan or Chase say, 'You've got to step this way,' or, 'You've got to be lower here.' "He listens in meetings and has great pride. He wants to be a really good football player, and the same thing is happening with him. Every time he takes a rep, I sit there and say, 'This guy's gotten better.' He gets bet- ter every day, and he's going to be a special player." Mattison has at least eight guys he can count on to rotate now, he said, and all but one (Hurst) has more eligi- bility remaining beyond this year. "The freshmen have kept do- ing what our guys have done before them," the coach said. "They've come in and decided that for us to be a re- ally good defense, we've got to have a good D-line. "A lot of people going into the season said, 'You're really young there. You don't have the depth you did before.' "The starters have stepped it up even more, and the guys behind them have now become great depth. That really shows well for us in the future." — Chris Balas FRESHMAN QUARTERBACK EARNS DON BROWN'S PRAISE Freshman quarterback Dylan Mc- Caffrey has a fan in Don Brown. The U-M defensive coordinator noted re- cently that his unit is getting better every day, and while a lot of that is because of his own players, he credits a good chunk of it to McCaffrey and some of the other scout team guys. "When we're going in practice, not only are we good on defense, but our scout team, without question, with Dylan McCaffrey at the helm, they go now," Brown said. "It's next door to what you want on a Saturday. In terms of giving us a chance from a preparation standpoint, all those things are in place. It's a good deal." Brown continued to rave about Mc- Caffrey, calling him mature beyond his years. "This guy, it's like it's his business to get us ready to play," Brown said. "That's his business, and he doesn't approach it like, 'Um, well, you know, geez, I'm down here, and I've got to do this.' There's none of that. "There were a couple plays [prepar- ing for Minnesota] where he had to re-center the tight end, re-center the back and then run this specific scheme. I swear it was the quarterback from Minnesota doing it, because he did it exactly the same way. "Our coaches have got them watch- ing a little tape, but then to come out and actually do it the same way … that's really what you're looking for. It just gives you a chance." Brown was asked to compare it to last year's scout team. OFFENSE Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Cl. WR 88 Grant Perry 6-0 191 Jr. 1 Kekoa Crawford 6-2 187 So. LT 52 Mason Cole 6-5 297 Sr. 76 J. Bushell-Beatty 6-6 315 R-Jr. LG 74 Ben Bredeson 6-5 308 So. 72 Stephen Spanellis 6-5 307 R-Fr. C 57 Patrick Kugler 6-5 296 5th-Sr. 51 Cesar Ruiz 6-4 316 Fr. RG 50 Michael Onwenu 6-3 350 So. or 51 Cesar Ruiz 6-4 316 Fr. RT 76 J. Bushell-Beatty 6-6 315 R-Jr. 70 Nolan Ulizio 6-5 295 R-So. TE 84 Sean McKeon 6-5 248 So. 83 Zach Gentry 6-7 248 R-So. or 17 Tyrone Wheatley 6-6 265 R-So. WR 9 D. Peoples-Jones 6-2 199 Fr. 13 Eddie McDoom 6-0 181 So. QB 18 Brandon Peters 6-5 220 R-Fr. 8 John O'Korn 6-4 211 5th-Sr. FB 19 Henry Poggi 6-4 244 5th-Sr. or 80 Khalid Hill 6-2 265 5th-Sr. RB 22 Karan Higdon 5-10 190 Jr. 12 Chris Evans 5-11 206 So. 32 Ty Isaac 6-3 228 5th-Sr. DEFENSE Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Cl. DE 15 Chase Winovich 6-3 253 R-Jr. 4 Reuben Jones 6-4 245 R-So. DT 5 Aubrey Solomon 6-3 297 Fr. or 90 Bryan Mone 6-4 325 R-Jr. 50 Michael Dwumfour 6-2 290 R-Fr. DT 73 Maurice Hurst 6-2 280 5th-Sr. 50 Michael Dwumfour 6-2 290 R-Fr. DE 3 Rashan Gary 6-5 281 So. 2 Carlo Kemp 6-3 246 So. OLB 7 Khaleke Hudson 6-0 205 So. 59 Noah Furbush 6-5 240 R-Jr. ILB 9 Mike McCray 6-4 242 5th-Sr. 36 Devin Gil 6-2 220 So. ILB 10 Devin Bush Jr. 5-11 222 So. 36 Devin Gil 6-2 220 So. or 46 M. Wroblewski 6-2 237 5th-Sr. FS 23 Tyree Kinnel 5-11 201 Jr. 26 J'Marick Woods 6-3 203 Fr. SS 14 Josh Metellus 6-0 199 So. 29 Jordan Glasgow 6-1 210 R-So. CB 24 Lavert Hill 5-11 177 So. 1 Ambry Thomas 6-0 179 Fr. CB 22 David Long 5-11 187 So. 28 Brandon Watson 5-11 200 R-Jr. MICHIGAN DEPTH CHART (UNOFFICIAL) Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PK 3 Quinn Nordin 6-1 195 R-Fr. 39 Kyle Seychel 6-2 174 R-Jr. P 3 Brad Robbins 6-2 181 Fr. 17 Will Hart 6-3 196 R-Fr. KO 31 James Foug 5-11 178 R-Sr. 6 Ryan Tice 6-1 172 R-So. H 15 Garrett Moores 6-5 214 5th-Sr. Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. LS 33 C. Cheeseman 6-4 239 R-Fr. 49 Andrew Robinson 6-0 221 R-Jr. KR 1 Ambry Thomas 6-0 179 Fr. 20 Brad Hawkins 6-2 204 Fr. PR 9 D. Peoples-Jones 6-2 199 Fr. 88 Grant Perry 6-0 191 Jr. SPECIAL TEAMS Freshman quarterback Dylan McCaffrey, who is redshirting this year, has caught the eye of defensive coordinator Don Brown in practice while leading the scout team. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN