Bryan Fuller/MGoBlog
In the half-hour we spent on the field talking to players at Sunday's Media Day, the theme of this offseason and fall camp was clear: change is here. For the offense, that means a change in coordinators, and with that a significant difference in how they practice. The tempo is being pushed like never before in Brady Hoke's tenure at Michigan, and that also affects the defense, which is dealing with change of their own, as the coaching staff on that side shifts roles while the defense moves from a 4-3 under to a 4-3 over.
I caught up with Dennis Norfleet, Jake Ryan, and Wyatt Shallman to discuss these changes and more, including Ryan saying he feels fully recovered from the ACL tear that limited him to just five starts in 2013. Tomorrow, I'll have further player interviews with the significant portion of the team that hails from Cass Tech.
Dennis Norfleet
You're getting work in the slot now pretty much exclusively, it sounds like. How comfortable are you at that position right now?
I'm getting a lot better. The wide receiving crew is really helping me out a lot. Coach Hecklinski is a great coach, he's getting me to feel comfortable when I get in there and getting me comfortable with my plays, so I'm doing pretty well.
What's been the biggest difference with the new offensive coordinator, the biggest change between last year and this year?
The biggest change is we're moving faster, up-tempo. We're a lot better as an offensive crew, we're more than a team, we're a family, so that's what makes a big difference to us now.
With that big increase in tempo, it sounds like you guys are getting more reps in. How much of a difference has that made in terms of getting more comfortable in the offense?
It's a making a lot of difference. It's a big difference because we have a lot of rotation, everybody gets to know their plays, nobody's going out there not knowing what they're doing, and if they don't they have people to tell them if they go wrong. That's a big difference.
How do you see your role being this year? Obviously you're playing the slot, but there's a lot you can do, so how do you see yourself being utilized in the offense this year?
I'm just doing my job, you know. If I get open space, I do what I do best, you know. I'm also being a role model for the younger players that came in. We're basically working as a team in everything that we do.
At returner, you obviously have a lot of experience there. Coach Hoke said you're getting a lot of the reps there but that there are a couple freshmen who are also coming in and making a push. How do you feel at returner right now, and is that a place you feel you can make a really big impact?
Kick returning has always been something that I go into the game and everything, you know, willing that I want to return a kick [for a score] every game. We've been rotating a lot, we've got a lot of players that are competing, spots that's not really set out for who starts where, so we're just having fun in camp right now and competing.
It sounds like both at slot and returner that you're working a lot with Freddy Canteen. What have you seen out of him in the spring and fall so far?
Canteen's becoming a better young man, not just a football player, just in life. He's been looking up to the older receivers, like Devin Funchess, me, [redshirt senior walk-on Anthony] Capatina. It's just a lot of people he can look up to, to become a better person, both in our lives and football.
You keep mentioning how you guys have come together as a team. What's been the biggest change since last year, and do you feel like as an upperclassman now you're really grown into a leadership role?
When I came in, I did things that upperclassmen always told me was wrong that I didn't think were wrong, but now that I'm older I can see what they were talking about. You know, it's more than just a game. We're trying to win a championship, the Big Ten, so as we go along that's the focus of our days. That's what we're ready for.
[Hit THE JUMP for Jake Ryan discussing his transition to middle linebacker and his full recovery from the ACL tear, and Wyatt Shallman talking about his role in the offense and the changes in style under Doug Nussmeier.]
Jake Ryan
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| Photo: Eric Upchurch/MGoBlog |
How's the transition going to middle linebacker right now? How comfortable are you?
It's going well. I've learned a lot. Coach Mattison has been doing great. Desmond [Morgan] and Joe Bolden have been helping me a lot. I'm getting it down, but day by day I'm taking steps forward.
What would you say is the biggest different between playing the middle in an over versus playing on the strong side in an under?
Probably, you know, your focus is on that running back as a middle linebacker. At SAM linebacker, it's always on the tight end, so there's a lot more going on at middle linebacker, and that's a transition I've had to make. But like I said, I'm taking those steps every single day.
You're also making a lot of the calls in there. Are you getting comfortable as more of a commander of the defense right now?
