Fresno State Preview with Jake Butt | The L.A.B.

Intro all right welcome in folks to another episode of the lab presented by Wolverine just want to remind you the lab why why that name it's because it's the leaders in the best baby go Blue you can sing it where is my guest do not have a guest today I'm gonna go solo as it is Fresno State week you could smell it you could feel it in the air football is finally here was beautiful to watch some football last week love watching Georgia Tech put the the old beat toown on Florida State uh I had a tweet I said Georgia Tech they got medieval on their ass that's what my o line coach at Michigan used to say he said we're going to get medieval on them I remember we were playing Ohio state with Joey Bosa and the first play of the game one of the early plays we were gonna cut him twice in the same play so there was a fullback that was GNA cut him once he gets up the other fullback comes and cuts him again just get medieval on him run the ball that's what Georgia Tech did last week and in watching that game I looking into my crystal ball a little bit anticipate a ton of those packages with or and uh the Don Donovan Edwards khil mulling some of these other young talented backs uh it's going to be a fun year really really fun Year all right rather than doing a Fresno State preview I wanted to just do kind of a a highlevel overview of Michigan's roster and I want to start on the offensive side of the ball uh had some great quotes come about yesterday as Chiron Moore addressed the media uh there's still some position battles going around we could start with the quarterback position Twan race Alex orgy Davis Warren uh Chiron said he may tell the team on Quarterbacks Thursday who the starter is uh at this point it what I what I believe to be true is Alex orgy is gonna play regardless let's say it is Davis Alex orgy is g to be playing regardless just because of the dynamic uh running ability he has though I do think he's improved as a passer uh I do you guys I see Davis Warren operate you guys watching the spring game he's a really good quarterback okay he he understands the position really bright guy uh great leader and and what I'll say about this is just talking to these guys I don't know about you you guys may have listened to the podcast I'm at ease I'm at ease I believe in both of these guys and I believe in the team around him whoever it is uh as we kind of go through this roster real quick I wanted to kind of piggyback off that and just talk about the quarterback position at Michigan and it's true at a ton of big level universities but Michigan before JJ was starved of elite quarterback play and there's a mental side to this position that is extremely important you carry a heavy heavy load the expectations are always Skyhigh to not just win but to perform at a high level and you really the the these guys have got to be extremely grounded focused ahead of the curve or this job will chew you up and spitch you out I'm really confident because talking to these guys it seems they understand that and they welcome that challenge if they even look at it uh understanding the staff too especially with Kirk Campbell uh this is one of the most underrated pieces of quarterback development I played with close to 10 different coordinators and play Callers In My Time at Michigan and in the NFL you have got to be a great teacher The Playbook is a language you're learn learning a language you have got to be a great teacher think back to your time in Middle School junior high high school what was your favorite class it was typically you might hate math but if you got a great math teacher that understood the art of teaching you might say math was your favorite class maybe you had a brilliant English teacher you might say English is your favorite class that's the key here for a quarterback coach and a play caller can you teach the language in a way that you're quarterbacks can understand it like this when break between the time from breaking the Huddle and getting to the line of scrimmage and I believe Kirk Campbell will have these guys ready that's a huge reason the quarterback play at Michigan is elevated the the next most important position in this Michigan offense is the offensive line and what I have been told a good Offensive Line way to look at this is there was a time when we didn't know Trevor Keegan's name we didn't know Zack zenner's name or timi or Drake Nan uh on and on and on we didn't know those names but we did because of how they performed by the time last year ended Michigan believes that that is true about this offensive line starting this year you may not you may they may not be uh conference wide or Nationwide known names but they will be and when I looked at practice I I saw one day with pads and one day with uh shells and the physicality of this offensive line I mean if I closed my eyes it would have sound just like the past three years there's a continuation of culture there up front uh you know you look at a guy like miles Hinton played a ton of football played a ton of football trust him want to see him take that leap all the intangibles I look at Miles hit and I say there's an NFL GM that wants to hand you a hundred million man I an absolute specimen of a human being and a great person long arms can make a 100 million in the NFL go dominate this year that's the challenge uh you work your way down you got Josh pre uh Giovani alotti at the guard spots sounds like there's a competition at Center uh but the the interior those guy Josh PRI played a ton of ball at Northwestern from my conversations with the staff they love this guy as a player certainly has been loved by his teammates and his coaches here making immediate impact in an arbor uh giovan alati played a ton of snaps a more this guy isn't walking off the street not even close he was a starting level guard that just didn't crack the rotation consistently as a starter because of zenter in Keegan's Talent over the years Greg krippin has has impressed the staff every year I would go to practice in Spring and they'd say yeah I'm saying who's replacing Center they'd say it's Greg krippin and then Olu oluwatimi comes in a Remington award finalist and then Drake nen comes in one of the highest graded centers coming out of Stanford so