Everything Tony Alford said during his spring press conference

On why he decided to leave Ohio State for Michigan

I just thought it was a great opportunity for me. For my growth, professional growth and things of that nature, I thought it was a great opportunity and I have so much respect for Sherrone and have known him for quite a while. I just thought it was time. Might've been time for both parties, I don't know. I just thought it was time and it was a good opportunity.

On first impressions of the running back room

Great group of kids, should say young men. They want to be coached, they want to learn so they're anxious to learn. They play hard. I think that's the culture that's been built here, obviously. A culture of toughness. To watch them practice and the way they go about their daily business has been really good. I've enjoyed that. That's kind of the biggest thing I've seen is just the culture and toughness. They want to learn and they play hard.

On whether the culture was something he noticed on the other side of the rivalry

I think anybody that watched them on tape, you don't have to be an opponent, just watch them, there was a toughness there that you saw. In particular, in the trenches inside with the linemen and guys finishing plays. You saw that. Just reaffirmed what I already thought.

On whether it took him any time to adjust to being on the other side of the rivalry

I don't know, we'll see. It's going. It was a little weird putting on this blue. That was a little weird, I hadn't done that since my Notre Dame days almost 9 years ago. You know what it is going into it. I'm just hoping I am able to add value here and go from there. Yeah, I know what it is.

On what was weighing on his mind when deciding on the Michigan job

Duck. No, I'm playing. Again, first of all, I've got so much respect for Ohio State and the Ohio State community and what they've presented to me and my family through the years. It was not an easy decision, obviously. I think anytime you were somewhere I was for 9 years, there's some roots that have set in. Not just professionally but personally as well. That was difficult. At the end of the day, it was something I couldn't pass up. Everyone is asking why and what are all the intimate details of it. The people that need to know, they know. At the end of the day, you make moves professionally that you feel are in your best interest and whatever those reasons are. That's what I did so here we are.

On what has been the key for Michigan to turn the tide in the rivalry

I don't know. I wasn't here through those times where they, obviously, started winning those games in The Game. I just go back to there's a level of toughness here that's been established and it's firm. I think the thing that probably stood out to me the most when I got here, it didn't take, it's just the alignment. The alignment of the staff. What Sherrone's done as far as staff alignment, continuity, togetherness and I think that's trickled down to the players. That's the one thing that stood out instantly for me was just the alignment of staff. Obviously, in particular, the offensive staff.

On Donovan Edwards' last trip to Columbus and how he's looked

Comes up every day (laughs). He's quick to tell me on a daily basis. Coach, I've never lost to you and I'm like, yeah, I got it. Move on to the next. He's a great kid. I've known him throughout recruiting. I recruited him and have known him and his dad for a long, long time. Much respect to him. He's had a nice career up to this point. Hopefully, he can continue on his last season here. He's been a joy to be around to work with. We've always gotten along so it's good to have him. He's like everybody else, he's trying to learn and get better. He's obviously a leader of this football team, one of the leaders of this football team that I have seen thus far. Definitely kind of the alpha male leader in our room, so to speak. It's been really good to work with him thus far.

On whether he's seen any traits from Sherrone Moore that he's witnessed with other coaches he's worked with

I think, again, watching how he interacts with the team. The players, first and foremost, they believe in him. You can tell by the way they respond to him when he speaks. Again, you walk into a staff room and the alignment. I think those things have been phenomenal. I'm not here to be judge and jury. I think he's special. He's definitely special. Which are things that I saw to help me make the decision to come here. He's just confirmed everything that I've thought. His leadership, his way to get people all aligned in the same way and the shared vision thus far has been great. I think he's a special guy.

On whether he thinks Donovan Edwards has developed like he thought he would when recruiting him

He is what I thought he'd be. He's a dynamic player, there's still some things to work on and he would tell you that as well as we continue to progress and become a complete player we all so desire him to be. More so he desires to be. There's some work to be done. He's what I thought he was. He's gotten bigger than I thought he'd be as far as his weight and things of that nature. He's a highly, highly competitive kid which I kind of always knew he was. He's about what I thought he was gonna be. He has the ability to make plays.

