Michigan Players Dish On Defense, Macdonald, Hutchinson And More
Anticipation is ramping up for Michigan to take the field in the Orange Bowl on New Year’s Eve. While the Wolverines remain a 7.5-point underdog against Georgia, it was clear Michigan is confident in what the coaching staff is doing and their ability to compete on the field. A quartet of defensive players spoke to the media on Tuesday, touching on a number of big topics surrounding the team.
Mazi Smith: “I think we aren't too worried about Georgia's defense and what they do. We're worried about what we do, and we aren't necessarily worried. We're just focused, because that's the only way we're going to play championship-level ball… We kind of block out all the outside noise and worry about what we've got to do, focus on what we've got to do and get our jobs done.”
While Georgia’s defense grabs most of the headlines, Michigan has been able to lock down defensively in its own right. Georgia boasts the number one scoring defense at 9.5 points per game, but Michigan is not far behind at 16.1 points per game — which is fourth best in the nation. The game is shaping up to be a defensive slugfest and Smith is right that all the Michigan defenders can do is focus on controlling what they can. In the Wolverines last two games, the defense has slowed down Ohio State and completely stifled Iowa and the offense has responded and guided the team to a win. It will likely be more difficult for the Wolverines to move the ball against the Bulldogs, but if the defense can do its part, get off the field quickly and give more opportunities for the offense to break through, it could spell a winning game plan for the Wolverines.
Chris Hinton: “I think [Coach Macdonald] does a great job of putting people in great positions to make plays, and he does a great job just relating to his players. We understand what he's thinking, he understands what we're thinking, and we're able to bounce off of that, bounce ideas off of that, and I think that's paid dividends to our success this year. I mean, we love Coach Mac."
Mike Macdonald was brought in to rejuvenate a once-proud defensive unit and have a more complex and multi-dimensional scheme. Bringing down an NFL style formula from his time with the Ravens, MacDonald has found immediate success in his first year in Ann Arbor. The defense is allowing over 100 fewer yards per game than they were last season and held Ohio State’s number one ranked scoring offense to a season low in points last month. But beyond the stat sheet, Macdonald has instilled a culture change in Michigan that has players having fun again. He’s preached coaching with the players, rather than at the players and this environment has created a more cohesive unit on the field. It's a stark contrast from Don Brown’s defense of the past few years and the future is bright if Macdonald sticks around.
DJ Turner: “No, I wouldn't say it's been difficult [with the time off]. Every game we try to go 1-0 every week, so we just know this is another game, and we've got to go 1-0 this week and we've been doing it the whole season, so nothing really changes.”
There’s a common saying in sports about peaking at the right time. Michigan had its two best performances of the year the last two times they took the field and was playing its best football at the end of the season. But by the time the Wolverines take the field in Miami, it will have been almost a month since they defeated Iowa and lifted the Big Ten trophy. The extra time off could slow their momentum, but as Turner makes clear — it's not something they’re worried about. All year Michigan has dealt with adversity in different forms and handled it each time. They overcame 4th quarter deficits on the road to Nebraska and Penn State. They won out after the loss in East Lansing. Now they must take on a Georgia team that’s had a month to fume about its first loss. It’s another tough hurdle for the Wolverines. But if they can bottle the way they played in the final weeks of the season and recapture it in Miami, they could be on their way to the National Championship game.
David Ojabo: "Yeah, it started in the summer training when I just told [Aidan Hutchinson] I was going to be in his hip pocket, just knowing he was going to be a Top 5 guy. It was a smart thing to do, to have someone who knows the ways and having someone to follow, and it's translated throughout the season. We just feed off each other. You go up, I go under, you go under, I go up. We just do our thing."
Arguably no player in college football has had a bigger rise than David Ojabo this season. Going from a complete unknown to a potential top-10 NFL draft pick is a nearly unprecedented leap but Ojabo does it and now it’s clear why. Ojabo put his trust in Aidan Hutchinson to guide him and together they’ve had a meteoric rise. They have both wreaked havoc on offensive game plans all season long and both produced double-digit sack seasons. Hutchinson came back for his senior season on a mission to beat Ohio State, win the Big Ten and take Michigan to new heights. He more than answered the bell when he finished the season as the Heisman runner-up. But without Ojabo learning from Hutchinson and having the work ethic to become an elite player himself, it made Michigan’s defense all the scarier. A team can scheme up ways to stop one great defensive player. But with two, it makes things exponentially harder. With Hutchinson and Ojabo rearing to go against Georgia, they’ll be key for getting the Wolverines over the finish line in Miami.
