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Thursday, August 3, 2017
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
SPORTS

AMELIA CACCHIONE/Daily

John Beilein had to replace two members of his staff this offseason after Billy Donlon and Jeff Meyer took jobs elsewhere.

Report: Michigan adds two former 
Illinois State assistants to staff 

The Michigan basketball team 

appears to have filled two vacant 
assistant coaching positions this past 
week — and both hires are from the 
same school. 

As 
first 
reported 
by 
Josh 

Henschke of The Michigan Insider 
and Brendan Quinn of The Athletic, 
Luke Yaklich and Deandre Haynes 
will both be making the move to 
Michigan from Illinois State. They 
are set to replace Billy Donlon 
and Jeff Meyer, who departed 
the program this offseason for 
jobs at Northwestern and Butler, 
respectively. The school has yet to 
confirm either hire. 

As an associate head coach this 

past season, Yaklich comes to the 
Wolverines fresh off a record-
breaking season with the Redbirds 
in which the team set a program 
record with 28 total wins. Yaklich 
spent over 10 years as a head coach 
at the high school and AAU levels 
before joining the Illinois State staff 
in 2013 as an assistant. 

Of note, the Illinois State website 

frequently attributes the team’s 
recent success in the classroom — the 
Redbirds set a program record for 
GPA last season — to Yaklich, noting 
that he was in charge of academics 
with the team. In addition, his ties 
to the AAU circuit make him a viable 

recruiter and should help replace the 
void left by Donlon and Meyer on the 
trail.

Unlike Yaklich, Haynes actually 

never coached for Illinois State, 
spending a mere two months with 
the program. Haynes most recently 
coached as an assistant at Toledo 
for one season after beginning his 
coaching career at Kent State. With 
ties to the Michigan area — Haynes 
grew up in Detroit and played at 
Southwestern High School — he 
should provide a boost in the ever-
competitive 
in-state 
recruiting 

battles.

Both Yaklich and Haynes fit the 

mold of the type of hires Michigan 
coach John Beilein makes. They’re 
both relatively young and played 
basketball collegiately — both which 
seem to be prerequisites to becoming 
an assistant coach under Beilein.

Entering the season, one of the 

major storylines will be whether 
or not the Wolverines can replicate 
their defensive improvements from 
a year ago. Donlon, brought in a 
year ago to shore up one of the worst 
defenses in the league, helped lead 
Michigan to the third-best scoring 
defense in the Big Ten last season. 
Yaklich comes to Michigan with 
a defensive background, having 
guided the Redbirds to the sixth 
best opponent effective field goal 
percentage (a metric adjusted to 

account for the value of three-point 
attempts) in the nation.

With Donlon gone, and DJ 

Wilson and Zak Irvin off to the NBA, 
Yaklich in particular could be tasked 
with maintaining the Wolverines’ 
defensive competence.

Hiring fresh staff is nothing new 

for Beilein. He has had to replace 
two assistants each of the past two 
offseasons. Meyer, in fact, will be 
joining the staff of former Wolverines 
assistant Lavall Jordan at Butler. The 
high rate of staff turnover comes 
with its positives and negatives. 

Bringing in new assistants each 

year forces an inevitable transition 
period as the players and coaches 
become 
acquainted 
with 
each 

other and the systems they are 
implementing. Having a volatile 
coaching 
staff 
also 
can 
make 

recruiting more difficult — though 
that risk is minimized as long as 
Beilein remains head coach. 

But when the younger assistants 

leave Michigan it tends to be for 
head coaching jobs or higher-profile 
gigs. This, in turn, makes Michigan 
an attractive destination for coaches 
looking for a launching pad to 
bigger jobs; an allure to good, young 
coaches even beyond Michigan’s 
natural appeal.

After the month-long search, the 

two hires have filled the coaching 
staff for the upcoming season.

MAX MARCOVITCH

Daily Sports Writer

Just two days after pulling 

four-star linebacker Cameron 
McGrone, 
the 
Michigan 

football team has received 
another commitment for his 
2018 recruiting 
class.

Three-star 

Naples, 
Fla. 

cornerback 
Sammy Faustin 
announced 
his 

commitment 
Wednesday 
afternoon, 
becoming 
the 

thirteenth 
recruit 
to 

join 
the 
Wolverines’ 
2018 

recruiting class.

Though he’s ranked just 

78th amongst cornerbacks and 
No. 870 nationally, Faustin has 
long-been on Michigan’s eye 
and was impressed with the 
team’s annual BBQ recruiting 
event last weekend, according 
to Steve Lorenz of 247Sports. 

“He’s a guy who (defensive 

coordinator) 
Don 
Brown 

absolutely loves — a guy the 
staff has been fighting for 

a lot,” Lorenz said. “There 
are 
other 
defensive 
backs 

Michigan is still recruiting, 
but Brown is a big advocate for 
this kid.” 

ESPN describes him as a 

“versatile defender who can 
play outside and projects as 

a free safety” 
because 
of 

“ball 
skills” 

but needs to 
improve on his 
“strength in his 
tackling 
and 

consistency 
of 
footwork.” 

Per MaxPreps, 
Faustin 
made 

39 tackles with 
an interception 

and two forced fumbles last 
season.

And at 6’2” and 170 pounds, 

Faustin has the type of frame 
that Brown looks for from 
members 
of 
his 
defensive 

backfield.

Faustin — who has offers 

from over 20 schools — is 
the 
Wolverines’ 
fourth 

commitment 
from 
a 
2018 

conerback, joining four-stars 
Myles Sims and Germon Green 
and three-star Gemon Green. 

MARK CALCAGNO

Daily Sports Writer

“He’s a guy who 

Don Brown 

absolutly loves.”

Sammy Faustin, a three-star defensive 
back, announced his decision on Twitter

Wolverines nab 
another commitment 

FILE PHOTO/Daily

Don Brown was the primary recruiter for Faustin, a rangy defensive back.

