Of the long list of players who were expected to start for Michigan football at cornerback this season, just about no one expected that true freshman Jayden Sanders would be the first guy out on the field in just his third game of college football. Yet, with the depth chart dwindling, injuries, and such, Sanders found himself as the starting corner, opposite Jyaire Hill, in Week 3 against Central Michigan.
Sanders has seen some time each week, but when incumbent and stalwart starter Zeke Berry was injured against Oklahoma in Norman. He was thrown to the wolves against the Sooners, but improved from Week 2 to Week 3, making an impressive contribution against Central Michigan.
It’s unclear whether or not Sanders will be thrust into the starting lineup again against Nebraska in Week 4, but secondary coach LaMar Morgan marvels at the fact that he’s been able to do what he’s been able to do given his lack of college football experience.
“I think the crazy thing about Jayden to me is he wasn’t an early enrollee, so he got here in the summer because he was doing basketball and stuff like that,” Morgan said. “I think his dad is a former DB at TCU. He’s a really good player. His mom’s a former athlete at the University of Houston. So you got parents that preach discipline.
“He’s coming from a blue-collar program in Kilgore, Texas. They’re a tough-nosed, blue-collar program. He played offense and defense. A lot of our DBs that we recruit here do that in high school. I just think he’s mature. You can coach him. He’s smart. He works really hard. And I think when his time was coming, he was ready to go. And I think that’s really all about football. You never know when your time’s ready, but a lot of guys aren’t ready when their time comes. And I think he’s done a good job of just working while he’s waiting. I think he was probably, when he got here, maybe the seventh, eighth corner on the depth chart. Had some injuries, beat a couple guys out, and he’s done a good job. I’m just excited about him growing. Of course, he’s still got to clean up some things like we all do, but I’m excited for him and his family.”
Given that it’s not only Sanders who’s gotten into games, but also Elijah Dotson, and to a lesser extent, Shamari Earls (who had been expected to play a role before he was injured in pregame warmups prior to Week 1), it’s not an expected instance that freshmen will see early and abundant playing time. Still, Morgan marvels at how his first-year players have managed to appear wise beyond their not-even-a-year, and the difficulties they face stepping into major playing time so early.
“I think the biggest jump as a high school kid, as a freshman, to come here is just the demand when you come to school,” Morgan said. “You’re always in a limelight. Everything you do is going to be magnified. And I think these kids are kind of growing up by experience. They’re not perfect. None of us are.
“But I also think that the experience to play early at a place like Michigan and recruiting, it’s easy to tell a kid you’re going to get an opportunity to play, and then you look up and you look on the tape and you see a lot of freshmen playing all the way. I mean, we had a freshman play 30 snaps in the OU game. I just think when you tell kids that, a lot of coaches say we play guys early, but then they really don’t. We just want to make sure that we get the guys prepared so, when the opportunity calls, those guys are able to play. But I do think those guys, it’s a lot of first-year starters, a lot of true freshmen playing and traveling. We’re playing a lot of guys on defense. I think we had like 35, 36 guys the game before, a lot of guys. I just think that’s something that we try to preach to our guys. If you get on the bus, you get on the plane, be ready to play.”
Of course, with Nebraska coming up next, the hope is that Sanders, Dotson, and Earls are more so relegated to reserve roles rather than being in the aforementioned limelight. Though he’s in his second year, Cornhuskers quarterback Dylan Raiola has the appearance of being an elite signal caller, which makes it all the more important for Berry to return, if possible.
Morgan shared where he’s at in his recovery after being listed as questionable last week with eyes on the game in Lincoln.
“Zeke Berry’s moving around, trying to get some stuff going. He did it last week as well,” Morgan said. “At corner, it’s a little different than other positions. You want to get back and feel comfortable when you get back, and you have to be able to push off. You have to be able to jump. It’s not like a receiver where they tell you to run a 10-yard stop, and you just run 10 yards and stop. And I know it’s more than that. But at DB, you don’t know what they’re doing. You’re all off reaction.
“So, I think that’s the one thing when you look at a DB, when they get hurt, you have to be able to respond to whatever somebody’s doing in front of you. So, I just think it takes a little bit more time. I think Zeke’s been working really hard. We have a great medical staff here and team here. So, I’m excited, hoping we can get him back this week. He’s practicing and stuff like that. We just got to make sure he feels comfortable, and we don’t want to re-injure anything. So, that’s not really my expertise. But if he’s ready to go, you all know what you’ll get from Zeke. He’ll give you everything he got every single play. So, I’m excited if we can get him back this week.”
Michigan will play Nebraska at 3:30 p.m. EDT at Memorial Stadium with the game set to be broadcast on CBS.
This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Michigan DB Jayden Sanders steps in early while Zeke Berry recovery looms over Week 4
Reporting by Isaiah Hole, Wolverines Wire / Wolverines Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
