8 — Thursday, September 6, 2018
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Harbaugh “not on the 
hot seat,” says Schlissel

Four years ago it would have 
been unfathomable to question 
Jim Harbaugh’s job security.
Even now, the prospect 
seems 
far-fetched, 
but 
after the Michigan football 
team’s loss to Notre Dame on 
Saturday, 
some 
Wolverines 
fans took to comment sections 
and social media to call for 
Harbaugh’s job.
It’s not like the entire 
fanbase has turned against the 
former Michigan quarterback. 
Even so, the contingent was 
at least large enough that 
University 
president 
Mark 
Schlissel was asked about it 
at the Detroit Economic Club 
forum at the Westin Book 
Cadillac on Wednesday.
Schlissel, 
for 
his 
part, 
scoffed at the notion.
“He is not on the hot seat,” 
Schlissel said. “He is under 
contract for four more years.”
Of course, that is easy to say 
early in the season. But even 
looking at Harbaugh’s time at 
Michigan as a whole, he still 
is the most successful coach 
the Wolverines have had in the 
last decade, even if it is by a 

small margin over Brady Hoke.
“… I joke with some of our 
coaches, who all expect to 
win a league every year and 
have a perfect record and 
the like,” Schlissel said. “It’s 
mathematically 
impossible 
for everyone to have a perfect 
record, after the first game 
anyway.”
All 
week, 
Michigan 
echoed Schlissel’s sentiment, 
downplaying the idea that 
there is any sense of urgency 
after Week 1. Each player, 
when 
asked, 
said 
they’re 
trying to block out the noise 
from the outside.
However, 
there 
is 
also 
an obvious feeling that the 
Wolverines 
must 
improve 
in short order. Harbaugh’s 
predecessor, 
Hoke, 
was 
fired after his fourth season, 
following a 5-7 campaign.
It 
would 
be 
a 
seismic 
shock if Michigan was that 
bad this season, and only a 
seemingly vocal minority is 
calling for Harbaugh’s job in 
the first place. Regardless, it 
is a good sign for the coach 
that Schlissel, the man who 
ultimately holds the power to 
fire him, has given a public 
endorsement.

KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily
Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh gets sign of confidence from Mark Schlissel.

MIKE PERSAK
Managing Sports Editor

MIKE PERSAK
Managing Sports Editor

Ross and Gil positive in whatever role they play

When 
Michigan’s 
defense 
trotted onto the field at Notre 
Dame Stadium on Saturday, 
junior Devin Gil came out as the 
starting WILL linebacker.
It was an answer to one of the 
final personnel questions for a 
defense returning nine starters 
from 
last 
season. 
Defensive 
coordinator Don Brown had 
said Gil and sophomore Josh 
Ross were in a “fistfight” for the 
starting spot.
Both said the competition 
benefitted them. And in the end, 
though only one of the two can 
run out for the first defensive 
play, both saw the field Saturday. 
Ross worked at MIKE linebacker 
in camp too, so when junior 
Devin Bush went down with a 
leg injury in the second quarter, 
Ross came in for him.
Gil finished the game with 
four tackles, and Ross finished 
with five.
So maybe the “fistfight” will 

go a few more rounds.
On Tuesday, at the Wolverines’ 
media availability, Gil mentioned 
Ross when asked if Bush’s injury 
changed anything for him.
“No, because I know that I’ve 
got another linebacker next to 
me, Josh Ross,” Gil said. “And 
we’re both vocal enough where 
we both can contribute halfway 
and 
he 
does 
the other half. 
So I have trust 
in him. So we 
knew that we 
were 
gonna 
step up and do 
what we had to 
do to make sure 
the defense is 
right.”
Ross and Gil 
played 
solidly, 
though the most memorable play 
from the two may have been 
one that Gil says he should have 
made.
Late in the third quarter, 
he broke into the backfield, 
nearly 
sacking 
Notre 
Dame 

quarterback Brandon Wimbush. 
But 
Wimbush 
spun 
away, 
scrambled, then found an open 
Chase Claypool for 20 yards.
It was a low point in an 
otherwise strong first start, 
which included a tackle of 
Wimbush with two minutes left 
in the game to give Michigan the 
ball back and a chance to tie it.
“I felt I did 
pretty good,” Gil 
said. 
“I 
mean, 
it’s always some 
plays that you feel 
that you could be 
able to make, and 
that’s just how it 
is.”
The 
question 
now 
is 
if 
Gil 
remains 
the 
starter at WILL.
While Ross played a lot when 
Bush went down, he also spelled 
Gil at times.
For his part, Gil says he’ll leave 
any permanent starting decision 
up to the coaches. Either way, it 
seems the two are happy to fill 

