On what he saw to suggest the final play call on fourth down

No, I mean, Coach Campbell and Coach Moore make the play calls. So, obviously, the points there, you know, if they ask for suggestions or things like that. But, no, it's a credit to Coach Moore and Coach Campbell and the players for going out and executing.

On why that play call was the right one

I mean, I think we all have confidence in everybody who's out there, and especially in a game like that where the O line is playing well, especially in the run game. You've got Cole who's running like a man possessed, and you're running behind the best fullback in college football. So, I think we all were in agreement that, you know, hey, if you're going to go down, you're going to go down trusting your guys, you know, trusting your best players to do what they do best. So, I was obviously very happy that we got in.

On seeing the Iowa/Minnesota results giving him confidence that Michigan can win with a run-heavy style of play

Yeah, I mean, I think, like, in terms of identity, our identity is winning football games. And I think that we're all in alignment that we're going to do whatever it takes to win the football game. Obviously that game, it was, you know, hey, let's keep the ball on the ground and keep turning away yards. No different than it was in Penn State in 23, even when JJ was back there. So, I don't think it's a reflection on we don't want to pass the football or we can't pass the football. It's what that game called for. And at the end of the day, that's what it's about. That's what we're about, you know, as an offensive staff, and Coach Campbell leading us is scoring one more point and winning the game. And we have confidence that, you know, when it came down to it in that last drive, no matter what it took, we were going to be able to get the job done.

On whether he's looking into make a change at right tackle

Yeah, I mean, I think it's always something you look at, you know, every single week the best player is going to play. And, you know, he's gotten better, you know, week in, week out. And it's our job, it's my job to continuously make sure he gets, you know, the reps he needs and the practice he needs to make that improvement. But, I mean, that's something you look at every single position every single week, you know, making sure the best guys are out there and that, you know, as a coach I put them in the best position to succeed.

On Evan Link's performance through four weeks

Yeah, I think obviously there's just like with any young lineman, just like when I was, you know, starting for the first time, that there's going to be growing pains, especially in that position. And, you know, I've been encouraged that he's gotten better week in, week out. And obviously he's still, you know, not there yet and he knows that. But, you know, we're just going to continue to push him, continue to, you know, make sure as a coaching staff, myself first and foremost, that we give him all the opportunities to, you know, continue to refine his technique and continue to get better.

On what makes Max Bredeson such a great blocker

Sure. I mean, first, fullback, a lot of it's mentality. I probably said this before when I was coaching him, but it's a different animal when you're staring at someone who's five yards away from you and you know they're going to be running full speed at you and you're going to be running full speed at them. And you've got to put your face on them. That's something that even is different than blocking somebody in line or blocking somebody in the perimeter. It kind of takes someone who's got a couple of screws loose to go out and not only do that, but love it and crave it like Max does. So it's a credit to him and his mentality, his preparation, obviously his physicality, and obviously Coach Casula does a great job, you know, working with not only him but all those tight ends in the run game and the pass game.

On why Jeff Persi and Andrew Gentry didn't win the starting job, was Evan Link just better?

Yeah, I mean, like I said, I don't want to say it's anything they didn't do. You know, every week it's a collaborative conversation amongst the coaching staff, Coach Moore, myself, Coach Campbell certainly, how you're putting the best guys on the field. And if we think that there's an opportunity where multiple guys need to play, we're going to play multiple guys. But, no, there's no – every job is up for grabs every single week, which is the way it always has been here. It's the way it's going to continue to be. We saw that last year with Myles and Trente and Karsen and times we were playing two and three tackles in a game just because you're going to put the best players out there. You know, best players being who's had the best week of practice, who's had the best preparation. We feel like we can go out there and give us the best chance to win.

On giving the right side of the line more help if it continues to struggle against the pass

Yeah, I mean, I think every week you make sure you're putting your guys in a position to succeed. And, again, that starts with, you know, me as a coach and making sure that those guys are in the best position possible.

On where he thinks the team is with pass protection and where it can go from here

Yeah, I mean, obviously it's something we've got to, you know, continue to improve on week over week. And, you know, the hay is never in the barn. And, you know, we're not where, you know, we need to be at the end of the season or obviously want to be at the end of the season. And we just got to make sure that every single week it gets better and better. You know, because in order for us to reach our goals as a team, that's obviously going to be a big part of it. So, again, it starts with me and making sure that I'm doing everything possible to put them in good positions.

