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FRIDAY, OCTOBER 29, X965
THE MICHIGAN DAILY
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By BOB McFARLAND
Remember that third candidate
for Michigan's quarterback slot,.
the guy whose name suddenly pop-
pedup in pre-season drills to give
Wally Gabler and D 7ick Vidmer
somebody else to worry about be-
sides each other?'
No, he hasn't dropped out of
school, or hurt his knee, or been
given a bench warming job. No,
Rick Volk is out there in the de-.
fensive backfield each Saturday
afternoon, making enemy ball car-
riers and receivers wish " they had
stayed in bed-and sending some
of them there with his bone-
crushing tackles.'
Volk, playing at defensive half-
back and safety this season, was
switched to the role of defender
at the beginning of last year. Al-
though he had previously been
listed as a quarterback, the Wol-
4 verine from Wauseon, Ohio, quick-
ly adapted to his new duties, in-
tercepting a pass against the Air
Force in his first varsity en-
counter.
Elliott Impressed
Head coach Bump Elliott was
effusive in his praise of junior
Volk. "Rick has tremendous over-
all ability," Elliott said yesterday.
"In fact, I would say he's the best
all-around player on the squad
this year.
"He's very quick, he tackles.
hard, he's a good runner, and he
can throw the football," the Wol-
verine head coach continued.
"Rick would be very competent at
either halfback or quarterback,
Volk.
and we would probably use him
there, if he wasn't such a valuable
part of our defensive unit."
Volk indicated yesterday that
his present job suited him just
fine. "I really love defense," he
said. "That way, I get to work
with all the guys on the team."
Hadrick Rough
Rating the receivers he has cov-
ered, Rick named Bob Hadrick of
Purdue and the Spartans' Gene
Washington as two of the best
he's come up against. "Washing-
ton and Hadrick are two different
types of runners, though," he
noted.
"Washington has good speed,
but not too many moves. He tried
to beat us deep. On the other
hand, Hadrick has very tricky
moves, but his speed is not over-
whelming. Ed Orr of Navy also
gave me a lot of trouble last year.
"I really don't prefer to cover
one type of receiver over another,"
Volk added. "When you play a
different type each week, it keeps
you alert. You learn a lot, having
to watch Washington go deep one
week, and cover a twirling, but-
tonhooking Hadrick the next. The
defender has to worry about
everything."
Effective Worrier
Rick may be a worry-wart, but
he stops the opposition. Although
the Wolverines used double cover-
age on, Hadrick during the Purdue
game (holding him to only three
receptions), the Boilermakers' All-
America end was quick to cite
Volk's efforts after the game.
Volk, known to some as the
Tacklilg
Michigan hatchet man, discounted
reports that he tackles and hits
with more brute force than most.
"It might look like I'm tackling
hard from up in the stands, but
it's actually not too rough. An
end goes up for a pass right next
to you, and all you've got to do
is hit him."
It sounds easy, anyway. Whether
some of the Wolverine junior's
recent victims would agree with
him is questionable.
Elliott, speaking of Volk's de-
fensive work, said that Rick "is
the finest defensive back I have
coached at Michigan."
Zeal
Volk received more than his
share of personal fouls during his
first season of varsity competition.
He attributed the abundance of
red flags to "a little too much
enthusiasm. I always remind peo-
ple that only one of the penalties
was actually marked off against
us," he remarked.
"This year I've watched myself,
because a thing like that hurts a
team and demoralizes them.
"I have had interference called
on me a couple of instances this
season, and they were good calls.'
Sometimes, I build up a head of
steam and can't stop, or if a re-
ceiver has you beat, that may be
the only way to stop him."
Not Too Much
Rick feels that there isn't an
excessive amount of jostling be-
tween a potential pass-catcher
and a defensive back. "They may,
be able to throw a few punches on
the line, but the passes are caught
out in the open," he said.
Knocking down something be-
sides an enemy ball carrier, Volk
exploded a myth which had grown
- e
up around him. "I don't know how
it got started, but I was not on
the academic All-America team in
high school."
All-America Boy
Rick was on an All-America
t e a m, however. The Wigwam
Drieser All-America team, appear-
ing in the Coach and Athlete
magazine, named him to their
high school squad. Volk was es-
pecially pleased with the selection,
because it was the only recogni-
tion he received during high
school.
Volk employs no special methods
in his pass defending. He explain-
ed that the halfbacks and safety
men are taught to look through
the man they are covering, con-
centrating on the quarterback. By
using this technique, Volk stated
that you learn to ignore the little
fakes of the ends and follow only
their major moves.
Lucky
Rick wrote, off his interceptions
as "mostly luck." As an illustra-
tion, he pointed to one of his in-
terceptions against Minnesota last
week. "I wasn't even on my guy.
He was six or seven yards in front
of me, and Hankinson just over-
thr. w him."
Playing at safety for the first
time this season at Minneapolis,
Volk hauled in two enemy tosses.
He also picked off a Bob Griese
aerial against Purdue. '
oferror.
The junior star provided one
of the highlights at the Sphinx
fund-raising event yesterday, as
he and teammate Jim Detwiler
were auctioned off for $4. "We were
a little disappointed," he laughed.
"It was still a pretty good price
though, considering that Detwiler
only has one good leg. I was the
best part of the bargain," Rick
joked.
Volk always wanted to play at
Michigan. "During high school,
my mom and dad didn't push it
much, because they wanted me to
make up my own mind. Michigan
was always foremost in my mind,
and when I got an offer from the
Wolverines, all my deliberations
were over."
Plays Key Role
Rick termed the Ohio State
game last year his greatest thrill.
Volk played a key part in the
10-0 Wolverine victory, which
clinched the Big Ten champion-
ship for Michigan. He intercepted
two passes and knocked down an-
other to halt three Buckeye drives,
all deep in Michigan territory,
during the crucial fourth quarter.
How does Volk feel about play-
ing for the Wolverines? "It's just
great, he answered. "It's some-
thing I alwaysthought about. I'd
even like to sit on the, bench for
Michigan."
SPORTS NIGHT EDITOR:
RICK STERN
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-Daily--Richard Cooper
STAR DEFENSIVE BACK RICK VOLK dogs the step of a Bull-
dog receiver in the Georgia game early this season. Volk, a junior
in his second year as the starting left cornerback, is characterized
by his glue-like defending and knock-'em-down tackling.
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