whatever role they’re given.
“We’re cool,” Gil said. “Like I 
said, we both feed off each other. 
No matter what, regardless if 
he’s in or I’m in, we’ve always 
got each other’s back, and if we 
see something that we did wrong 
or can help us, we’re gonna make 
that adjustment and help each 
other out.”
Added Ross: “I mean, having 
D. Bush and D. Gil on the team, 
I mean, all three of us just 
working together, it’s a great, 
great thing to have when you 
can really talk to guys and really 
get better off of each other. So to 
have guys like that on our team 
— linebackers next to me — it’s 
beautiful to see.”
It’s a good problem to have for 
Brown and Michigan. Bush is 
clearly the best linebacker on the 
team, and from all accounts his 
injury is minor — Gil said Bush 
practiced on Tuesday. But Gil 
and Bush both proved capable in 
Saturday night’s loss.
And they may have each other 
to thank for that.

KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily
Junior WILL linebacker Devin Gil and Josh Ross fought for a starting spot in the preseason, and on Saturday against Notre Dame, they showed what they can do.

“I know that 
I’ve got another 
linebacker next 
to me...”

Zordich evaluates defensive back play vs. Irish

On paper, the Michigan football 
team’s defensive backs put on a 
formidable show against Notre 
Dame’s receiving corps on Saturday 
night.
But for defensive backs coach 
Mike Zordich, it all comes with an 
asterisk.
“I’d say for the first quarter, 
pretty bad,” he said of his group’s 
performance. “But after that, they 
settled in and played well.”
Fighting 
Irish 
quarterback 
Brandon Wimbush completed just 
12 of 22 passes for 170 yards and a 
touchdown. But 148 of those yards 
came in the first half, and even some 
of Zordich’s highly-touted corners 
surrendered atypical yardage.
After Chase Claypool caught 
a 16-yard first-down pass on the 
third play of the game, Notre 
Dame’s Miles Boykin corralled an 
impressive 28-yard grab through 
a pass interference call by junior 

defensive back Lavert Hill. Hill had 
his back turned and tried to save 
face by pushing Boykin, but the 
referee saw it.
For the fiery Zordich, even the 
best aren’t immune to criticism.
“The simplest things, the first 
third down — things we do 15, 20 
times in practice — we didn’t do it. 
Why? I have no idea,” Zordich said. 
“The next play (Hill) looks like he’s 
never covered a guy man-to-man. 
He had a pass interference and the 
guy made a great catch anyway. 
You just never know, just gotta 
learn from it.
“And we’re moving on, but that 
was a tough one to swallow.”
Zordich demands excellence 
from his defensive backs and will 
be blunt about it if they aren’t, but 
he will allow breathing room for 
some of the nuances of the position. 
He acknowledged the size of the 
Fighting Irish’s top two receivers 
— both 6-foot-4 — and how that 
caused a physical grudge match for 
his shorter corners.

After two consecutive miscues 
that set up Notre Dame’s first 
touchdown, he didn’t say anything 
to his group on the sidelines, 
emphasizing the short memory he 
preaches for his players.
Amnesia was certainly necessary 
after the most notable play of the 
evening, with the Wolverines 
already down, 7-0. Backup safety 
Brad Hawkins, who had replaced 
the ejected Josh Metellus, found 
himself in the endzone on a 50-50 
ball with Fighting Irish receiver 
Chris Finke. Despite Hawkins’ 
hand on the ball, Finke outmuscled 
Hawkins to bring Notre Dame’s 
lead to two scores.
“Hats off to the Notre Dame 
guy,” Zordich said. “He made the 
play. Ball is in the air you gotta go 
get it. You gotta make plays, there’s 
no excuse. Certainly that was a big 
(mistake) because that resulted in 
seven points.”
After the first two drives, 
though, Zordich was pleased. 
Michigan allowed just 22 yards the 

entire second half, and recorded 
an 
interception 
by 
Brandon 
Watson. But even Watson received 
measured feedback, as Zordich 
cited “a couple technique issues” 
before admitting the fifth-year 
senior had a solid showing on 
Saturday.
The 
Wolverines’ 
defensive 
backs were some of the best in the 
country a year ago, and displayed 
that same aggressiveness despite 
anomalic mental lapses. It seemed 
like enough to hush any lingering 
concerns about the unit, but 
also enough to leave Zordich 
questioning himself after trotting 
out what he thought was an 
“unbelievably prepared” group.
“As a coach you have to focus on 
what you saw to correct,” he said. 
“Yes, you have to look at how they 
came back and they played well, 
they really did. I compliment them 
on that.
“It’s just — I’m trying to figure 
out why that happened in the first 
quarter with all the prep.”

