ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The Michigan football defense saved the day time and time again against Northwestern, being put into sudden change early and often, only to hold strong in nearly every circumstance. It’s been the most consistent part of the Wolverines for most of the year — with only the game at USC being the outlier.
With an athletic Maryland team on deck and Ohio State after that, the defense will need to hold strong to help out the growing offense.
On Wednesday, defensive coordinator Wink Martindale met with the media for the last time in the regular season to discuss his side of the ball. Here is everything he had to say.
Opening statement
Alright, to start it off, I was really proud of the way we played Saturday against Northwestern with all the different challenges we faced throughout the game. Anytime you take an offense like that, who’s averaging 170 yards a game rushing and holding to 61 and 242 yards total, it’s a good football team and it’s a good offense. And we were 2-12, they were 2-12 on third down. That played a big role. We held with three field goals in the red zone. I’m just trying to bring them off the top of my head here.
And then obviously the key two four-minute stops, which is a rarity in football period. So I was really pleased with our guys’ attitude, our effort throughout the entire game. And different guys at different times stepped up and made plays. It was pretty cool to see, the play that J.Y. (Jordan Young) made. The different guys that jumped out and were celebrating with him on the sideline. But also when you look at that end zone shot on the all-22, you had J.Y. out there who made the play. Everybody saw that. But you had Chase Taylor and (Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng), two freshman linebackers in there. You had (Jayden Sanders) at the other corner. We had a lot of young guys in there at a pivotal time of the game, and they came out big. So, that was exciting.
Like I said, I was just really happy for the players and, you know, how they stood up to every challenge. With that I’ll open it up to questions.
The young talent and his rotation philosophy
Well, I think that it’s — No. 1 with me is the trust in the assistant coaches. I think we’ve got a great staff. I always tell you guys that, and those guys have done a tremendous job of building up their room and taking what they have in their room, and we’re reaping the rewards from it. Now later on, towards the end of the season, if they put them out there, I’ve got confidence in them because I’ve got confidence in the assistant coaches. And like I said, both the players and the coaches have been outstanding this year.
How’s Rod Moore doing?
I don’t know where Rod’s at. I think that’s a Sherrone question.
Improvement after the USC game
Well, I think there’s all 11, we’ve gotten better, whoever’s in there. And, this week’s going to be another great challenge for us because it’s a loose play offense. They play in space, and they have some really good athletes out there, so it’s going to be a great challenge for us. So I think that when you just attack the fundamentals of the game that, especially in November, you can’t get bored with high pad level, with low pad level. Like a lot of the guys I always put out to the players later on in the season, you see teams playing higher and higher as it goes because it’s hard to keep that discipline for that long. And I think that’s what you’re seeing with the guys up front. They’re playing with great pad level. And when they don’t play with great pad level, it shows up.
There’s a lot of guys who played some of their best football. And to win in November, you need your best players playing their best football. You know, Rayshaun Benny comes to mind for me. Trey Pierce. Those guys inside. Derrick Moore. Jaishawn. All those guys, they’re playing really well, and we’re in a good rhythm, and we’ll ride this thing as long as we can.
On LaMar Morgan’s work with the secondary
Yeah, it’s impressive, but it’s not surprising. When you know LaMar and Stokes and B-Hawk — and he’d also mention those two as well — they’re a great team back there in the back end. Stokes, he does the red zone stuff for us, and he’s great for me upstairs. He’s a calming influence for me upstairs because he does the personnel and does those things, and B-Hawk’s done a fantastic job as well. But LaMar’s done a great job, and we’ve had to play musical chairs back there, which you’ve all seen.
On the rotations up front
I think that Phee, obviously, his experience of playing and now coaching, he’s going to keep them fresh so that they can make the big-time plays when we need to make them. And what you’re seeing is that the other guys, the Cam Brandts and the Doms and TJs, they’re making plays when they’re out there as well. So it’s been a fun thing to watch. So there’s no set number of plays. Like Jimmy (Rolder) was on a rep count, coming back from injury, but that was the only one.
On Jyaire Hill’s emergence
I think that the guy’s just grown up right in front of our eyes as far as a player. He loves football, and you can just see the way that, how he plays the game. He has confidence. He’s to the point now in his career that if he gives up a reception, he gets mad, and that’s right where you like your corners.
On Pernell McPhee as a coach
Oh, I mean, he’s a stud. I mean, he’s been that way as a player, and he’s just great people, and he’s my guy. You know, I’ve been around him. I’ve known him for so long. I know it was a home run in the way we’re getting. I think it’s big for the players that he’s coaching that you have a guy who’s done it the way he’s done it and had the career that he had. And he’s having fun with it, and those kids have worked their tail off for it.