On whether he felt like he had gone a high as he could professionally at Ohio State

Yeah, in some regards. That's nobody's fault. If it was that, I'm as culpable as anybody. I just thought it was time. 9 years is a long time and I just thought it was in our best interest.

On how much physicality and play in the trenches define the rivalry

I know this, the physicality part of the game is huge. Not just in that game but you're talking about that game. I think there's a stat line like the last 16 or 17 times, whatever it is, the team that rushed the ball, most rushing yards, has won that game. That is as far as the trenches. To sit up here and say one team is tougher than the next, that's for you guys to debate. I'm not getting into all that. I just know that being here for the time I have been, the past four weeks, I have seen a level of toughness that I thought they were. In the trenches in particularly. These kids, they work really hard at their trade. So much respect to the success that they've had and hopefully I can be a part of future success.

On how important he feels his roll is to Michigan being a run-heavy offense

I don't think the identity of the football team, what we're going to do, is different. Again, I'm just hopeful I am able to come in and provide value and whatever value they seem to think I can provide, I can be able to do that. To say we're going to come here and make wholesale changes because Tony Alford is here, that's crazy. They've had great success, obviously, so hopefully I can continue to be part of that.

On the running back depth

You've got Kalel who moved over from linebacker. I think he's a dynamic player. I think the guy has the opportunity to make a lot of plays. Real smart, smart player. Still learning the running back trade per se. Works hard, he's an extremely talented player. I'm anxious to continue to work with him. Very mature. Another guy who is a leader in his own right, maybe a little different than Donovan but maybe not as vocal. Very dynamic personality as well. Then you've got Tavierre (Dunlap), good player. Continue to get to know these guys and these guys are all a little bit different. He's a little longer-strided guy that works his tail off. I know he's done a lot of things for them on special teams throughout the years. Continue to work with him and he's been a joy to work with. Ben Hall is a young kid that I believe redshirted last year. Big body, 230-235 pounds. He's had a good spring, he's had a really good spring as far as running the ball vertically, he's tough to tackle because he's real compact and runs hard so it's hard to get a good, solid hit on because there's not a lot of surface area to hit. Cole Cabana, still evaluating him. He's missed some time, a little bit of time, nothing major. Some nagging things. Again, another kid I haven't had an opportunity to evaluate a lot but is obviously hungry to learn. He's very attentive. Henry Donahue, walk-on that makes plays all the time. Kind of wild to see, he's always making plays. Good kid. You've got Bryson, Bryson is another guy who walked on but has earned his stripes. I've been impressed with all of them. The whole room. They're good kids and they work really hard. All you can really ask for because we are going through this evaluation process, so to speak. They can say they're not but they're still evaluating me as a coach. They came in here under Mike who is obviously very well renowned and has done a great job throughout his career. Not just as a player but as a coach. Has done so many good things for this place. So they're still evaluating me and I'm still in the evaluation process, seeing who is who and what guys can do. We're still going through the learning curve so to speak but we're cutting it pretty good.

On recruiting with Michigan and whether he sees the same NIL support

I do. I do. I think the support from here thus far has been fantastic. That's all I can go off. It's a little bit of a different pitch for me recruiting guys right now because they say what can you talk about academically speaking, what can you talk about the school and stuff, there's not a lot I can tell you. Shit, I've walked on campus once. There's a north campus, I just figured that out, too. I'm still learning a lot. Still learning a lot about the place but the one thing I can tell young people in recruiting, I think I know people. Again, it goes back to the head coach and his staff and the men that he's brought here on his staff. Not just the full-time coaches, I'm talking the auxiliary staff, the support staff, they're unbelievable people and they're people that I'd be honored to have my sons around.

