The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Wednesday, March 16,2011 - 7A Strength coach Aaron Wellman Hoke begins practice sets tone for Hoke before spring By TIM ROHAN Daily Sports Editor Brady Hoke had a stern message for anyone who underestimates the impact of Aaron Wellman: That'd be a mistake. "I hope you don't," Hoke warned. "I hope you don't." Michigan's new director of strength and conditioning has been with Hoke for the past seven years, including stops at Ball State and San Diego State. And while Hoke has to wait until Satur- day when spring practice starts, Wellman has already started the process of transforming the Wol- verines. "He gets more time than any- body to be with your players because of the NCAA restric- tions," Hoke said. "That guy has to be your right hand, in my opinion. There's not a night I don't talk to him, wherever I am, to see how the day went. Because he's with the guys - he's with the kids. "They've gotten better. (The reports) weren't so nice early, but they've gotten better." Defensive coordinator Greg Mattison described Wellman as an "everything" guy - not just strength or speed. He's teaching Hoke's guys dis- cipline and accountability before the coaches get their hands on them. On the first day of winter conditioning, Wellman had the players go through a simple run to the line, as Mattison described it. And Wellman made some players repeat the drill five or six times. That's the way Wellman oper- ates: Do it right or go back and do it again. Before Mattison first met Well- man, he had already heard sto- ries elsewhere in the coaching world about how good this young strength and conditioning coach was. So when the two of them ended up in Ann Arbor, Mattison MR ISSA M C LAI /D ly Michigan coach Brady Hoke will guide Michitan in his first practice as coach this Saturday when sprint practice starts. decided to introduce himself dur- ing one of Wellman's weight train- ing sessions - that was a mistake. Wellman ignored the defensive coordinator, as if to say, get out of here, I've got work to do. "I'm not gonna mess with him anymore," Mattison said. Hoke said that to teach account- ability, ifasingle player is late to an early morning workoutor run, that player's whole group is punished. "That's how you build men- tal toughness, and it starts with him," Mattison said. "I've always believed that in college, if you have a great strength coach that has the same mission as your head coach and the same mission your team wants to play with, you have a great chance." Hoke said he will be looking for a few key things from his play- ers this spring, including attitude, toughness, effort and accountabil- ity - all of which canbe learned in the weight room or duringsprints. "(Wellman) is incredibly good at what he does," Hoke said. "Not from just a strength and condi- tioning (standpoint), but a mental standpoint for your team. "We've been able to have an attitude (as) ateam that nobody is going to beat us. And it's an earned attitude." The Wolverines will start attempting to earn Hoke, Matti- son and offensive coordinator Al Borges' respect when spring prac- tice starts. All three coaches have main- tained that they don't wantto eval- uate the players and form opinions until they see them hit and play in alive situation. In all aspects of the game, Hoke has preached toughness and said he expects a certain level of physi- cality. But how do you measure toughness? "By practicing really hard," Mattison said. "You'll see an inten- sity in our practices, the way it has to be. And that's a key thing this year. In the first year of a program, if you really believe in mental toughness and if you know that's what we have to do then you have to practice that way. It's too late whenyougetin agame. Otherwise you're goingto lose those games in the fourth quarter when someone isn't mentallytough." Added Hoke: "I think the con- sistency of hitting and a consisten- cy of being physical is something we always look for." Good news for Hoke, he and Wellman share similar philoso- phies in how to prepare a team. Since the early shakiness under Wellman's watchful eye, the Wolverines have already taken the steps to understanding what exactly Hoke wants. "They understand that there's an ethic that we want to have throughout the program and how we want to work," Hoke said. "And how we want to show up everyday with energy and the improvement side of it. "I think guys have made improvements. We're not where we need to be by any stretch. It's going to be good to get into spring football and get the football part of it taught. At the same time, we'll need the summer to continually grow as ateam, with the camara- derie and the accountability and the physicalness of it." trying to mold his team By TIM ROHAN defense. Daily Sports Editor He has stressed the impor- tance of teaching the fundamen- Brady Hoke is already leaving tals and technique that he wants his mark on Schembechler Hall, his guys to be equipped with. He just two months after taking the wants his team to play with his Michigan football coaching job. kind of passion and style - with Right outside of the team's his fingerprints all over the prod- locker room is a large red and uct on the field. white sign that reads: 2,670 - the "There's some guys who have number of days played a lot of football in some since Michigan NOTEB0K positions," Hoke said. "Mike last beat Ohio Martin's played a lot of football, State. but we have to enhance how Mike And there are two more num- plays football. We've got to get bers the Wolverines are paying Mike better. And that's just not attention too. Staring them in Mike Martin, that's every guy on the face when they enter Schem- this team - if we want to be the bechler and again when they kind of team we want tobe, which enter Al Glick Fieldhouse - their is a championship football team." indoor practice facility - are It's clear what kind of team clocks counting down the days, Hoke wants too. hours, minutes and seconds until "We're going to hit a lot, and Michigan's next games against then we're going to see where we Ohio State and against Michigan are asa team," Hoke said. State. FOUR MORE YEARS? Devin The countdown to the start of Gardner will have to wait until spring practice is now down to after his fourth season at Michi- four days. And Hoke will finally gan to find out whether or not he get a chance to see his players in will be awarded a fifth-year of live action for the first time since eligibility and a medical redshirt he was hired in January. for the 2010 season, according to "Spring is always important Associate Athletic Director Dave because it gives you the abil- Ablauf. ity to have competition," Hoke "You keep the documentation, said during a press conference you keep the injuries, you keep all on Tuesday. "There's no entitle- of that information and you can ment and you got to earn it every- forward that onto the Big Ten as day in what you're doing. Work you go along," Ablauf said. "But ethic, your competitiveness, your no determination is ever made toughness, your mentality that until after that individual's fourth you play the game with, that's year as to whether he gets a fifth where it starts. And that's what year." we'll start doing on Saturday." '" Hampered by a back injury Michigan's first practice is this throughout the season, Gardner Saturday, March 19, and the Wol- saw action in three games for verines' first full day in pads will the Wolverines - but he was still not be until the following Tues- eligible for the medical redshirt day. And the annual spring game because he hadn't played in more will be played April 16 at noon. than four of the first six games or Between now and then, Hoke any of the final six. will be transitioning quarterback He was listed as a true sopho- Denard Robinson and the rest of more on the spring roster that the offense to a new scheme, and was issued on Tuesday. Hoke pre- he'll be figuring out which play- viously said the department had ers he can trust to be physical on filed the paperwork. r 4