we're talking about krippin Dominic Wiis is a guy that's impressed coaches it sound this to me sounds like a situation where they have multiple answers they they feel good about both guys uh and they're just waiting for someone to separate so maybe you see some type of rotation uh you know into end of the season and then winding it all down there at that at that other Tackle Spot uh you got Gentry a guy that's played and Link is a guy that's really come on strong as a younger guy in this roster that they feel good about so what what do I hear sounds like they got seven eight nine guys that they feel can play at a big 10 level the standard I I I watch a ton of ton of snaps across the conference the standard of offensive line play it's not astronomically High you know Michigan fans have been blessed watching Michigan play offensive line but most teams struggle to put out a quality offensive line Michigan will once again just just right now they're a top third offensive line starting next week that that's that's really how I feel tight end position don't need to go Tight Ends too deep into this uh they have the best tight end in college football in Colston Loveland first round pick he most likely will win the Mackie I sit on the Macky board this year and uh you know I'm listening to them tell me how good coulston Loveland is so uh that's a that's a universal opinion and the staff loves Marlon Klein in the running for one of the fastest guys on the team ran a 10800 back in high school when Max bres called you a freak you're probably freaky so you got Coulson Loveland Marlin Klein Max bredes uh a ton of options a ton of fluidity there is gonna allow Michigan to maintain that same offensive identity uh you getting into 12 Personnel Jim Harbaugh last year and I believe shiron more this year one of the highest usage rates of 12 Personnel uh when the whole college football is is heading in in One Direction Michigan saying let's get into the big personnel and impose our will and to complement that Donovan Running Backs Edwards breakout Year you guys have watched him listen to him on this podcast I say it renewed in Mind Body Spirit uh he understood that the standard his standard was not met consistently last year and he's ready to go prove himself right I'll say and I I I think you start to look at it and you can imagine if if you say it is orgy the the packages you could have with those guys and how well they compliment their compliment each other whether it's orgy running the ball with Donovan Edwards and a read option game speed option game is it a speed option to Donovan and let him throw it we know he can throw the ball about as good as a non-quarterback can uh and I really think khil mullings is is ready for a breakout year I I just I think he plays the position really really well uh came in as a linebacker initially uh wrote switched positions to running back just like any you get better with reps Jim Harbaugh would say the only way to get better at football is by playing football you get better with reps uh and then you got a ton of guys there a lot of options uh it's going to be hard to keep everyone in this room from not hitting the portal because there's so much talent and the competition is so so deep so it'll be interesting to see how the rest of the room shakes out behind those two proven factors and then at the skill Wide Receivers position the there's no con concern or questions about this room in practice and talking to the staff Tyler Morris is a stud receiver a stud receiver uh almost reminds me of a Ronnie Bell type just plays the position well samage Morgan we see how dangerous he is with the ball in his hands now I'm ready to see him step up and and start to make a splash down the field uh Frederick Moore speed that's the thing just speed playmaker I believe he took a hitch to the house in the spring game uh so they they do feel they have options you know you got a Maran Stewart CJ Charleston am Maran Walker Payton o uh Kendrick Bell they they feel they have serviceable bodies great mix of body size great mix of playmaking ability it benefits them that there's a quarterback competition just think about this that you know when you're a starter you always want to go rob gronowski wants to go with Tom Brady he's never going to go with the backup and vice versa right like that's that's a guarantee but when you have a quarterback competition everyone is getting reps with the starter because the starter is not known yet so that benefits the depth at other positions it benefits the communication from the offensive line because so much is at stake everyone has to be on their top the top top of their game so uh you just the high level overview of this offense um you know Warren Buffett as an investor says I buy when other buy when others are fearful you know be greedy when others are fearful and it seems like there's a consensus that there's an expectation outside of the circles of Michigan that that there will be a huge huge drop off this year because of how much talent they're replacing uh I am of the belief that now is the time to buy I feel the offensive line is foundational I feel they have great options at quarterback very dangerous I talked to defensive coordinators across the conference uh it gives you nightmares when you have a quarterback with a a rushing capability so uh whether it is orgy or Davis Warren orgy will play in those rushing package packages and give quarterback uh opposing coordinators nightmares deep running back room Donovan Edwards can score from everywhere any anywhere on the field khil mullings a battering ram a stud coulston Loveland the best at his position and a ton of options at receivers so we will see got to do it against Fresno State uh not not a lot of time to ease into the season you got to hit the ground running here there could be no National Championship hangover because Texas is coming to town uh on The Defense the defensive side of the ball I'm just going to roll through this really really quick the entire defensive line the entire defensive line will be drafted and there's a chance they all are drafted by the end of day two Josiah Stewart is climbing up draft boards per per uh NFL Scouts Derek Moore looks like he reminds me of Frank Clark when he was here just a freak solid guy uh Mason