Several Michigan players met the media Tuesday night at Schembechler Hall. Here’s what we picked up …
First, sophomore Nico Collins has emerged as most likely to lead the team in receiving this year, and not only because fellow sophomore Tarik Black went down with a foot injury. Sophomore defensive back Ambry Thomas said he noticed a change in Collins early this fall, and he can’t wait to see more of what he does this year.
“Nico got way better,” Thomas said. “He’s very athletic. Probably his release off the line [has improved the most], knowing how to use his body. He makes all his releases look the same throughout his route so you can’t guess what he running. He’s a bad man.
“This year at came he was making plays, play after play consistently. A lot of receivers don’t have that capability to be every day consistent with it.”
He got Thomas a few times deep this fall, too.
“He’s really good, fast, big,” sophomore receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones said. “He’s 6-5 220 pounds, stronger. He’s just a really good player.”
Thomas, meanwhile, smiled when he said he had gotten the same amount of offensive reps in practice this week in preparation for SMU. It was only a few a week ago.
“Coach [Harbaugh] came in Monday after the Notre Dame game, came to the meeting room and announced it to the team,” he said of his dabbling on offense.
They call him over from defense when they need him for a certain look, he added.
“My main assignment is on defense and special teams, so that’s what we focus on more,” he said. “But the opportunity to change the game when I get the ball in my hands is exciting to me … a clutch spot when we need to score.”
Thomas said he realized when he was seven years old playing in PAL that he was a playmaker:
"Every time I touched the ball I just ran and scored," he said. "They just told me, ‘Run!' That’s all I did. I just ran, like Forrest Gump."
On the offensive line, right tackle Juwann Bushell-Beatty admits he can’t help but see the criticism the line takes on social media, etc. He’s come to terms with it, even though much of it isn’t warranted (in his opinion).
“There are mistakes, and everyone wants to point fingers,” he said. “Things happen. The offensive line is going to take the blame for whatever, whether it’s true or not. We’re just going to go forward, just keep working hard.”
He felt he played decently against WMU, though there are “always things to fix.” He continues to work hard on his conditioning.
“It’s always going to be something to work on,” he said. “It’s not a static thing. Some days are better than others. This year is what I’m most focused on. Each and every day I come out and give my all.”
He reiterated that Ed Warinner has made things simpler for the offensive line. As for proving people wrong …
“We need to make it very obvious we are doing our job,” he said. “If that means running for 400 yards, that’s what we’re going to do.”
Walk-on receiver Jake McCurry said he should have kept the game ball, but didn’t after his first touchdown in his first game action at the Big House. He dressed last year but never saw game action at home.
“People were telling me after, but it didn’t go through my head at all,” he said.
They were at the Speights’ house after the game when Wilton and Jess’ dad told him a story.
“Mr. Speight told me Wilton picked up a random ball after his two-point conversion [at Minnesota], and it’s in a container in their house,” he said with a laugh.
McCurry said he’s being retweeted by friends he hasn’t seen in a decade plus, even by his former peewee league team. He said it was even more special to have several of his friends on the field with him when he scored his touchdown — Dylan McCaffrey, Joel Honigford, Oliver Martin and Tru Wilson, all good friends.
Finally, fifth-year senior Noah Furbush might have NFL potential, but he has no desire to play in the NFL. His mom was in the Air Force before he was born and his grandfather was in the Army, so Furbush wants to follow in their footsteps. He’ll be flying some kind of military plane.
“I’m open to anything. I just want to get up there,” he said. “The JSF F35 is pretty sharp. Fifth generation. That’s a pretty cool one to fly. They have custom helmets, $35,000 with AR glasses where you see things on the ground you couldn’t see otherwise.”
The crazy part, he said … he’d never skydive, but he loves being in the air.
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