On the rotation at center and whether there is anything to be done to keep either player engaged while not on the field

Yeah, I think it goes back to what I said earlier of, like, you know, we're going to play the best guy, you know, that given week. And if we have two guys, we feel like it's been pretty close. You want to give them both opportunities for somebody to go out and, you know, you'll clearly win the job. And if it's still close, you know, we don't mind playing multiple guys. Again, no different than last year when, I mean, watching the Rutgers game this time last year, you know, four different tackles played in that game. So it's the same mindset that if you have two guys who are both playing well enough and both are close in competition, you're going to keep playing both.

On whether Dom Giudice and Greg Crippen know which drives they'll be on the field for or whether it's a feeling out process

Yeah, it's something we talk about with them. And obviously, you know, game flow will always impact things. But that's something we talk about with them. And they're aware of that, hey, you know, both guys are going to play this week versus, you know, hey, we're starting one guy and he's rolling until something happens.

On how Alex Orji enhances the running game

Sure. I mean, I've never coached defense, but I can imagine it gives you, you know, another person to account for. If nothing else, even if it's a play where he's not reading somebody, the threat is there just because of how dynamic he is, you know, with the ball in his hand. So it's definitely an added, you know, layer for us. And, you know, he's a talented player running the football and not running the football. But I think it certainly doesn't hurt us. And, you know, it only makes us more multiple and gives us more avenues to attack a defense.

On Orji's athleticism mitigating some of the pass protection issues

Yeah, I mean, I think that's a question for Coach Moore about, you know, how much it calculated into him being the starting quarterback. But, you know, I mean, obviously athletic quarterbacks help, you know, gives you the ability to kind of make plays right when stuff breaks down. But, no, I think he's done a great job.

On evaluating the boom or bust nature of the offense on Saturday

Yeah, I mean, it's like anything comes down to, you know, making sure that as position coaches we do everything possible to prepare them for, you know, looks you may get and being sure they're able to execute their technique. And then it comes down to executing both. So it's kind of that dual nature of, you know, we got to do the best to prepare them we possibly can because it starts with, for offense line, it starts with me to make sure those guys are ready to go and have seen every possible look and are prepared for anything they may face. And then, you know, it's that marriage and then going out and executing it. And I don't think – I don't see this as a kind of boom or bust operation. It just happened that we broke some big runs and it drives quickly. But obviously, yeah, you never want to go three and out.

On Bredeson having 'a screw loose'

I think it's just who he is. I didn't watch much of his quarterback film when he's coming out of high school, but I imagine there was a lot of physicality there too. But, I mean, again, I've said this before, but just the fact that he gets here and, you know, first thing he asks is, hey, can I go play special teams? Can I go just, you know, get on the field? How can I contribute? You know, he's wired the exact way you'd want. You know, not just a fullback, but, you know, a football player and a captain. You know, to be a leader of his teammates. You know, he's got everything you'd want.

On whether he sees teams having rally groups on offense in the future

Yeah, I mean, there are teams – there are certainly teams that do it. It's less common than obviously in the defensive line. But there are teams cross country who will, you know, sub two or three linemen at a time or sub – I mean, it's more rare, but sub five linemen at a time. And, again, it just comes down to every week we're evaluating these coaches, you know, who gives us the best chance to play. And if there's two guys we think have earned the right to both play in a game, then we're going to do so. And I think it's something that Coach Moore, you know, made clear through it. And I firmly believe in it as well that, you know, I don't think there's any kind of lack of chemistry or reason not to play multiple guys if multiple guys have earned the right to play.

On whether he believes that chemistry on the offensive line is overrated

I don't think so. I mean, I think we proved last year you can do it with more than one. It's no different than, you know, hey, if a guy gets hurt, the next guy's going to be able to go and step up. So, you know, it's my job as a coach and our job as coaches at all our positions to make sure that, you know, yeah, guys get to know each other. But if we're going to play multiple guys, multiple guys are getting ready. So, you know, it's no different than last week. You know, those centers took first team reps. So both guards are comfortable with both centers. Those centers are comfortable with both guards and so on and so forth. So I haven't felt like there's any kind of, you know, drop-off one way or another, depending on who's in the game at center.

On winning games passing vs. relying on the run

I mean, we did win the national championship last year.