ETHAN WOLFE
Daily Sports Writer

‘M’ shows depth in win

Most 
cases 
of 
one 
team 
dominating another are a show of 
superior physicality and skill. But 
for the Michigan volleyball team, 
its 3-0 win over Valparaiso was a 
chance to flex one of its greatest 
strengths this season: depth.
In a sweep over the Crusaders, 
16 players saw time on the 
court. There were lineups that 
incorporated 
the 
Wolverines’ 
veterans and youth — putting both 
in situations to allow success.
“We want to continue to 
develop that depth,” said Michigan 
coach Mark Rosen. “Because you 
never know when somebody has 
an off night or an injury or you 
want to make adjustments. That 
depth is really important for us so 
it’s kind of a combination of both 
where we’re still able to get players 
experience, but we’re also settling 
in on what our team is looking 
like.”
In contrast to last season, 
when Michigan arguably had a 
more limited bench, this year’s 
team draws its advantages from 
its substitutes. Playing freshman 
outside hitter Paige Jones in the 
more experienced starting lineup 
allows Rosen flexibility to have 
veterans come off the bench, while 
helping Jones transition to the 
level of play.
“I think (Jones) just acclimated 
to the college game really quickly,” 
Rosen said. “I think she’s a player 
who can play six rotations, and we 
certainly want her to develop as 
her career goes on.”
Rotating in off the bench, junior 
outside hitter Sydney Wetterstrom 
mans 
the 
second 
wave 
of 
substitute, playing a pivotal part in 
not just contributing to the game 
— where she hit eight kills — but 
in teaching the inexperienced 
players on the court with her. Even 
so, many of the underclassmen are 
eased into the game by playing 
next to experienced players.
“We don’t want to have a new 
player in there with a bunch of 
other new players because then 
it’s not like they get a chance to 
acclimate to what the lineup is 
like,” Rosen said. “So we try to 

sparingly put those kids in, get 
them experience with veteran 
kids, with the experienced kids. 
Because that’s a better way to learn, 
and they don’t feel that pressure in 
having to do everything.
“Also 
our 
veterans 
(senior 
libero Jenna Lerg, senior outside 
hitter Carly Skjodt, redshirt junior 
middle 
blocker 
Cori 
Crocker 
and 
senior 
setter 
Mackenzie 
Welsh), 
they’re 
really 
smart 
volleyball players, so they’re on 
the court teaching and helping (the 
inexperienced) understand what’s 
going on, so we want to give them 
the chance to play with those kids.”
Splitting defensive duties with 
Lerg, sophomore libero Jacqueline 
DiSanto saw two sets where she 
either played the main libero role 
or side-by-side in a two libero 
defensive lineup. The opportunity 
to play next to the consistent Lerg 
could be fruitful for DiSanto’s 
development.
In the center of the rotations, 
Skjodt played all three sets, 
recording 14 kills in 21 attempts. 
With all the changes in rotation, 
from 
freshmen 
to 
seniors, 
sophomores to juniors, Skjodt 
pillared the offense to work as it 
does, teaching by example.
“Carly’s just such a glue of our 
team,” Rosen said. “At the end of 
the match, she leads us in kills. She 
hits .570. She’s just a kid who gets it 
done. She’s played all six rotations. 
She’s great defensively. She’s great 
as a passer. She’s great as a server. 
There’s nothing she doesn’t do well 
we found with her. We can’t take 
her off the court. We take her off 
the court and it changes way too 
much because she’s so impactful in 
so many areas.”
One player who can attest to 
this is freshman opposite hitter 
Lizzie Sadilek, who made her 
collegiate debut Tuesday night. 
Hitting a .800 attack percentage, 
Sadilek tallied four kills, good for 
second-highest on the team for 
non-starters.
Ending Valparaiso’s six-game 
win streak while adding another 
sweep to its five-game sweep 
streak, Michigan proved that its 
strengths don’t just lie in its talents 
and skills, but with its depth that 
continues to develop every game.

TIEN LE
Daily Sports Writer

VOLLEYBALL

EVAN AARON/Daily
Junior cornerback Lavert Hill and the Michigan secondary surprisingly struggled early in the Wolverines’ 24-17 loss to Notre Dame on Saturday.

