The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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MICHIGAN FOOTBALL Opp. Non-Conference 23.0 336.5 Conference* 11.5 245.5 132.0 *Through the Nebraska game Oct. 27 abama in week one, and a 45-yard pass completion by Michigan State. U-M ranks sixth nationally in allow- ing just the three 40-plus-yard plays. LINEBACKERS HAVE TAKEN CHARGE DEFENSIVELY Eight games into the season, the top three tacklers on the Michigan football team were linebackers. That may not seem like anything out of the ordinary, but for a squad still growing into the schemes and expec- tations of this coaching staff, it's a big step in the right direction. middle linebacker Kenny Demens finished first on the team with 94 tackles. But two safeties — fifth-year senior Jordan Kovacs and redshirt junior Thomas Gordon — combined for 142 takedowns, and the next-clos- est linebacker on the stat sheet was sophomore Desmond Morgan with 63 tackles. Last season, fifth-year senior And after the first couple weeks of 2012, it looked as though that trend would continue. Five weeks into the season, Gor- don was atop the tackling totals, with 32. It wasn't until week six, when the Wolverines crushed Illinois, 45-0, that a linebacker, redshirt sophomore Jake Ryan, surpassed the safety. After Michigan's hard-fought 12-10 win over in-state rival Michigan State Oct. 20, in which Ryan and Morgan combined for 21 total tackles, the two moved to the head of the tackling charts. After U-M's meeting with Nebraska Oct. 27, Ryan and Morgan remained Michigan's two most pro- lific tacklers, with 56 and 53 stops, re- spectively, while Demens stood third with 48, two more than Gordon. That's exactly the type of produc- tion head coach Brady Hoke and de- fensive coordinator Greg Mattison want to see from the unit. Morgan attributes the spike in the linebackers' numbers to an ever-in- creasing emphasis on proper tech- nique and footwork and, perhaps more importantly, more effective play along the line of scrimmage 42 THE WOLVERINE NOVEMBER 2012 NON-CONFERENCE VS. CONFERENCE GAMES 114.06 DEFENSIVE NUMBERS IN PPG YPG RushYPG Pass Eff. TOs Forced 182.0 101.85 from the front four. 4 9 In the first few weeks of the season, blockers were scraping off defensive linemen too easily and meeting line- backers at the point of attack. But that problem has been alleviated in recent weeks, allowing the lineback- ers to be more proficient. "The defensive line is doing really well," added Ryan. "They're knock- ing the ball back, knocking the offen- sive line back. That's creating holes in Over the last two years, Hoke, Mat- tison, linebackers coach Mark Smith and defensive line coach Jerry Mont- gomery have worked out a terrific coaching plan that allows for maxi- mum player development, specific to the position. Hoke works heavily with the de- fensive tackles and nose tackles; Montgomery watches over the two defensive end spots; Smith looks af- ter middle and weakside linebackers; and Mattison takes responsibility for the strongside outside linebackers. "They're all great coaches," Ryan said. "Coach Mattison, he runs it, and he knows what he's talking about. He knows tendencies and all that kind of stuff. "Each coach is great individually at what they do. Coach Hoke is great with the interior guys. Coach Mont- gomery, I've been with him a couple times, with pass rushing. They know what they're doing. It's great having them at a separate position. When I'm down on the line, I can get tips from Coach Montgomery." That specialization — and hav- ing four expert coaches working so closely with the front seven — has helped on the field and off. The players have praised their pre- game preparation as another reason for the bump in production. "We're trying to be a champion- ship defense," Ryan said. "We need to be perfect in what we do and how we play." Redshirt sophomore linebacker Jake Ryan was Michigan's leading tackler through eight games this season, with a total of 56 stops. But even the best defenses make mistakes. Morgan, weeks later, is still upset with himself for getting drawn off- side on two third-down plays in the Illinois game. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL the offense for the linebackers to fill, and that leads to making tackles." The front seven is jelling at the right time, with the Wolverines mak- ing a final push toward Indianapolis with boom-or-bust games against Northwestern, Iowa and Ohio State in their last four conference match- ups. After the second one, Ryan took him aside and calmly said, "You're playing aggressive, fast, and that's what we want. Don't even think about it. We have your back; I have your back." It's similar to the trajectory of the defense last season, when the front seven seemed to be exponentially stouter from week to week. It may have been a small gesture, but that kind of encouragement from teammates makes it easy to sell out on every play. "We have been taught since day one that we're a family, we're a broth- erhood," Morgan said. "We're close on and off the field. And it's one of those things that comes out once you get on the field. You say, 'I've been your brother since I got here. We'll keep playing and get off the field.'"