[Fuller/MGoBlog]
Taco Charlton
[I jumped into the scrum mid-answer] “…I was behind both Worm and Earl [Willie Henry] both playing those. They were both great players and both playing the same position so making sure when I got my time I was making plays, got the sacks, the hurries, everything like that. I contributed a lot against the pass and made sure I was stout against the run also in that 3-4 defense. As an end I made strides and as I got more playing time I contributed more and made more plays for the team. That was something I was able to do and I’ve been waiting to do for a while. As my snaps increase as a senior and going back to [being] a 4-3 end, I believe my production is only going to skyrocket, also.”
What do you think of these new threads?
“Oh, I like them a lot. I grew up wearing Jordans since I was a little kid. My mom had me as a baby wearing Jordans. I like the look of it. Jordan’s an icon not just in a football aspect but as a mogul, as himself, he’s somebody who you can go anywhere in the world and somebody will know he’s Michael Jordan. So to have this brand paired with Michigan, which to me is also a brand iconic in itself, I feel like it’s the perfect fit.”
It still means a lot after 10 or 12 years? All that still carries something to you?
“Oh yeah. I know Jordan hasn’t played in a while but at the end of the day he’s still an icon and not only is he the greatest player of all time to play the sport of basketball but I feel the Jordan brand is not just basketball. It expanded to baseball, golf, whatever it is and now football, but NFL players have been wearing it for a while. It’s a brand where, I heard Charles Woodson say ‘excellence.’ It’s a brand you can be a part of that—it’s a small group that’s a part of the Jordan brand because of that excellence and what he stands for.”
We asked Don Brown about your weight loss. How much have you lost?
“I’ve lost about 10 pounds. I was 285. Today I weighed in about 275, so I lost about 10 pounds from last year which was because we were in a 3-4 end and now we’ve switched over to a 4-3. I’m allowed to get my speed back, get that motor going, which I felt better this spring training. It wasn’t necessarily bad weight that I had on last year, but it was baggage that I didn’t need and it allowed me to be a lot faster off the edge and get that speed that we’ve worked at.”
He said ‘Would you rather be a slug or a bullet?’ Did he say that to you?
[laughs] “Nah, I haven’t heard anything.”
So you’d rather be a bullet?
“Of course, of course. I need that speed coming off the edge. It’s something that our team needs. He wants me to be that pass rusher that we need.”
[After THE JUMP: the “Jabrill Peppers decking people” tag is more versatile than we imagined.]
[Fuller]
Jabrill Peppers
Have you ever said how you hurt your hand [before the bowl game]?
“Uh, nah. (/laughs) That’s undisclosed. I’m good now though!”
[Inaudible]
“Just keeping my nerves intact, you know. Just keeping my nerves intact. The playbook, I’ve studied. The physical toll they’ve asked upon me I’m more than ready for and that’s because of the strength and conditioning staff. Anything they ask of me, it’s just do my job to the best of my ability. Do our job to the best of our ability each and every day.”
Coach Partridge said you were doing some boxing this summer. Where was that?
“Over at this place I went to in Ypsi. I don’t remember the name of it but yeah, just trying to get an edge any way I can.”
What did you take from that?
“I’ve been boxing my whole life so just hand quickness, hand placement, foot speed, things of that nature.”
Do you have a gym you work with in Jersey?
“Yeah, but I don’t think it’s still around anymore.”
Trying to think whether there’s a guy you train with or--
“Oh, no, no. Nah.”
It seems like there are more guys around the country who are doing a lot of different jobs, like Adoree [Jackson] out at USC. Why do you think that’s become a more popular thing?
“Well, I don’t know. I just think that those guys like Adoree’s an exceptional athlete. I just think that if they see a guy can do it, why not? Just see how it goes, and if he’s excelling at it…to each his own. Let him go.”
[Fuller]
Moe Ways*
[I didn’t label MGoQuestions because it was a one-on-one. And yes, this is the second MGoBlog one-on-one with Moe Ways from media day. Ace and I switched sides (offense was in the locker room, defense in Junge) and both grabbed Ways for a few questions.]
Where would you say you’ve made the biggest individual gains in your game from last fall to this fall?
“I’d say strength-wise, I think speed and just having a better knowledge of the offense and how to get open and create separation and things like that. That’s my biggest improvement from last fall.”
How about in terms of technique? What are some of the things you hear from your position coaches all the time, the things they really preach?
“Stay on the red line. Keep space between the red line and the end zone and give the quarterback room to throw the ball. And to be physical on the line and use my size and my strength to my advantage and just go out there and make plays. Be confident in your hands and be confident in who you are as a player and just let it show through your game.”
Who are some of the toughest individual matchups you’re going to face when you look at the schedule this season?
“In terms of corners or teams?”
Corners, so one-on-one matchups.
“Yeah. Iowa, definitely. Desmond [King]. Michigan State, Ohio State. Really anybody. There’s no bad corner in college football. Everybody here is really good. They’re not here just because. I think starting with Hawaii, every game we play there’s going to be good competition and you’ve got to come there ready to compete and make plays.”
What are some of the goals you’ve set for yourself this camp?
“Just get better every day, honestly. Come in with a mind set of it’s practice. Practice is there for mistakes and to work on your technique and get better and then let that translate to the game. Then to not put any added pressure on myself. Just go out there and have fun and do what I love to do and make plays doing it.”
How about the little things? What are some of the little things you want to work on?
“Little things like route running, getting my right depth, getting the right release off the line based on coverage, reading the defense. Just have a better IQ of football knowledge and hope that translates to making plays and getting in the end zone.”
How do you work on those things? What’s the best way? Is it drills? Is it film?
“Watch a lot of film. Talking to the corners. Talking to JD [Jourdan Lewis] and Strib and them and asking them what they see when I run a route and what indicators I gave them to be able to break on my route or whatever like that. Then just watching film with coach and the quarterbacks and just trying to be a student of the game.”
*[If you feel like you've read this interview before, you might have. I thought I edited it out of my first player interview post just before publishing but found out today it accidentaly ran. It never got tagged and didn't have a picture or anything, so I put it here with the treatment it deserves.]