Fall Camp 2011: Day One Presser Notes

Brady Hoke

Actual News:

• There are no real injuries on the team. Troy Woolfolk and JT Floyd are full-strength, "we're pretty daggone healthy"
• "Darryl's done a great job with what we've asked him to do, and we'll go from there." He will be able to practice with the team as he redshirts. The redshirt will not affect the number of scholarships available for the 2012 class (still 26).
• "There's a couple guys" who will challenge to be the starting punter in camp. Matt Wile will be able to (possibly) do both. "You can be a great kicker on State Street, but we kick up on Main Street." They still don't know how the new video boards will affect the wind in the stadium, so kickers will practic ein pressure situations there.
• Will Campbell left spring around 342 pounds, now he's around 319 pounds. Taylor Lewan has gained a few pounds.
• There will be five days of 2-a-days during summer camp. That can be adjusted, based on how the practices are going. On Wednesday and Thursday, the players will be in shoulder pads and helmets, then full pads start on Friday. Guys are practicing hard even though they aren't in pads yet. There's a balancing act between being physical in practice and keeping guys healthy. Quarterbacks won't be live during camp.
• In the past, summer camp could consist of three days with just freshmen, to get a little extra teaching in for the young guys. They don't have that anymore, but sometimes the freshmen will stay an extra half an hour after practice to get some work in.
• As far as installation, both sides of the ball need three bread and butter plays "that we can hang our hat on." On offense, that includes the power play, a play-action pass off that, and a 2-minute specific play. On defense, they need three calls guys can execute without having to think.

The first day of camp is best for seeing how the players' bodies have changed, and getting a first evaluation on team toughness and senior leadership.

The players came into camp with an attitude of being ready to improve.

It's too early to evaluate running backs. They've only had one day in shorts so far.

There are enough players at wideout to make up for the absence of Stonum.

The team is too busy to worry about buying into any hype or anything. "We now we have so many things that we need to get better at, and so many things that we need to be a little more physical at."

It's been hard for Will Campbell to get established, as he's been moving around positions. Now, he's set at one position and will hopefully take advantage of that.

The first day of practice went alright, but Hoke has a list of things to talk about improving in the staff meeting and team meeting tonight.

The coaching staff needs to communicate clearly about what they want, so the players will be able to retain what they've been taught.

There's a lot of "want-to" and "pride" on the defense. They need to identify the playmakers before they can worry about what it will be this fall.

"We want a championship culture here. There's an accountability that we all have to have to each other for a championship culture."

David Molk

Molk doesn't have troubles gaining the right amount of weight. He's around 288 or 290 now.

Will Campbell came into Michigan out of shape, but he's been working hard ever since. There's a hunger in his eyes to succeed this year.

The chemistry on the offensive line is good.

"We didn't only work hard - which we've always done, we've always been a hard-working team - but we worked hard together." The team made strides together. In the past couple years, there were a few stragglers who weren't "all-in."

The first couple days of camp aren't fun, because they don't get to hit each other yet.

There's less yelling out of the new staff. There wasn't a problem with the yelling before, but it's just not there now.

Jerel Worthy's tattoo is stupid. "I don't know why you'd stain your body like that. It's his issue."

Both lines are strengths of the team because they have experience. "Put more pressure on us. If the offensive line is the only thing judged to win a game, put it on me. We'll win."

Denard's been working on dropping back, and the offense is running smoothly. There's no difference for the offensive line. There's a misconception that spread offensive lines aren't physical, but Michigan ran primarily inside last year.

The fifth-year seniors haven't had a satisfying season yet. After the 9-4 Capital One Bowl year (which should have been better), they had three disappointing seasons. "There's nothing more that I want this year then to win every game and beat every opponent by as many points as possible."

The seniors have passion together for winning, and that will rub off on the younger players. Hoke gives the class some responsibilities, and that has made them tighter as a group.

"I guess it can make them tougher" for a defense to practice against a pro-style offense.

Troy Woolfolk

There's a sense that things are returning to "Michigan" again, after a few weak years. They didn't stray away over the past three years, but the winning wasn't there. "The main thing about that Michigan tradition is winning."

The toughest part of getting back on the field is the mental aspect of believing that you can make the cuts you could before. "Will I be the same athlete that I was?"

The defense will be better this year because they'll bring more intensity. The secondary will improve with more experience, because the freshmen got thrown into the fire last year, and now the veterans are returning. This is also Troy's favorite defense of the four coordinators in five years. "It's not too much of thinking... I just feel like we can react and we're putting pressure on people." They're focusing on the little details of technique, which should help the defense be more successful this year.

Will Campbell (hey, expect lots of MSM columns about him this week!) hit his weight goal. That's helping him move faster and be a better athlete.

It's going to be tough for Darryl Stonum to sit at home on the away game weekends. Troy went through it last year with his injury, and he'll try to help Darryl through it. Stonum, Brandon Herron, and some of the other teammates got in contact with Troy last year, and he'll do that going forward.

The year off helped Troy gain an appreciation for the mental aspect of the game, instead of just relying on his athleticism (since he couldn't do the physical part last year). Is he as fast as we was before the injury? "Faster. No doubt." Before he was back to 100% on the ankle, he had to work on the right speed mechanics instead of just running out there, now that it's back to full strength, he has the technique and the natural ability.

Coach Hoke sees Michigan as "his final stone," rather than seeing each coaching job as another stepping stone. That sincerity and passion for Michigan are part of what has made him such a successful recruiter.

Troy is planning to compete for a starting spot - nothing is guaranteed. He's planning to only play corner.

There's nothing wrong with a coach who yells constructively. These coaches prefer to explain rather than yell though.

Ryan Van Bergen

The tempo of this camp is a little slower than in the past, because there's a bit more focus on individual teaching of the new schemes.

Mike Martin, RVB, and Will Heininger did a good job getting the D-line together in the summer to work on individual things, because they all want to get better. "We tried to spend a lot of time together as a unit... we tried to make each other as close and as tight as possible before camp started." They're still a work in progress.

Taylor Lewan came in around 250 pounds, and he's put in a lot of work in the past couple years to get up to 303 now. Craig Roh has put on 10-15 pounds as well. RVB is up near 290. That's a good weight for him in the scheme. There's been some emphasis for a lot of guys up front to add weight. In the previous regime, quickness was more valued.

He was eating 6,000-7,000 calories per day to gain weight. It's tough to eat that much and keep a diet of healthy foods - you need good fuel foods. "My specialty right now is pineapple-glazed salmon."

The defensive line should get more pressure on the QB this year. "I think we had some good pressure on quarterbacks last year, but the amount of takedowns we had when we got there, we weren't cutting it." They want to lead the league in QB takedowns this fall.

"I feel an obligation right now to my seniors" to have a successful season. They've been through a lot with coaching changes, etc. "I want these guys to be remembered as some guys who came in and helped the transition for Coach Hoke."

Jerel Worthy's tattoo: "He can put whatever he wants on his body, he's still gotta play a football game."