On this year's team winning games passing vs. the run

I mean, that's, I guess, to be determined. But I know I trust all of our guys. I trust our coaches. I think we're going to do what the game calls for, like I said. And I guess the only evidence I can give you is that there were people saying this last year after Penn State, you won't be able to beat Ohio State doing this. You won't be able to win the Big Ten championship. It's not going to work for us at Alabama. And we did what the game called for. Coach Moore called the game as it needed to be called. Coach Campbell's going to call the game as it needs to be called. So I'm not trying to be smart in my response, but it's the reality. I don't think anyone in this building cares about how sexy something looks, cares about if it works or not. If it doesn't work, then as coaches we've got to reevaluate it and make sure it does. But, I mean, if we win every game throwing for 500 yards and have two yards rushing, I'll be happy we won the game. If we rush for 300 yards again and have 32 yards, because that's what the game called for, I think we'll be pretty happy, too, because we're winning games.

On whether the passing game is wildly different behind closed doors as they've struggled in games

I mean, I think it's hard to say that just because we haven't had a game where it's really kind of required that. With the USC game last year, or last week, we were in a position where we felt comfortable with how the running game was going. And I think Texas is kind of a hard one to evaluate because we put ourselves so far behind the eight ball early in that game. But, no, I don't think anyone in the building has a lack of confidence in either the ability to pass the football or run the football.

On Myles Hinton's ceiling and whether he's lived up to it

Yeah, I think so. I mean, I think every NFL scout who comes in the building says the same thing. He's got all the tools. And I think it's become more and more consistent. And the challenge for him is the challenge for everybody is, you know, if you're a player of that caliber, it's got to be 95% of your snaps look like it, and maybe five don't, and then 96, then 97. So that's been the challenge from us to him, is just continue to look like the incredibly high-end player you are every single snap and challenge yourself to do that. And I think he's embracing that challenge. And, you know, he's done that more consistently than he did at times last year, and now the challenge is to continue that.

On whether it's feasible to fix things on offense midseason

I think the great thing about our offense is, you know, there's very few schemes we don't have. It's just one week you may not see it. So it's in there. It's in there. It's stuff we work on in training camp. I mean, it's stuff we work on in spring practice. So it's just, again, I think, I don't want to say the term gets overused, but I think sometimes, like, the idea of, you know, offensive identity of we're this team, we're this team, well, that's great until that's not working. You know, and sometimes, you know, the game calls for something that's different than what you might have even had the idea of what it was going to be going in. And I think that, again, it comes back to, you know, as players first and foremost, like, they're unselfish. That's what the game called for versus USC, and that's what we went out and executed. So I think that's just, I mean, that's our plan moving forward, right, is obviously you want to make sure you win every single game.

On Minnesota getting gashed on the ground by Iowa

I mean, they're a good team. You know, Corey does a great job coaching those guys. A lot of pressure, a lot of movement. I mean, they're going to challenge you, not only just in terms of physicality, but also scheme. Obviously, it's a good scheme. It's a scheme that, you know, they're familiar with in that building, even, you know, having a new play caller this year. But, obviously, Coach Hetherman's been in the Big Ten for, you know, a little while now and has been a part of good defenses. So, it's going to be a challenge. And there's no one in this building who's taking it lightly or looking at, ah, they gave up this, they gave up that. Like, they're a good team. And it's going to be a challenge just like, you know, last week was. And I think that that's something that we've challenged the guys. And I think they've met that challenge of we've got to approach it the same every single week.

On the challenges when teams scheme to stop the run and bring more guys into the box

Yeah, I mean, it's, you know, something we take pride in. You know, teams can scheme it. And, obviously, you know, everyone's kind of got a plan. You know, USC in the third quarter was to go to cover zero every single play. And, obviously, I do a good job making sure that the guys are ready for that and making adjustments when that shows up. But, at the end of the day, it's a point of pride for us. I mean, you look at the USC game, you know, in the 18-yard line. I think they probably had a good idea of running the football. They had a good idea of running the football. And then it comes down to, you know, pride. You know, hey, if you know what I'm about to do, can I still go do it? Can I still move a man against his will and get us four or five yards? Can I get the back three yards of space, or whatever we averaged, you know, before he gets touched? And then let him go make that extra man miss. And, you know, I think we all have faith in our offense line to be able to do that and our backs, certainly, to make that extra guy miss.

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