Mike Elston knew Mason Graham was special after Michigan's first practice

Michigan likely had the steal of the 2022 recruiting cycle after plucking defensive lineman Mason Graham out of the state of California.

Once he arrived on campus, it didn't take long for Graham to prove to the coaching staff that it could have something special. It's very rare that a defensive lineman comes in as a true freshman and plays right away but that's exactly what Graham did and he quickly proved he belonged at the next level.

Appearing on the In the Trenches podcast, Mike Elston discussed what made Graham so special upon arriving in Ann Arbor.

"I don't want to use the term unicorn because there's a lot of guys like that," Elston said. "The thing about Mason is the practice one of last year, everybody knew that he was different. When I say different, kudos to his high school coaching staff. He was well-trained, used his hands well. As a defensive lineman, if you don't know how to use your hands, there's a development process that's going to take place. He's trained really well.

"As much as I'd like to take credit for everything he did really well last fall, a lot of credit goes to his high school coaches and how they trained him. From day one, he was able to come in and function and block destruct at a very good level. He's smart, he's aggressive. You say one thing to him and he fixes it."

The Wolverines are hoping year one success translates into an even bigger sophomore season for Graham.

He is proving to be a key member of the defense and quickly adjusted to life with his new team.

"The guys love him because he's blue-collar, man," Elston said. "He puts his head down and he works. You can count on him. The thing about Mason is he fit right in and he ended up starting in our base package next to Mazi and Kris. You wouldn't know if you were watching the film that he was a freshman by how he was playing. He's going to have a monster year this year and we're excited about him."

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