The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
Tuesday, September 17, 2019 — 7
Ambry Thomas details recovery
process before season-opener
Fans
have
known
about
Ambry
Thomas’s
offseason
plight. They saw his triumphant
return, featuring an interception
in the season-opener against
Middle Tennessee State. They
even briefly heard from Thomas
himself about what it meant to
see the field once again after
recovering from illness.
But on Monday afternoon,
Thomas revealed even more
about the depths he found
himself in over this summer, the
massive hurdles he was forced
to overcome on the road to
recovery from colitis — a chronic
inflammatory disorder in the
colon — and the real threat it
posed to his junior season.
“If you know me, you know
I’m a fighter,” Thomas said. “If
nothing’s not seriously bad, I’m
not gonna let health stop me
from doing what I love.”
It all started in mid-June,
when Thomas felt something
was off. He explained how
he felt to his doctor and then
went to the emergency room.
It was there he learned of the
colitis diagnosis, and slowly,
the ramifications came trickling
through his head.
His focus in that moment
squared entirely on potentially
jeopardizing his junior season.
“(The doctors) told me what
was going on in my stomach,”
Thomas said. “They told me my
chances for playing this season
were slim to none. All the doctors
said that. I was the only one on
my own side, like, ‘I’m playing
this season no matter what.’
Thomas knew this year was
always set to be a pivotal one
in his progression. With the
departure of David Long to the
NFL Draft, Thomas was next
in line to assume the starting
cornerback
position
opposite
senior Lavert Hill.
That’s
why,
sitting
in
a
hospital bed in June, Thomas
began to feel despair. He spent
three weeks laying in bed,
unable to do anything else. He
lost 35 pounds. This was not how
the most important summer of
his life was supposed to go.
“The first three weeks I was
literally just depressed, laying in
bed,” Thomas said. “Then that
last week, when I started seeing
improvement, my mom started
making me get up, get active.
There are some staircases right
by the hospital outside, so I hit
them. I walked them, I couldn’t
run them.
“I was very weak; my legs
were cramping. I couldn’t get
halfway up the steps. Like, it was
bad.”
Steadily, he began to regain
his strength and gain back the
weight;
the
self-confidence
followed suit. While the doctors
remained
steadfast
in
their
recommendation of a redshirt,
Thomas had his eyes on the start
of the year.
At times he wasn’t in the
building with the team, he was
working out with his dad at
Planet Fitness. Coaches and
teammates remained dubious
about his playing status, but
Thomas was determined.
Sure enough, when Michigan
kicked
off
against
Middle
Tennessee State on Aug. 30,
there he was, lining up with
the
starting
defense.
His
interception tied a bow on a
night that, just weeks prior,
seemed incomprehensible.
“Everybody’s just thrilled for
Ambry. I thought that was just
a wonderful thing,” Michigan
coach Jim Harbaugh said on the
following Monday. “He spent a
lot of time in the hospital this
summer, but to go out and get
the interception, get the fumble
recovery, make the tackles and
the TFL, all the things he did in
the game was really inspiring for
the ball club.”
His presence has steadied
a
secondary
that
otherwise
would’ve been in flux. Heading
into a season-shaping clash
against
Wisconsin,
concerns
among that group are few and
far between.
More importantly for Ambry
Thomas,
though,
he’s
back
to doing what he loves at the
level he expects. Gone are the
days of hospital beds and slow
walks. Full-speed practices and
positional meetings are where
he thrives.
Asked how he feels now,
Thomas looks up and flashes a
smile.
“I’m feeling great.”
MAX MARCOVITCH
Managing Sports Editor
NATALIE STEPHENS/Daily
Junior cornerback Ambry Thomas was diagnosed with Colitis in June.
‘M’ prepares for test at Wisconsin
It’s that time of year where
people start to break out the
stats. You know, like these ones:
Michigan
hasn’t
won
as
the underdog since 2013. And,
Michigan hasn’t won in Madison
since 2001.
So of course, those stats were
a hot topic of conversation at
Monday’s
media
availability
going into Saturday’s matchup
with Wisconsin. Michigan did
its best to tune them out.
