E HURON ST WASHTENAW CT The Diag Michigan League Hill Auditorium UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN 5 minutes S STATE ST S 5TH AVE S 5TH AVE E LIBERTY ST E WILLIAM ST E MADISON ST Shapiro Undergraduate Library HILL ST Amenities are subject to change. See office for details. Apply online today @ AmericanCampus.com/AnnArbor ⋅ Walk or bike to class ⋅ Private and shared bedrooms available ⋅ Fully furnished apartments ⋅ Amenities for a fit and healthy lifestyle ⋅ Academically oriented environments ⋅ Individual liability leases ⋅ Roommate matching available You’ve never lived like this. Applications for Fall 2020 coming soon! 4B — September 3, 2019 The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com SportsTuesday Thomas returns from colitis Ambry Thomas knew the play Middle Tennessee was about to run. He’d seen it before, a couple plays earlier. He had a feeling he’d be the target. Then, there he was, reacting, knowing he had to make a play. Blue Raiders’ quarterback Asher O’Hara threw the ball at him and he picked it off like there was nothing to it, halting Middle Tennessee’s momentum in the middle of the first quarter in an eventual 40-21 win. Mere weeks ago, such a key play from the junior defensive back seemed nearly impossible. But Ambry Thomas had no regard for the odds. On August 13, Thomas wasn’t even on the roster. That was when Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh explained that he’d been diagnosed with colitis and had missed all of fall camp — not practicing, not playing. He’d lost weight. He could only do conditioning and wasn’t cleared for full practice until last Sunday. A realistic expectation seemed like three weeks. Maybe four. But Saturday, on the first defensive snap of the first game of the Michigan football team’s season, Thomas was out there on the field at cornerback. He was nails in coverage all night, finishing with an interception, a fumble recovery and a tackle for loss. “It’s a little adversity I’ve fought through,” Thomas said. “And that’s all it was.” While his teammates weren’t sure when exactly Thomas would return to play or if he’d start Saturday, Thomas knew from the time he was cleared that it wouldn’t be long before he was back making plays. All he needed was a few reps. Going from conditioning only to starting at cornerback in just nine days would be a tall task for anyone, but Thomas — often heralded as one of the hardest- working players on the team — was up for the challenge. He regained the weight, he got back into game shape and shook off the rust as best he could. “I was worried about him going into the game week,” said fifth-year senior linebacker Jordan Glasgow. “I knew that he’s a great corner, obviously, as you can see from his play, but he had a lot less preparation than a lot of our opponents and us as a team. So to see him come out and make the plays that he did, it was just great to see.” The next drive after Thomas’ interception, the Blue Raiders had the ball on third down at their own 21. Receiver Terelle West caught his pass, but sophomore defensive end Aidan Hutchinson hit him and forced the ball out. Thomas fell on it. Two plays later, Michigan was in the end zone and a stunningly close 10-point game had become the blowout it always seemed destined to be. Thomas’ two big plays changed the complexion of the first quarter, but more than that, they marked a shift in mindset for a player who was understandably still apprehensive. “That fumble recovery and pick, it built my confident thoughts in the game,” Thomas said. “My confidence wasn’t there because in practice, I ain’t really did enough of practicing, I had only been practicing, like really practicing, since Monday, full go practice. It just felt good to get my confidence up there.” The rest of the game, Thomas was near untouchable and the confidence showed. More than a handful of plays against a subpar team, that was what Harbaugh noticed. Asked about Thomas in the postgame, Harbaugh noted the pick and the pounce, his coverage and his tackling, but the best part wasn’t any of that. The best part was the smile that cracked across Thomas’ face, the adversity fading into the background as he settled back into his role, playing football and having fun. ‘M’ defense hoping to add polish Asher O’Hara looked done for. The Middle Tennessee quarterback was cornered by two defensive linemen and a linebacker. The play seemed sure to end in a sack. On third-and-3 from Michigan’s 18-yard line, such a play would have likely forced the Blue Raiders into a field goal. But somehow, none of Khaleke Hudson, Michael Dwumfour nor Kwity Paye could finish the tackle, and O’Hara scrambled all the way into the end zone. After Middle Tennessee’s first drive, the score was a shocking 7-0 in favor of the Blue Raiders. Eventually, the Michigan football team cruised to an easy 40-21 win. But that wasn’t how things were supposed to go for one of the top defenses in the country, facing the No. 101 team in preseason SP+, much less on the first drive. “A win’s a win, and that’s great and everything,” said sophomore defensive end Aidan Hutchinson after the game. “But it wasn’t how we wanted it.” On one hand, the defense looked fine after that. Of the other two Middle Tennessee touchdowns, one came after a muffed punt in the Wolverines’ territory and the other was in garbage time against the second-string defense. But on the other hand, Michigan seemed to struggle after sudden changes and were plagued by fits of sloppy play all game. In the second quarter after the muffed punt, the Blue Raiders drove down to the two-yard line. Then, sophomore defensive back Vincent Gray failed to pick up on a rub route in the end zone and gave the receiver too much space, leading to seven more points for Middle Tennessee. In the third quarter, senior defensive back Lavert Hill dropped what should have been an easy interception with no one standing between him and the end zone. Against a team like the Blue Raiders, it’s easy to disregard such mistakes as growing pains. But when the Wolverines plays tougher teams — starting next week with Army — such messy play won’t cut it. “Just eliminating self- inflicted wounds, eliminating plays that harm us and give the offense advantages,” Gray said. “We want to eliminate all of that.” But for a defense that lost a lot of production from last year to the NFL — linebacker Devin Bush Jr., defensive ends Rashan Gary and Chase Winovich and cornerback David Long — there were some positive signs. Michigan finished with five tackles for loss and three sacks — including one by senior linebacker Josh Uche for 13 yards. Uche also forced a fumble that junior defensive back Ambry Thomas recovered, and Thomas also snagged an interception. The Wolverines picked up just three defensive penalties, and only one for more than five yards. That’s a good sign for a team that struggled with too many personal fouls in last year’s nonconference slate. In his Monday press conference, Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh didn’t show any signs he was disappointed in his team’s performance and mentioned several of the team’s new defensive starters as standouts. Perhaps it’s just a matter of shaking off the rust, of gelling together to avoid the same kind of lapses that led to the Blue Raiders’ first two touchdowns. “(This defense is) a lot faster, we’re a lot stronger,” said junior safety Brad Hawkins. “But … we’ve got a lot of work to do. It’s week one, so definitely going forward, we’re definitely going to be improving. We definitely try to go out there and get 1 percent better every day.” ARIA GERSON Daily Sports Editor ARIA GERSON Daily Sports Editor ALEC COHEN/Daily Cornerback Ambry Thomas had an interception and fumble recovery on Saturday after battling colitis during fall camp. A win’s a win. ... But it wasn’t how we wanted it (This defense is) a lot faster, we’re a lot stronger.