Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Friday, January 15, 2016 — 7
Season Review: Defensive Line
Despite numerous
injuries, unit turned
in strong season
By JAKE LOURIM
Managing Sports Editor
Editor’s
Note:
With
the
Michigan football team’s 2015
regular season in the books,
the Daily looks back at the
performance of each unit this year
and looks ahead to the future in
2016. In this edition: linebackers.
The Michigan defensive line
suffered injury after injury after
injury throughout the season,
starting in fall camp all the way
to Week 5 and Week 9. As the
year wore on, the health issues
tested the unit’s depth. And still,
the line ended up being one of the
best in college football.
Before the season started,
the unit looked like it could be
one of the country’s elite units.
It returned all but two players
from a strong 2014 group. Its
top players, like redshirt juniors
Chris Wormley and Willie Henry,
were finally seasoned and ready
to step up. The defensive line
maintained the only holdover
from the 2014 coaching staff,
Greg Mattison.
When the Wolverines entered
fall camp, they unleashed a
bevy of familiar names: Henry,
Wormley, senior Mario Ojemudia
and junior Taco Charlton on
the ends; redshirt junior Ryan
Glasgow,
sophomore
Bryan
Mone,
redshirt
sophomore
Maurice Hurst and redshirt
junior Matt Godin on the interior.
As it turned out, Michigan
needed every one of them. All but
Mone — who missed the entire
season with an injury — started a
game up front.
And the Wolverines lived up
to their billing. They made 2.5
sacks and 6.8 tackles for loss per
game. They disrupted opposing
backfields all season long, playing
their best football in a five-game
stretch early in the season, in
which they gave up 14 total
points. And on an elite defense,
perhaps the line featured the
most playmakers: Wormley (14.5
tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks),
Henry (10 and 6.5), Charlton (8.5
and 5.5) and Hurst (6.5 and three).
Even when Michigan’s line
struggled, those stars were a
handful for opponents. Mone’s
injury depleted the Wolverines’
depth, but the starting core was
still intact. But then Ojemudia
tore his Achilles at Maryland on
Oct. 3, and senior Royce Jenkins-
Stone filled in at the hybrid buck
position. Finally, redshirt junior
Ryan Glasgow injured his shoulder
against Rutgers on Nov. 7. After
three
season-ending
injuries,
Michigan had to head into its
toughest stretch of the season,
playing fatigued at the end of the
year with its fewest personnel.
The losses finally showed.
After giving up fewer than 100
rushing yards in six of the first
nine games and averaging 2.7
sacks in that span, the Wolverines
trailed off in November before
finishing with another strong
performance in the Citrus Bowl
victory against Florida.
HIGH POINT: It’s tough to
pick out one individual game in
the first half of the season because
Michigan’s defensive front was so
dominant throughout the season.
But the line’s best performance
may have come Oct. 10 against
Northwestern.
Just
the
week
before,
Ojemudia
was
lost
for
the
season, yet Jenkins-Stone filled
in seamlessly. The Wolverines
tied a season high with four
sacks and totaled eight tackles
for loss. And while offense
wasn’t
the
Wildcats’
strong
suit, Michigan still pulled off its
third straight shutout against a
ranked opponent in a dominant
38-0
victory
at
Michigan
Stadium. That win helped build
the Wolverines’ national hype
perhaps more than any other
this season.
LOW
POINT:
While
Michigan gave up its most
rushing yards of the season Nov.
28 against Ohio State, the more
shocking
performance
came
two weeks earlier at Indiana.
Playing without Glasgow for the
first time, the Wolverines had no
answers for the Hoosiers’ spread
rushing
attack,
surrendering
307 yards rushing on 55 carries.
Their thin defensive line showed
as Indiana ran zone-read plays
repeatedly for the duration of
the game.
Only when the Wolverines
came up with a goal-line stand
in double overtime did Michigan
secure a victory against the
Hoosiers, who finished 6-7.
THE
FUTURE:
Michigan
made do with makeshift lineups
up front for most of this season.
Next year, with almost everyone
returning, and if they can stay
healthy, the Wolverines should
be even better.
The
loss
of
Henry,
who
announced
Wednesday
night
on Twitter that he will forgo
his senior season and enter the
NFL Draft, will leave a hole.
As well, Ojemudia’s eligibility
has also been exhausted. But if
Michigan learned one thing this
season, it’s that it can overcome
personnel losses on its defensive
line. Wormley, the leader of the
group for most of the season, will
return. If Mone and Glasgow
come back healthy, they can help
fill in the losses.
