How close was Michigan junior defensive lineman Aidan Hutchinson to never wearing the winged helmet again?
Closer than he — or the Michigan fan base — might want to admit.
Hutchinson was in a daze for a while after the Big Ten postponed the football season August 11, not quite sure of his next move. He continued to prepare, however, and his efforts were rewarded when the conference administrators voted to start the season Oct. 24.
“I was pretty devastated, almost hopeless,” Hutchinson told Jon Jansen on the In the Trenches Podcast. “I thought there was no way it would be reinstated. It felt unfair, too. You’ve got the SEC playing. It was just a very confusing time wanting to hear answers, and we weren’t really getting any.
“I’m so grateful to have this opportunity that we are playing. I’m not asking any questions; just excited to go out there and play.”
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The last time he hit someone before Wednesday’s first padded practice of the year was against Alabama in the Citrus Bowl, far too long for his liking.
Rather than sulk, he and his teammates adjusted. The first practice was “the weirdest practice ever,” Hutchinson admitted, with a zombie-like group wandering around not trying to come to terms with what just happened.
“As time went on, it got a little bit easier to practice. Everyone threw away whatever we heard and in that hour, hour and half period and just worked and worked, tried to improve our craft without knowing if there was going to be a season.
“Thankfully, this thing got reinstated. All that hard work is going to pay off.”
The defensive line has made the most of the extra practice time, he continued.
“We have a very complete D-line,” he said. “We’ve gotten a lot of reps in the offseason, gotten to train a lot. We’ve grown a lot of depth, too. Luiji [Vilain], Taylor Upshaw ... Donovan Jeter has had an excellent camp so far, and Chris [Hinton] is obviously doing great. We’re building depth, and Jess [Speight] has been great, too. Ever since he switched to the defensive line, he’s been soaring.
“I feel we’re just a complete defensive line all around. We all have different skillsets, and that makes us so unique. We’re super ready to show what we’ve got on the field.”
He and senior Kwity Paye form one of the best end duos in the nation on paper. Should teams try to double one or the other, Hutchinson noted, the other should benefit in his one-on-one matchup.
Hutchinson is more than up to the challenge, defensive coordinator Don Brown said last week.
“His arms are so long and he runs so well,” he said. “Remember the Addams family? They had the guy that was the butler. He was so tall, and everyone thought he might have stiffness. I cannot believe how athletic this guy is. He is 6-7 and runs like a deer.
"The sky is the limit for this guy, and we know what we've got. He's bright, articulate, in a great mood every day. It’s a beautiful thing when the defensive players can look at leaders and a guy excited to be on the practice field every day, smiling.”
He’s got plenty to smile about, Hutchinson said. Football is back, and he’s got plenty of help on what should be a very active defense.
“Coach Brown is so creative in all of his blitzes. Last year I lined up anywhere from 0 to 9,” he said with a laugh. “… When you see it, it’s going to be pretty chaotic.”
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