This is, after all, how just about everybody inside these halls feels about Brown. And it’s why — after losing eight defensive starters from a year ago — Michigan has no shortage of confidence in its defense.
“When you look at coach Brown’s track record, I would argue he’s the best defensive coordinator in the country,” said offensive coordinator Josh Gattis. “He’s constantly produced top defenses year in and year out, no matter where he’s been.”
There’s a phrase ringing around Schembechler Hall: Michigan’s early enrollees “should be at high school prom.” Cornerbacks coach Mike Zordich described them as “raw” and “green.” Certainly, they’re not ready for college football, not yet.
This is what spring ball is for those who graduate high school a semester early to come to Ann Arbor.
The pre-game plane carried the optimistic hope for change that has defined Michigan’s offseason since it hired Josh Gattis as its new offensive coordinator on Jan. 10. And while aspects of that hope may be rooted in reality, Saturday’s spring game was a reminder that the Wolverines’ running game isn’t going anywhere.
Of course, all of this is just talk shrouded in the reputation that is Michigan’s signature offseason optimism, and the extent to which the public has seen Shea Patterson without Gentry came in a handful of 7-on-7 drills on Saturday.
But with five months until kickoff, it sure beats the alternative.
Haynes, the Wolverines’ go-to players coach, appeared to offer up a few words of support. But Poole, head wrapped in one last March Madness towel and eyes buried in Haynes’ shoulder, had no need for words. His trademark optimism, pervasive to the last possible moment, was gone, replaced by the tears of unfilled expectations.
ANAHEIM, Calif. — Amid an eerie silence, bowed heads and tear-filled eyes, one telling phrase rung through the Michigan locker room:
“Bad day to have a bad day.”
“Iggy lives up for these moments,” Haynes saod. “I haven’t seen a kid like him that lives for these moments. He loves the crowd, he feeds into it, whether it’s hate or love. He’s a different kind of guy.”
To anybody who knows Brazdeikis, this is no surprise.
Saturday night in Des Moines, those roles suddenly reversed. This time, Livers’ name shot across national airwaves after posterizing Florida’s Andrew Nembhard to help send the Wolverines to the Sweet Sixteen — the zenith of a postseason in which he has averaged 12.0 points per game on 58 percent shooting.
But once the Wolverines emerged from the halftime tunnel, the afternoon’s tide began to turn. By the time the two teams walked off the court again, Michigan had come away with a 64-49 win and moved on to its third consecutive Sweet Sixteen.
Just as soon as Gumbel’s message reached Mincy’s ears, his phone began to blow up. Some were congratulatory, but far more came from his group chat from Kent State, where he played from 2005-09 and coached from 2010-12. Haynes — a player with the Golden Flashes from 2002-06 and coach from 2012-16 — was one of those on the other end.