Graham has gotten the name power and rightfully so extremely disruptive this off season but I look at Kenneth Grant I'm looking this guy up and down at practice and this dude I know the mutant was Chris Jenkins Nick nickname this guy looks like the mutant part two dense long arms I I mean just I I don't know how you move him but then he's quick then he's quick I think it was I I was at practice I thought it was Ben Hall it was one of the thick lower body built Michigan running backs they're doing a live period and Ben Hall gets the snap Kenneth Grant splits the double team right away reaches out and grabs I I don't I'm not sure I I I don't know why I want to say Ben Hall he grabs Ben Hall who's running full speed stops him in his tracks picks him up and places him down I'm like that's a grown man picking up another grown man the interior dline even a guy like rayan Benny that gosh just just put yourself in a quarterback shoes and Michael penck saw this a clean pocket isn't just the edges a clean you have to you have to secure the inside so the quarterback can step up the inside the interior of this of opposing offensive lines is going to be consistently pushed back into quarterback's laps very uncomfortable very uncomfortable so uh again you got guys like enoa he's made a ton of Splash this offseason aauna TJ guy just just just guys that have created buzz and excitement and are now ready like this is culture you're now ready to take that step it was a uh Aiden Hutchinson it was David ojabo it was on and on and on right uh ma uh Mazy Smith Chris Jenkins on and on and on now the next ones are up so uh linebacker position the two starters Ernest hman and Jon Barham they talk about Jon Barham like he could be a first round pick in next year's draft they talk about him like that in that light I covered him at Maryland I don't see why not not just in the Run game but in coverage uh uh not just a guy that's in the right position he makes plays on the ball forces interceptions uh so this I I loved the the Mike Barrett and I love Junior Coulson I love some of these guys that that we've had in recent history but I I have a feeling that this is one of the more athletic Duos at the linebacker position Michigan has had in a very long time uh to go along with complete physicality so uh don't be surprised there's your front six right there if you're in a if you're in a nickel formation not going to find many better front sixes than that quite simply you know the truth about will Johnson one side of the field is completely shut down bingo so you got will Johnson you got jier Hill you got Jaden mcburrows another guy I know they really like is Zeke Barry that nickel spot is going to be key for Michigan you think about a Mikey Sr still a guy that you can't just be good in man coverage you can't just be good in zone coverage you have to be a great Blitzer and a great tackler and you have to play with high football IQ I think that nickel spot is one of the keys to the team uh in in in again Michigan as the good teams do you root rotate you replace you develop you send them on like parents letting go of their kids to college for the first time except this is college to the NFL you develop and send them on to go get paid guess they're getting paid now and then you you develop again and you replace and and that's that's where Michigan is at right now safety position devastated to see Rod Moore go down this off season uh but what a great asset to have in that safety room as he gets back healthy mcari Paige want to probably my favorite safeties in the conference tall long looks like an NBA player can match up and shut down tight ends great to see Quinton Johnson back uh that makes up a a a really really uh nice Duo at that safety spot then you get Jaden mangam from down the street uh from Michigan State a guy that again just just has great size great length at this Michigan at at this safety position so again I look at the high LEL overview as I'm just rattling through these names and I Final Thoughts say what really jumped out to me is the size just the size of these guys even those safeties I just mentioned they look like elite players uh the defensive line you you should watch these guys they look like The Avengers uh the offensive line 300 plus pounds no guts no guts and I think the the glue that holds this team together is the love they have for one another I was asked uh on another show like hey do you feel Michigan is is out to prove people wrong this year and I said you know what's really interesting is I actually I don't think Michigan is concerned with proving people wrong they're just focused on themselves they want to prove themselves right I think that's the sign of a mature team uh Michigan didn't just lose Talent last year it was a lot of leadership as well and yet the culture remains they have a great locker room full of Great Character uh and and new leaders and new fan favorites will emerge this fall starting this Saturday against Fresno State so uh this is going to be a fun year I know I just buzzed through really really quickly but you know as I cover the conference and I see rosters and and I talk to coaches Michigan's roster 90% of the conference would swap their roster for Michigan's roster and and 90% of the conference would swap any position for any position Michigan has you can go position by position uh that's a credit to Jim Harbaugh and his staff recruiting and developing and now it's a credit to Chiron Moore uh just kind of grabbing the Baton and doing it himself now B recruiting has been going well as well so uh the team is in a great place all will be revealed this Saturday against Fresno State who's the quarterback we'll have the answer how's the offense look we'll have the answer can this defense maybe be better we'll have the answer and then the real test the real Benchmark the SAT of the the season is week two against against Texas so uh can't wait guys we appreciate you supporting the podcast again this is the lab presented by Wolverine uh pop some questions in the comments tell me what you're excited about uh happy to answer those in our next show uh should probably do a little bit more of that maybe we will so uh thanks for supporting the show looking forward to this Saturday appreciate you guys see you next time