Late in the third quarter with the then No. 3 Michigan football team tied with No. 2 Ohio State, the Wolverines received a harsh blow. After a successful 18-yard passing play, senior offensive lineman Zak Zinter went down with a gruesome leg injury.
As Zinter was carted off of the field, the moment both shocked and motivated Michigan. But even with all of the emotion, and the frustration, and the fear, it was a moment that offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Sherrone Moore and the Wolverines had known they had to be prepared for. With Zinter down, other linemen had to step up to close out the game.
“I told the offensive line when we started the season, and I tell them every year, it’s not gonna be five guys that help us get to where we need to go,” Moore said Monday. “It’s not going to be six, it’s not going to be seven — we’re gonna need 10. Everybody knows they’re next man up. Whoever it is, at whatever position.”
But now, with Zinter out for the foreseeable future, Michigan will need that ‘next man up’ mentality to pay off in the long run. And the onus of that burden will fall on two graduate linemen: Karsen Barnhart who will have to shift from right tackle to guard, and Trente Jones who will come off the bench to assume Barnhart’s role as a starting tackle.
For each, these altered roles will come with their challenges, and whether or not they can successfully fill them will have a large impact on the remainder of the Wolverines’ season. Jones for his part enters the right tackle role as a lineman with plenty of experience — but limited time as a starter. Throughout this season, Jones has shifted in and out of games and has served as the sixth man for a five-man line.
But now, major facets of Michigan’s run blocking and pass protection will depend on how he assimilates into his role as a starter. He filled in well against the Buckeyes, helping the Wolverines’ offense punish Ohio State late. Moore and Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh believe he is ready to carry that momentum into the postseason as well.
“He’s been an extra O-lineman, he’s been a selfless player, and he went in at right tackle and played great,” Harbaugh said Monday. “You hate to see that (Zinter) is hurt, but what an opportunity for Trente to show what he can do as that next man up.”
Alongside Jones, Barhart too will have to occupy a new role. But it’s a role that while different, will not be foreign for him. In 2021, Barnhart stepped up and started in multiple positions along the line. Evenearlier this year, he took snaps at guard and shifted around before settling at right tackle. All of this has earned him a special distinction from Moore.
“I mean, he’s Mr. Versatile, he can (shift to guard) in a second,” Moore said, snapping. “And it’s crazy because he can go from right to left, to inside to outside. It’s a credit to him and his study and what he does, and physically how capable he is.”
The offensive line has been the Wolverines’ backbone in their past two trips to the College Football Playoff, but this year there have been up and down moments.
In run blocking, the line has at times struggled to open gaps for senior running back Blake Corum. Now down a man in the moments when it will matter most, Barnhart and the line know there can’t be a regression — and they don’t expect it.
“It’s great to have the depth that we have, and all the experience in the room that we have,” Barnhart said. “There’s really no dropoff when the next guy comes in at all.”
With Barnhart’s versatility and Jones’ experience as the next man up, Michigan is hoping to limit any fallout in Zinter’s absence. And whether the Wolverines can fulfill that mantra may be part of what decides the outcome of their season.