8 — Thursday, October 18, 2018
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Warriner with different perspective on Saturday’s game

Saturday will be nothing new
for Ed Warriner.
In fact, there’s not much
anymore
that
is
new
for
Warriner.
Michigan’s
offensive
line
coach
remembers
coaching
as a graduate assistant in the
Michigan-Michigan
State
rivalry
“30-something
years
ago.”
Now he’s on the other side
coaching
a
much-improved
Michigan offensive line that
just might hold the key to
a win in East Lansing over
the 24th-ranked Spartans on
Saturday.
“You
never
know
how
life’s going to take you in
this journey,” Warriner said
Wednesday
afternoon.
“You
just do the best you can to keep
moving.”
Warriner has done just that,
reaching nearly every corner in
the college football landscape
on his winding path to Ann
Arbor. Warriner has made stops
at Army, Air Force, Kansas,
Illinois, Notre Dame, Ohio State
and Minnesota, in addition to
his time at Michigan State in
1985-86.
Then
25,
Warriner
had
already put pen to paper on
an agreement to coach in high
school when Michigan State
approached him. He knew he
wanted to be a college coach.
And working with then-head
coach George Perles and then-
assistant coach Nick Saban
in East Lansing shortly after
graduating college was an offer
he couldn’t refuse.
When Warriner speaks about
his past, phrases like “learned
a lot from” and “connected
with” arise with frequency. The
names of coaches and schools
get tossed around at a rapid
pace. He’s firmly intertwined
in the complicated web that
underlies college coaching. A
football coach, through and
through.

And with his laundry list
of
experience,
Warriner
approaches Saturday’s rivalry
differently. Unlike others in the
Michigan locker room, Warriner
holds no such animosity toward
the Spartans. In fact, Warriner
remains friends
with
Michigan
State
coach
Mark Dantonio,
who he roomed
with
during
their
time
together
with
the
Spartans.
His
son
is
a
freshman
linebacker
at
Michigan State.
He speaks of Dantonio like
one might speak of an old friend.
“We were just two guys who
loved coaching football, loved
the
opportunity.
We
were
learning. We were working
together. So we enjoyed that
time together — we hit it off
and had a great relationship.

And that’s carried through,”
Warriner
said.
“Obviously
our paths have gone different
directions, so we don’t get to
spend as much time together,
but when we are together, it’s
like we haven’t been apart.
“Obviously
now that I work
here,
that’s
going to change
a
little
bit,”
Warriner
adds,
remembering
where he stands.
“But as far as, is
he a good man?
He is a good
man. And you
respect him, you
respect what he’s done.”
He doesn’t forget that there’s
a game Saturday, though. Quite
a meaningful one, at that.
He likes where his offensive
line stands at the moment,
noting it has accounted for
just four penalties all season.
It’s unquestionably the most

improved unit on the team
through seven games, a credit
to Warriner’s diligence.
And Saturday is his unit’s
biggest moment, a test against
an aggressive team that always
seems to turn up the physicality
when it plays Michigan. He, like
everyone else, looks forward
to the challenge. Warriner’s
laundry list of former employers
doesn’t jade him to the moment.
“They’re
all
the
same,
because they’re very important
to the players on this team, to the
alumni, to the former players,”
Warriner said. “They’re all
important. They’re important
to us. We get the significance of
them. It’s a privilege to be apart
of a program that have these
kind of rivalries. You turn it up
a notch; that’s why you do this.
“These
are
the
great
opportunities, the fun games,
the memories you have playing
in these games, coaching in
these games for me, stay with
you a lifetime.”

MAX MARCOVITCH
Daily Sports Editor

CAMERON HUNT/Daily
Michigan offensive line coach Ed Warriner used to work with Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio in East Lansing.

“We were
learning. We
were working
together.”