Depending on the scheme
new defensive coordinator Don
Brown runs, a rough defensive
front
could
start
Wormley,
Charlton, Hurst and Glasgow.
Mone,
Godin
and
redshirt
sophomore Lawrence Marshall,
and Michigan is still in the mix
for five-star recruit Rashan Gary.
And with Mattison returning
for another year coaching the
line, the unit is in good shape for
the future.
ALLISON FARRAND/Daily
Redshirt junior defensive lineman Chris Wormley (43) was one of the highlights on Michigan’s elite defensive line.
‘M’ heads into Columbus
on four-game win streak
By JASON RUBINSTEIN
Daily Sports Editor
After its sweep of in-state
rival Michigan State, the No. 6
Michigan hockey team regained
its spot as the
nation’s
best
offense.
The
Wolverines
are
currently
averaging
4.68 goals — a
number
that
grew after this
past
weekend,
when
they
scored 15 goals
in two contests
against
the
Spartans.
Now, a week
later, the next
team
to
try
and
stymie
Michigan’s
electrifying offense is Ohio State.
Struggling out of the gate, the
Buckeyes
started
the
season
winning just four of their first
15 contests. But recently, the
Buckeyes have looked like a
different team.
Over Winter Break, Ohio
State traveled to Florida and
beat then-No. 4 Boston College,
3-2, before crushing then-No. 8
Cornell, 8-0, to win the Florida
College Classic title.
“Ohio State had a big couple
wins down in Florida, and they’re
hot right now, so we’re not taking
them lightly,” said sophomore
forward Dexter Dancs. “That’s
for sure.”
But the Wolverines are also
currently playing what seems like
their best hockey at this point.
They have scored 22 goals in
their last four games, conceding
just nine.
Their offense has caught fire
lately for multiple reasons —
mainly due to the first line of
junior forwards Tyler Motte
and JT Compher and freshman
forward Kyle Connor.
The trio has been unstoppable
since it started playing on the
same line, and Big Ten statistics
support this. Connor, Compher
and Motte are first, second
and third, respectively, in the
Big Ten point-scoring race.
Connor has been particularly
sensational, notching 15 points
in his last six games. His 31
points on the season are good
for fourth in the country.
Despite the star trio, it has
been the play of the fourth line —
sophomore forward Dexter Dancs
and junior forward Max Shuart
— that has helped carry some of
the load lately. Dancs notched two
tallies against the Spartans, and
said most of his and the team’s
success stems from their tight
bond.
“We’re having a ton of fun,” he
said. “The team is extremely tight,
the boys love coming to the rink
and it’s the best part of the day for
us. Right now, everything is just
fun, even the lifts.”
Michigan has also seen a jolt
from
sophomore
defenseman
Zach
Werenski,
who
played
last weekend in his first series
since
captaining
the
United
States World Junior team in the
World Junior Championships in
Helsinki.
Werenski
registered
two
goals and an assist against
the Spartans. After one of
his goals, he paid his dues to
former Wolverine Carl Hagelin,
celebrating the goal by playing
the violin on his arm with his
stick.
Dancs
said
Werenski
can
get by with celebrating goals
like that because he is just that
skilled. Werenski said he still
got a message from coach Red
Berenson about going overboard
with celebrations.
It wouldn’t be surprising if
this Friday’s game in Columbus
is high-scoring. After all, the
first time the two teams met in
Columbus last season, Michigan
won a wild 10-6 contest, and its
offense is just as good as last
year. It’s no longer shocking if
the Wolverines score five-plus
goals a night.
“I think something pretty
similar to (Michigan) State,”
Werenski
said
about
his
expectations of the upcoming
series. “I’d guess the games would
be a little bit closer. They are a
good team, block a lot of shots and
it will be a battle.
“I hope we score 10 and they
score none.”
JAMES COLLER/Daily
Zach Werenski has fully readjusted after spending almost a month in Helsinki for the World Junior Championships.
Wolverines to host
meet Saturday for
autism awareness
By PAIGE VOEFFRAY
For the Daily
The
Michigan
women’s
gymnastics team is competing
against Ohio State on Saturday,
but
for
the
Wolverines,
it’s
all
about
Johnny Leone.
For the third
straight
year,
Michigan
is
pairing
with
the Ted Lindsay
Foundation
and
Autism
Speaks to hold
an
autism
awareness
meet.