“Do you feel like an underdog
going into this game?” a reporter
asked
Michigan
coach
Jim
Harbaugh.
His response: “It’s irrelevant.”
It doesn’t help the Wolverines
that the Badgers are ranked No.
1 in the country in both total
defense and scoring defense.
They
beat
their
first
two
opponents, Central Michigan
and South Florida, by a combined
score of 110-0. They have a sour
taste in their mouth from a loss
in last year’s matchup. And,
like Michigan, they’re well-
rested and coming off a bye.
Beating them will be no easy
task, especially for a team that’s
had its fair share of offensive
struggles so far.
But perhaps the Wolverines
have a built-in advantage in
preparing for that. If you look
at SP+, a comprehensive team
evaluation
stat,
it’s
actually
Michigan’s
defense
holding
the top spot. As senior guard
Ben Bredeson put it, “it’s tough,
and it’s tough going against
our defense, too.” And the
Wolverines have the advantage
of knowing they’ll be the biggest
challenge yet for the Badgers’
inexperienced quarterback Jack
Coan.
The Wolverines know they
have a history of starting slow
on the road — it doomed them
last year in a loss to Notre Dame
and almost did the same at
Northwestern. So the coaching
staff targeted it specifically in
practice.
It’s
impossible
to
fully
simulate the environment at
Camp Randall Stadium, but
the
Wolverines
have
gotten
as close as they can, piping in
crowd noise so that it’s harder
to
communicate,
harder
to
hear playcalls. Michigan has
an experienced offensive line,
many of whom have played at
Camp Randall before. Senior
quarterback
Shea
Patterson
faced some of the toughest road
environments in the country in
Alabama and Auburn during his
days at Ole Miss.
“They got a very energetic fan
base there,” said Bredeson. “ …
There’s definitely a lot of red out
there in the stands and it’s gonna
be, everyone’s very passionate
about their team in Madison.
“I always found those games
fun, where you get to go to the
venues that are so passionate
for their own teams, and even
if it’s loud against you, it’s just
the energy, everybody can kind
of feed off it, but it does provide
some challenges.”
Wisconsin has some new
personnel on the defensive side,
but the scheme is very similar
to last year’s — when Michigan
blasted the Badgers to the tune of
a 38-13 win. The Wolverines have
already watched the Wisconsin’s
film from both this year and last
and put together a game plan.
Michigan’s
the
underdog,
and has struggled to win in
that situation. That much is
undeniable. But the Wolverines
aren’t viewing the game through
that lens.
“They put on their pads just
like us,” said senior tight end
Nick Eubanks. “We know they’re
a tough team and we know
they’re gonna put up a fight
especially with us, especially
what
happened
last
year,
they’re gonna put up a fight.
So we’re going down swinging
too, so we’ll see how it turns
out.”
Following decision to return, Lockwood prepares for senior season
Mel Pearson sat across the
table from Will Lockwood,
waiting for the words that
would define expectations for
the Michigan hockey team’s
upcoming season.
Pearson’s nerves crept in
with every word Lockwood
said, but they had already been
there the moment the senior
forward called to arrange the
meeting.
Pearson
knew
what
was
coming. He had done this before
when former defenseman Quinn
Hughes called him last year to
talk about his decision to return
for his sophomore season. Back
then, Pearson’s hopes had come
true with Hughes returning.
Lockwood seemed to suggest
a different outcome.
“I’ve been in many, many of
these meetings about players,
talking about whether coming
back or leaving early,” said
Michigan coach Mel Pearson.
“And I just felt he was leaving.”
Lockwood’s tone and delivery
was as solemn as could be.
“Coach,
I’ve
come
to
a
decision. I’ve made a decision.”
Pearson
recalled
Lockwood
saying. “... I’ve decided I want
to come back and finish. Finish
something that I started that I
haven’t done yet.”
The decision to return for
his senior season didn’t come
easily; it never seems to. But
with Lockwood especially, a
lot of things came into play.