Wolverines, Metellus motivated by past mistakes

The Michigan football team
owns the nation’s top-ranked
pass defense yet again in 2018,
allowing fewer than 130 yards
per game. That showed last
Saturday
when
Wisconsin
quarterback Alex Hornibrook
did not complete a pass during
the second and third quarters
of the Wolverines’ eventual
blowout win.
It was as close as Michigan’s
defense has come to perfection
— the perpetual pursuit of
defensive
coordinator
Don
Brown. In the same vein as
Alabama coach Nick Saban,
Brown always has something
to critique, even when the
Wolverines
are
dominant.
Sometimes, that means going
back a few weeks to remind
players that they’re not perfect.
Such
was
the
case
in
Michigan’s
season-opening
loss
to
Notre
Dame.
The
Fighting Irish scored three
first-half touchdowns behind
quarterback Brandon Wimbush,
who was aided by a litany of
the Wolverines’ penalties and
mistakes on third down.
Safeties coach and special
teams
coordinator
Chris
Partridge reminds his group
about those first-game gaffes
frequently.
“Shoot,”
Patridge
said
during
Wednesday’s
press
conference.
“I
like to show my
guys clips from
that game every
week
just
to
make sure they
stay
grounded
and understand
that, if they don’t prepare the
right way and they don’t play
the right way, anything can
happen.”
Much has been made about
the improvement in Michigan’s
offensive line since that loss in
South Bend. But the secondary
has
also
flashed
signs
of
growth. Penalties are down.
Interceptions are up. Mistakes

have been mitigated.
“We’ve made a huge step after
the Notre Dame game because
we got bombed on a few times
that game,” said sophomore
cornerback
Ambry
Thomas.
“And (the coaching staff has)
been hard on us ever since. They
haven’t let up yet.
“They’re more
interactive,
more vocal, more
everything.
They’re
on
the field really
showing us what
to do.”
Partridge sees
a
connection
between
that
increase
in
intensity and the
play of perhaps the Wolverines’
most-improved defensive player,
Josh Metellus. The junior safety
had a difficult start to the season
— he was ejected for targeting
during the second drive of the
Notre Dame contest. He and
fellow
safety,
senior
Tyree
Kinnel,
were
also
exposed
occasionally against the slant-
heavy offenses of SMU and

Northwestern.
But
while
Metellus
isn’t
flawless, he has become more
of a play-maker for Michigan’s
defense with a team-high three
interceptions.
“He’s playing at a high level,”
Patridge said. “He’s practicing
at a high level, that’s why he’s
playing
at
a
high level. He
is
seeing
the
game
really
well. He’s seeing
how we’re going
to be attacked
really well back
there.
He’s
taken command,
become
more
vocal
and
is
finishing plays.”
Metellus
was
named
the
team’s defensive player of the
week Monday after collecting
an interception and five tackles
against the Badgers.
“His
best
game
as
a
Wolverine,” said Jim Harbaugh
on Monday. “And he seems to
be a solid tackler, good coverage
safety. Great to see him get his
hands on the ball with another

interception and create the
big play. (He’s an) ascending
player.”
It was a year ago that
Metellus
first
earned
his
starting role. During fall camp,
he mentioned that confidence
was an issue for him at times in
2017, when he was often a target
of criticism from
Michigan
fans.
That caused him
to
play
“more
passively” than
he would have
liked to.
According
to
Patridge,
however,
Metellus
entered
spring
practices
with
an “open mind” to potential
improvements he could make.
Six months later, that has him
keying a defense that is playing
strong football.
“If I’m confident, I feel like the
rest of the defense is confident,”
Metellus said Saturday. “So
I just feel like, being a leader
on the defense, confidence is
something you should have.”

MARK CALCAGNO
Daily Sports Editor

EVAN AARON/Daily
Junior safety Josh Metellus was named Michigan’s defensive player of the week after the Wolverines’ win over Wisconsin.

“They’re on
the field really
showing us
what to do.”

“And he seems

to be a solid

tackler, good

coverage safety.”