The
Wolverines
feel autism is often overlooked,
though it is gaining awareness
throughout the country. Michigan
had an opportunity to get to know
someone with autism, 18-year-old
Leone, giving the team insight
into the disorder.
“We’ve been able to meet a
ton of really great and talented
kids through the process of
doing this autism meet for the
past three years, so it’s always
something
we
really
look
forward to,” said senior Lindsay
Williams. “With all that we’ve
learned about it, we’re really
excited to help everyone who
comes out to the meet to learn
about it as well.”
The Michigan men’s hockey
team will also be in attendance
at the upcoming meet to help
support the cause. In October,
the hockey team had an autism
awareness game, and some of
the women from the gymnastics
team went to support the hockey
team and their cause.
“I don’t think gymnastics
and hockey are two sports
that you would think would
be associated together,” said
senior Briley Casanova. “I think
it’s great that we have two very
different sports supporting each
other and also having a common
goal in spreading awareness
about one cause.”
That’s not to say the Wolverines
won’t be focused on winning the
meet. The team is tied for No. 1 in
the nation in just its second week
of the season – the challenge now
shifts to staying there.
“It’s a really nice motivation
to our team to get them to really
believe that they deserve to be
competing with the very top teams
in the country and they’re capable
of doing that,” said Michigan
coach Bev Plocki. “We’ve really
talked about the fact that we need
to expect ourselves to be at the
Super Six, and we need to believe
that we have the ability to win the
National Championship.”
The team has set the standard
high for the rest of the season.
After multiple athletes achieved
personal-best
scores
against
then-No. 9 Georgia on Saturday
to go with a team win, they are
excited for what the rest of the
season has to offer.
But the Wolverines did not
come away from their meet
against Georgia unscathed. At
each event an athlete fell early
within
the
rotation,
adding
pressure
on
the
women
to
perform their routines cleanly.
Going
into
Saturday’s
meet
against the Buckeyes, Michigan
hopes to work on its consistency
and keep the positive energy up
throughout the meet.
And most importantly, the
team hopes spectators will come
not just for gymnastics, but also
for the cause.
Ohio State
at Michigan
Matchup:
Ohio State 1-0;
Michigan 2-0
When:
Saturday
4 P.M.
Where: Crisler
Center
TV/Radio:
MGoBlueTV
LUNA ANNA ARCHEY/Daily
Bev Plocki’s team is tied for No. 1 in the nation in this week’s poll.
Partridge hired as
full-time assistant
By MAX BULTMAN
Managing Sports Editor
Chris Partridge has been
named the Michigan football
team’s
special
teams
and
linebackers coach, the team
announced
Thursday
via
a
press release.
Partridge had been the team’s
director of player personnel
for the 2015 season, but he also
served as its linebackers coach
for the Citrus Bowl after former
defensive
coordinator
and
linebackers coach D.J. Durkin
left to become the head coach at
Maryland.
After Michigan lost Durkin to
the Terrapins and former special
teams coordinator John Baxter
to Southern California last week,
Partridge will fill both vacancies.
“Chris has a proven track
record as a successful coach,” said
Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh
via the release. “He has brought
a lot of energy and enthusiasm to
his work as our director of player
personnel. I know that same
passion will be exhibited in his
work with our student-athletes.”
Prior to coming to Michigan,
Partridge worked from 2010 to
2014 as the head coach at Paramus
Catholic High School in Paramus,
N.J., the alma mater of redshirt
freshman safety Jabrill Peppers
and the current home of the
nation’s No. 1 recruit, defensive
tackle Rashan Gary.
Partridge received positive
reviews from players for his work
as interim linebackers coach for
the Citrus Bowl. He inherits a
group of linebackers that will
lose three starters going into
next year, and a special teams
group that finished the season
tied for 12th in special teams
efficiency under Baxter.
“I came to Michigan because
I wanted to work with the
best and learn from the best,”
Partridge said in the release. “I
couldn’t have a better mentor
than
coach
Harbaugh
who
shares my vision that the student
athletes come first. I am honored
by his confidence and for the
opportunity to continue to serve
this incredibility (sic) institution.”
FOOTBALL
Michigan at
Ohio State
Matchup:
Michigan
13-3-3; Ohio
State 6-11-1
When: Friday
6:30 P.M.,
Saturday
5:05 P.M.
Where: Friday
at Value
City Arena,
Sunday at Yost
Ice Arena
TV/Radio:
Fox Sports
Detroit