Michigan senior corner Lavert Hill is all but guaranteed a starting spot when he returns from injury, but position opposite him is wide open. Junior Ambry Thomas and redshirt freshman Vincent Gray are two who have put themselves in good position coming out of spring, cornerbacks coach Mike Zordich said Tuesday.
They’re not the only ones, though.
“Ambry’s come along; Vincent Gray’s come along,” Zordich said. “Jaylen Kelly-Powell’s come along, and you can’t count out Gemon Green. We’ve got some guys who have been working extremely hard, doing really well, and then we’ve got D.J. [Turner] coming this summer,” Zordich said. “So it will be interesting.
“[Thomas] is just comfortable, very naturally talented, a gifted guy. He knows the system now, so now he’s just going out there and playing, not thinking. It’s really a beautiful thing.”
He thinks he’s the fastest guy in the NCAA, Zordich said with a chuckle. Speed is never a bad thing, but it’s only a good think if a player knows how to use it.
“It can be [hard] if he doesn’t know how to control it,” Zordich said. “Our guys are taught to stay below a lot of routes, and then once it gets vertical, we don’t want to sneak into sixth gear right away. That can be a problem. Then when you're above it you can get all underneath routes, and that’s where you can get in trouble
“For him it’s not because he understands it. He started coming on at the middle to end of last year, started figuring it out, his body, what he can and can’t do, really understanding our technique. So that was helpful for him … his technique, his patience at the line of scrimmage and the fact that he knows he has the opportunity to start. He’s really embraced that role, become a leader, is becoming a leader in our room. He’s been great all around.”
Veteran Brad Hawkins has grabbed the starting nickel role and handled it very well, Zordich said, adding “great value to our back end.”
“He’s made us better,” Zordich said. “He’s had a great spring.”
Kelly-Powell, meanwhile, is working at corner and nickel.
“He’s really slowed things down in his mind and he’s having a great spring, really competing, making great plays on the football,” Zordich said. “I enjoy having him in the room, for sure.”
Gray didn’t really show signs of coming on last fall but has picked things up very well this spring, he continued.
“You just watch him move physically … he is a a very gifted guy. Just watch his movements, and now he’s putting it all together with his play," he said. "It’s pretty impressive. The sky’s the limit for that kid.”
Two more young guys, Myles Sims and Jalen Perry (an early enrollee), continue to compete.
“Myles has just got to be more consistent,” Zordich said. “He put together a couple nice practices, but he’s got to stay and get better every day. He has the skill set. He’s just got to get more consistent.
“Jalen is young. I keep hitting myself in the head. He should be at the prom. He’s here with us now. He’s gifted, got the skill set, but he’s still in high school. He’s got a little ways to go catching up, understanding the speed of the game, the technique we use. He’s a gifted athlete, but in high school he’d go out and cover guy most of time. Here it’s not that way. He’s just got to learn our way of man on man.”
All in all, Zordich said, he’s pleased with the progress and excited to see what they can do this fall.
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