Michigan places 14th
at UNC Invitational

From
the
outset,
it
appeared to be a perfect
storm for the Wolverines.
Over
the
weekend,
the
Michigan
women’s
golf
team
traveled
to
North
Carolina and battled through
unfavorable
conditions
to
place 14th amid a stacked
field at the Ruth’s Chris Tar
Heel Invitational.
Typically,
the
practice
round
before
any
big
invitational is key. During
this time the golfers check
the speed of the greens, scope
out any illusive tricks of the
course and get a lay of the
land. Exposure to the course
is crucial for any golfer. If
it can provide even a stroke
of an advantage, it’s key for
gaining that extra edge.
But
over
the
weekend,
the
Wolverines
were
not
allowed their practice round
due to safety concerns over
Hurricane Michael rolling
through the region. Instead
of
playing
the
full
18,
Michigan
merely walked
the first nine
holes
and
sat
indoors
meticulously
strategizing
how it would
attack the new
course.
To
make
matters
worse
for
the
Wolverines, the UNC Finley
Golf
Course
is
made
of
different grass — Bermuda.
Michigan typically practices
on Flatgrass and had limited
exposure to Bermuda this
season. Not an end-all factor,
but enough to set a golfer
back if they’re not used to
playing on the new grass.
But when it came time to
play, Michigan left those
factors
behind
and
put
together one of its more solid
outings of the fledgling 2018-
19 season. And leading the
pack was sophomore Ashley
Kim.
Finishing at No. 20, Kim
figured out the course early
and definitively proved her
role
as
the
Wolverines’
most
consistent
golfer.
Kim
opened things
up on Friday
with the best
round
by
a
Michigan
golfer with a
71,
good
for
one under par
and a new season best. Kim
used four birdies in the round
to set the tone early.
“Ashley Kim, she’s been
our
best
player
so
far,”
said Michigan coach Jan
Dowling. “She’s been close to
par every round, and she’s on
the verge of really breaking
through and getting herself
in contention to win.
“She’s on the verge of

some
great
golf.
She’s
already playing some good
golf, but she’s right on the
verge of being able to win
some of these tournaments
individually, so that’s pretty
huge.”
And right on Kim’s tail
is
freshman
Ashley
Lau.
Seemingly seeking to rise to
the level of her teammate,
Lau shot a 72 in her second
round and proved she can
compete with the best. Then
shooting 76s on the bookends
of
the
invitational,
Lau
demonstrated her potential
while also showing room for
improvement.
For
Lau,
there’s
no
doubt that overcoming the
challenges of living in a new
country and playing against a
different level of competition
has been an adjustment for
her. The Malaysia native is
experiencing a whole new
world of firsts and playing
some quality golf in the
process — two factors not
lost on her coach.
“I think she’s coming into
her
own,”
Dowling said.
“The
kid
knows
how
to
play,
and
I
think
just
moving
onto
collegiate golf
and
getting
comfortable
there,
and
starting
to
balance living
in a new country and going
to school, there’s a lot of
elements that go into playing
good golf besides the obvious
things. And you can tell she’s
on the verge of going crazy
under par, and she’s starting
to find her own.
“Particularly, I hope that
second round gave her some
confidence. She got under par
for quite a while. She’s just
gotta clean up some things
around her ball striking and
her ball management, and
she’ll be off to the races.
We’re really excited about
her potential.”
Dowling believes the team
still needs to eliminate the
small mistakes — errors that
have been dogging her team
all
season.
She
thinks
Michigan
needs to take
advantage
of
wedge
shots
and
avoiding
three-putting.
But still, it’s
clear that the
Wolverines
are
trending
in
the
right
direction.
“We’re
not
doing
some
of
the
simple
things
as
consistently as we need to be,
and those include capitalizing
on short wedge shots and
avoiding
free
putting,”
Dowling said. “So when we’re
gonna do that, it’s gonna be
awesome. We’re pretty close,
but simple isn’t always easy,
but simple is still simple.”

JACOB KOPNICK
Daily Sports Writer

KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily
Sophomore Ashley Kim notched a 71 in the first round of UNC’s invitational.

“Ashley Kim,
she’s been our
best player so
far.”

“We’re pretty
close, but
simple isn’t
always easy...”