I am, I am. Like I said, I'm getting help from other guys, but I'm getting it every single day, and getting more comfortable with my position.
The coaching staff got shifted around a little bit on defense. How do you think that's going, having new guys in new spots?
Good. You know, it's going well. Coach Smith is doing real well with the defensive line. Coach Mattison's always going to be the center of everything, the playcaller, so I think it's great—great for our team, great for our defense.
How's the leg feeling compared to last year?
Good. It's feeling great. It feels like it never even happened. It's going well.
What's the biggest thing that you think you guys need to improve before you get to game one?
From the defense's perspective, I think it's just communication, I think that's always key. It's always gonna be huge for the type of defense we are, so I think communication's gonna be huge for us.
Wyatt Shallman
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| Photo: Eric Upchurch/MGoBlog |
Where are you practicing these days?
I'm doing fullback, H-back, and a little bit of running back, so kinda just in the backfield.
Is that a little overwhelming at times, to have three different spots you're lining up at, or is that something you're used to at this point?
I feel like for some people it's overwhelming. When I first started doing it, it was kinda tough, but now that I've got all the nomenclature of the new offense down and listening to playcalls I just know what I'm going to do when the words come out rather than having to think about it. So, it's really not too bad anymore, it's just remembering the little things from play to play—like, on the same play, what steps do I have at tailback versus H-back versus some tight end stuff.
With Jake Butt out, I know you're playing H-back more than on-the-line tight end, but that does open up a little bit of an opportunity for playing time. How do you feel you're doing in terms of the competition, and what's the competition like overall at that H-back spot?
Well the competition overall with this team is amazing. Everyone is competing for their spots. Just because you're a senior doesn't mean that you have a guaranteed spot, or if you're a [returning] starter it doesn't mean you have a guaranteed spot—everyone's working for it, which is how a football team should be. In terms of the H-back position, I mean, we've got a lot of great athletes. The dudes we're working with, we all compete every day, so it's really good competition and it's fun.
It sounds like the tempo has really been ramped up during practices. [Wyatt: Yeah.] How have you guys taken to that, and do you think it's a positive change compared to last year?
Oh, yeah, for sure. When Coach Nuss got here, we had a walkthrough of what a practice would be like before the spring, and it was just, like, whoa. Constant movement. It's a different format in that you are constantly moving from group to group to group—on different fields, constantly at least jogging, so it definitely gets you in shape really well. I just like it because it's just constant competition everywhere you get to. You jog up to competition, you get done, you go jog to more competition, so it's a good pace and I like it a lot.
I assume that's getting you guys more reps, as well.
Yeah, oh yeah. Everyone's getting their amount of reps, and like I said, everyone's competing, so it's definitely a good structure for practice.
Other than the tempo, what would you say is the biggest difference between how you were coached under Al Borges last year and where you're at with Coach Nuss this year?
All I can say is Coach Nussmeier is a great dude, a great coach, and I'm excited to have him. He's intense at practice and fiery, which is fun. He gets after it. He's on the field with us players, just getting hype with us, and then teaching us when we do something wrong. Overall, Coach Nuss is just a lively dude, and I really enjoy having him as a coach.
How different are the schemes that he's running compared to what you were running last year. Is it a huge difference or are there similarities but the terminology is just different?
I mean, the scheme, it's different—I did redshirt last year so last year I spent a lot of my time trying to learn other people's offenses to get our team a look, so really I feel like I'm coming into my first offense. I didn't really do much under Coach Borges. I just like how [Nussmeier] has everything set up. He really knows what everyone is doing at all times, which is really impressive.
Being on the scout team and looking at those other teams' offenses—first of all, do you think that helps you learn this offense, and is there another Big Ten team that Nussmeier's offense reminds you of?
Well, being on the scout team last year, what it really teaches you to do is to be tough, especially at the positions I play, you really have to be a man. I've always been kinda younger, so I thought it really good for a baptism by fire for me last year on scout team, going against guys like Frank Clark and Jake Ryan, Cam Gordon, where they're going full speed and I'm just a freshman. So I think that's what it taught me more than anything. Like I said, Coach Nuss brings his own playbook into it and his own swag or style, if you will, so I'm not gonna compare him to anyone else.