The Wolverines came into last
season with high expectations,
coming off a Frozen Four run
that he missed with a shoulder
injury, and looked to continue
that success. But, a 13-16-7
record brought them back to
reality and a loss to Minnesota
in the Big Ten Tournament
ended any hope of extending
the season.
“When the season ended, I
didn’t even really start thinking
about it for maybe a week,”
Lockwood said. “Just because
we didn’t really finish the way
we wanted to, and it was kind of
a disappointing finish the year.”
The process took several
weeks. Not wanting to make
a
choice
he
might
regret,
Lockwood took
his
time
and
evaluated
all
factors.
The
2018-19 season’s
disappointing
result
was
one,
but
his
readiness for the
next level and
his
education
got taken into
account.
“He
made
an
educated
decision,” Pearson said, “got all
the information on the facts.”
His decision came over the
course of two to three weeks in
March. There was no urgency
with the Vancouver Canucks —
the NHL team that drafted him
in 2016.
Though
Pearson
and
the
Michigan
coaching
staff
took
a
hands-
off
approach,
he
approached
them
several
times
with
questions
and
concerns.
He
went
around
asking friends, family — anyone,
really, who he had a hockey
connection with growing up —
on what he should do.
“I kept having my mom tell
me to get my degree,” Lockwood
joked. “But, other than that, I
took my dad’s advice, he’s been
a role model for
me
my
whole
life. And he was
the one who just
told me to kind
of
stick
with
what feels right
and what feels
comfortable.”
And
then
a
random morning
in
the
spring,
Lockwood woke
up and just knew.
He raced to tell his dad, and
then, immediately after, called
Pearson.
“(Lockwood) wanted to come
back for a reason,” Pearson
said. “With a purpose in mind,
not just to come back. But come
back
with
a
purpose of No. 1,
making sure he’s
more ready than
he was last year
to go pro. And
then
obviously
to
finish
his
degree.
And
then No. 3 is to
help us to get
back to where
we need to go.”
An injury sidelined Lockwood
much of his sophomore season
— that year, the Wolverines
pulled together a Frozen Four
run. Instead of celebrating with
the team on the ice after a 6-3
win over Boston University that
propelled them to the semi-
finals, Lockwood watched from
behind the glass — secluded
and unable to claim the team’s
success as his own.
“He’s kind of battled with
some
injuries
and
missed
some games and missed a good
portion
of
our
sophomore
season,” said senior forward
Jake Slaker. “I think that hurt
him a little bit, especially
because we made such a good
run.”
“I wasn’t really too satisfied
with that,” Lockwood said.
“And I wanted to be a leader
on the team and come back and
have a little more success senior
year.
His impact as a player was
never in question. Recipient
of the Hal Downes Trophy
and Dekers Club Award, team
awards
for
most
valuable
player and top freshman, he
had earned his stripes as one
of the team’s best his freshman
year. He scored 20 points in his
rookie year campaign and had
tallied 11 points in 16 games as
a sophomore before concluding
his season with an injury.
“I know if he was out there
with us,” Slaker said. “maybe
we would have the National
Championship.”
And after Michigan veered
off its projected course with
a sub-.500 season in 2018-
19, Lockwood felt the need to
come back, to help rectify the
disaster of a season. And as the
Wolverines’ 100th captain and
a leading force on the team, he
hopes to do “big things with
this team.”
It’s a title he’s earned and
an expectation he’s sought.
Instead of Canucks training
camp, fighting for a roster spot,
Lockwood
spent
this
week
opening Michigan’s practice
donning the Captain’s ‘C’ for
the first time.
“At the end of the day,”
Lockwood said, “it kind of came
down to what my heart was
telling me.”
ARIA GERSON
Daily Sports Editor
ALEXIS RANKIN/Daily
Michigan guard Ben Bredeson lived in Wisconsin before attending Michigan.
TIEN LE
Daily Sports Editor
ALEXANDRIA POMPEI/Daily
Senior forward Will Lockwood returns to school for his senior season after contemplating a move to turn professional, a move that pleased coach Mel Pearson.
I kept having
my mom tell
me to get my
degree.
(Lockwood)
wanted to
come back for a
reason.