Every preseason, the staff of The Wolverine votes on the 25 most indispensable Michigan Wolverines for the upcoming football season. Our list kicks continues today, with Nos. 15-11.
In case you missed the first two installments:
No. 15 — Senior guard Michael Onwenu
The right guard is yet another Michigan offensive lineman from 2018 who garnered All-Big Ten notice, grabbing third-team honors from the coaches. He would like to move up, and has put in the work to do so.
Listed at 6-3, 350, Onwenu has refined the bulk that can move people, while building his stamina for the up-tempo game to come.
“We don’t huddle,” Onwenu said with a smile. “It’s cool. Change is inevitable.”
The biggest change of all he wants to see is an even higher level of success in his final season. Others have noticed the seriousness with which he’s approaching everything, and Onwenu shared some insight into his approach.
“It’s a maturity level,” he said. “I played my freshman year. I played my sophomore year. But I was just filling a role.
“Now it’s like, this is my position. I’m getting more comfortable. These are the things I need to do to take it to the next step, for professional [football]. I’m just doing those things.”
Onwenu insists the offensive line as a whole is ready to make a collective more to a higher level.
“We want to be held to a higher standard,” he said. “Third-and-two, third-and-three, we’re begging to run it. We want to be what we’re supposed to be — a powerhouse team.”
No. 14 — Junior linebacker Josh Ross
Ross earns the BFN Award (Biggest Feet Necessary) this year, having to fill the shoes of the newest Pittsburgh Steeler, Devin Bush Jr. In fact, it’s not even fair to put that on one player, but Ross will have a huge hand in the middle of Michigan’s defense.
Last year, he finished fourth on the team in tackles with 61, while notching a sack among five tackles for loss, despite only one start.
No. 13 — Sophomore defensive end Aidan Hutchinson
This is lofty territory for a sophomore who hasn’t started a single game. But Hutchinson combines considerable physical talent with a major opportunity, after the Wolverines lost both starting defensive ends to the NFL this past spring.
As a true freshman, he posted 1.5 tackles for loss among 15 stops and provided a consistent physical presence, which should only grow this year.
No. 12 — Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Tarik Black
Black needs good health and good breaks (or more accurately, no breaks) to avoid becoming the best Michigan receiver that never was. Annually touted as an extremely dangerous pass catcher, the third-year performer suffered foot fractures (in different feet) both of his seasons thus far.
He wound up with four catches for 35 yards last year, and needs to make the most of his opportunity in Michigan’s new offensive world.
No. 11 — Senior linebacker/defensive end Josh Uche
If finishing just outside the top 10 on this list motivates Uche, he knows how to channel any perceived slight. The fourth-year linebacker/defensive end made only 15 tackles last year, but seven of them were sacks and eight were behind the line of scrimmage.
He is Michigan’s heat-seeking missile to the quarterback, looking to prove he can be an every-down player.
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