On why he's able to build relationships with recruits

You've got to ask them. You'd have to ask them. I try to present what I want someone to present to my own child. Just tell them the truth. Sometimes the truth hurts, sometimes there's some people on the outside who don't know all the angles and all the different things that lead up to certain conversations. They can have their opinions but that's what they are, opinions. They only know what they know. I just try to be honest with kids and tell them this is what it is. Try the best I can to try to have unconditional relationships, meaning that just because you don't do something that I want or I don't do something that you want and that relationship is dissolved. I got three sons, oftentimes they don't do what I want them to do either, right? I'm not going anywhere and still going to love them and try to guide them the best you can and be a voice of reason. Teach them how to grow. Again, I try to be organic with those type of things and hopefully my messages are being delivered as I would like them to be delivered. I'm sure I've failed at times but I do the best I can with kids. I think if you just look at it holistically, I want to treat kids like someone will treat my sons. Sometimes that's tough love, sometimes that can be harsh and it can hurt but help them grow as people. Help them grow as men. I think, as coaches, we have an amazing responsibility to help young people grow. We get to do it in the name of football. If I was in a different walk of life and different job settings, maybe kids wouldn't listen as much but if they're football guys and they walk in and you have certain emblems on your shirt, they may listen a little more. When you do grab their attention, you have their attention for whatever it is. I think there's a message to be delivered and you get to deliver that message however you see fit.

On what he will do with his old Ohio State gear

I don't know. We'll find out (laughs). I know where it's not going to be, it's not going to be in my closet here. We'll figure that out, there's a lot of people I can give it away to I guess. I've been so fortunate. Unbelievably fortunate in my career that I've been in some really dynamic places. A lot of places say bluebloods, I've hit them all in the Midwest now. I've been very blessed with my career and very fortunate. It's not because of me it's a lot to do with the people I've been around as far as coaches and the opportunities that coaches have given me. I've been blessed with the players I've been around. Willing to take coaches with their chest open and giving me their heart. Hopefully, believe I've done the same. To say it's me, it's not. I've been very blessed and fortunate to work with some of the guys I've worked with and these players will be no different. I believe they're good guys at heart, they want to be coached, they want to be mentored, they want to be pushed. I think they all want to be held accountable. If we can do that, and I can do that, then let's go.

On what he looks for in a running back while recruiting and whether he feels comfortable in a recruiting battle

Are you asking me how comfortable I am in a recruiting battle? It is what it is, you better get comfortable. The first thing, I want guys who are tough. I think toughness is a big deal. I want guys that have a lot of respect for this game, a lot of respect for hard work, a lot of respect for their teammates, it's not about them. The physical traits are the physical traits. Can you run, can you change direction, size, all those things. I think your attitude is paramount. I want guy who are tough guys. Guys who are mentally tough guys. A lot of time the film doesn't show that, it takes time to get to know someone and ask questions. I get to spend some intimate time getting to know people and the people around them. The parents, the third uncle removed and the friends and things of that nature. If you were to say what's the one trait that, for me, is overriding, it's toughness.

On whether he's envisioned what it would be like walking into Columbus in November

Oh yeah. I've envisioned it. I won't tell you what that vision was. It'll be interesting. At the end of the day, there's a team across the field, a coaching staff across the field and we have ours, they have theirs. It's never going to be about the coaches, ever, it shouldn't be. We'll go from there.

On whether the relationships he's built in Ohio are sustainable now he's at Michigan

The ones I've talked to have been great. The ones I've talked to have been fantastic. People within the Ohio State organization I've been close to, those relationships have not been severed. At least to my knowledge they have not been. The high school relationships with coaches, understand my sons play down there in high school and those relationships have not been severed. Recruiting is recruiting, it's about relationships. There's some great, great high school football in that state and some phenomenal coaches in that state. It goes back to, again, what message are you delivering to players and to young people? Whether you're at Ohio State, you're at Michigan or at Notre Dame, USC, what message are you delivering that can help people grow? If anyone is ever asking me to say something negative about my previous place, that's never, ever, going to happen because I have nothing but the utmost respect for what that program has always been and continue to be. Nothing but great respect to the people who helped me grow my career there. Not just my career but help me grow personally and help my kids grow. Indebted to that.

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