How much was the USC game a wake-up call?
I mean, we keep bringing that up, but it was a bad game. And I think that you’re going to have a bad game. Better early than late. We had too many missed tackles, and I think that it’s one of those things. You find out the true character of who you’re coaching and who you’re coaching with. Like I said, I love the staff that we have here and the trust that we have in each other, and you just got to go back to work, and that’s what makes this game so great is seeing those types of challenges after those type of games.
On the defense not folding after the USC loss
OK, yeah, I think how you handle it as a coaching staff feeds down to the players. There was no panic. Like I put on our sheet that I told the kids the positive stuff. I said — never have, never will — we didn’t flinch. Never have and never will. We just fix it and go play the next play, and it doesn’t matter how we have to go out there or why we have to go out there. We just go out there and do the best we can do and play as hard as we can play, and sometimes they make plays and sometimes we make plays, and that’s why they tune in.
On Derrick Moore’s play as of late
Well, I think, especially this time of year, for you to win, your best players have to play the best, and I think he is. And, I know the way with fantasy football and everything else, how it is, is everybody just bases it off of sacks, and it’s his physicality that he brings in, every day to practice and to the games. And, with both he and Jaishawn, our defense feeds off their physicality, and it’s not easy to set the edges in the run game and convert to pass and all those other things, especially in tight games, where the offenses have their entire playbook open.
But he’s been a leader for us. You’re not going to see him call a meeting, like in the middle of the field, and get some passionate Ray Lewis speech, but you can see how he plays, and that’s passionate enough for me, and the other players feed off of it.
On Maryland QB Malik Washington
It’s hard to slow him down. He gets rid of the ball quick. He’s got a strong arm. He’s a talented kid, and it’s going to be a tough challenge for us.
Forcing him into turnovers
Well, I think that if we all knew the keys to that, we’d have about four or five picks a game. But I think it’s a combination of things. You can’t let him feel comfortable in the pocket. And you need to reroute receivers and show them different pictures in the back end. So, a lot of those interceptions were early, and he’s playing really well right now.
What would be one thing he’d improve if he could?
One thing? Run, hit, rinse, and repeat. You know, tackle well. Fundamentally sound. And like I said, play with the confidence that you’ve earned.
Looking ahead to Ohio State
I’m focused on Maryland. Maryland. You can’t afford to do anything else. It really is — it’s turning into we’re in playoff football mode, and that part’s getting closer to the NFL than anything else. So we know what’s ahead, and it’s still all out in front of us, so we’ve got to have a great Tuesday, a great Wednesday, a great Thursday, a great Friday before we go down to Maryland. And I like the rhythm that we’re in defensively, in all aspects of it, in preparation and everything else. So it’s going to be a fun game to watch like they all are.
Did he watch the CFP rankings show?
It doesn’t matter until the end. So we’ll see what happens. I was watching third down in Maryland. Hope you enjoyed the show.
Who else impresses at Maryland?
The receivers are very talented. Their skill is very talented across the board and they’re all capable of making a big play at any time. So that puts a lot of stress, at least on the defensive coordinator, but it puts a lot of stress on the defense, too. You have to tackle well. You have to play with great effort and angles. You know, all the pillars that we talk about and, just like I said, in November is when you have to play with your best fundamentals, your best technique and execution, and communication, and the list goes on and on.
Does he particularly relish the Ohio State game?
Every year is different, every year is different. So we’ll see when that time comes, and the situation for it and everything else. There are so many different variables that go into it. So, it’s like I said, we’re focused on Maryland, and we haven’t spoken anything about the next game.
Can he tell the difference in the building now compared to last year?
I mean, it’s like — yesterday, well, the kids say we were vibing. All right, that sounds cool to say. But there’s an energy and a focus that you have at this time of year. And we had it last year, too, but there’s definitely — they know that everything they’ve worked for is still a lot in front of them. So we’ll see what happens.
On the linebackers
Yeah, I think that, we’re talking about assistants, I say that about all the assistants, but BJ’s done a great job. I said it back in training camp, of retooling that room, getting the guys that fit our personality. And it’s been fun to watch, really been fun to watch.
Does he know Pep Hamilton?
Yeah, I don’t sit down and have beers in the offseason or anything.
Who do you sit down and have beers with in the offseason?
Anybody on the golf course who wants to play golf.
This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Wink Martindale breaks down Michigan’s defensive surge, young playmakers, and Maryland prep
Reporting by Isaiah Hole, Wolverines Wire / Wolverines Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
