A lot of this built off a Don Brown presser late last week. That presser has already become infamous for Brown saying the end of last season was the greatest disappointment he's ever felt (i.e. just like everyone else with a 4-8 zipcode), and critically underrated for Brown's "hoppy toads" metaphor.

Other unit-wide themes: Brown more or less admitted he went into the Ohio State game thinking his guys could just go talent-for-talent with the Buckeyes and that was stupid (score one for #SethTakes). Also the Florida game plan unraveled when the backups they'd coached up went out and they had to go vanilla with the backups to the backups (woo I'm on a roll). He did not say Northwestern basketball imploded despite all but one MGoBloggers' preseason prediction that Vic Law and Dererk Pardon were a tournament team [UPDATE: okay, everybody thought they'd be bad; I just thought it harder] but while we're here let's just credit me for that one too.

Fortunately my bracket turned into hoppy toad droppings over the weekend, so if I tell you a lot of what follows sounds like Michigan's defense is going to be less than elite for the first time since Greg Mattison was the coordinator, well, I'm not always right.

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Defensive Tackles

Same guy, different gap. [Patrick Barron]

What we want to hear: The Jeter hype isn't just about winter conditioning—I dunno, he uses his hands well or something—and they're so comfortable with him that he's already locking down a starting spot.

What we're hearing: Donovan Jeter is indeed this spring's official hype magnet.

Don Brown:

Want me to go front to back? Start with this Donovan Jeter. Think we got ourselves a real inside guy.

Jim Harbaugh:

"Donovan Jeter would be the first name that I would throw out there that is someone that has made a huge jump from last year to where he’s at right now," Harbaugh said of Jeter, who sustained a knee injury earlier in his career. "Tremendous winter program and strength. He’s really figuring it out. Playing explosive."

Lorenz did a segment (starts at 6:05) on Allen Trieu's podcast, observed that Harbaugh likes to name 110 guys so pay attention to the first one, and reiterated that they're all mentioning Donovan Jeter.

As for anointing Jeter the starter, well, somehow everybody missed the fact that Carlo Kemp is now at the position we all assumed Jeter was playing (it's best if you just watch this part):

Harbaugh said on his latest podcast that Jeter is first string at three-tech. Continuing on Brown's front-to-back trip through the roster:

Young Mazi Smith is a talent. Obviously he's been here for like two days so he's not ready to go, but he's a great kid, and a hard worker, and will do a great job for us.

We also got some clarity on Ben Mason's DL position, after Brown was surprised the press knew about it. It sounds like 3-tech/5-tech tweener:

He's an animal. Really excited the coaches will let us have him, to some degree. I would say it would be against my better judgement if this guy could play on the defensive line inside. Freak of nature. He comes off the ball exceptionally well. We can play him at tight end side/defensive end, we call it the anchor. Can’t play the open side, but he can play the three and there is a lot less learning there. It's 'on your mark, get set and [clap] and they got to block you. We will see. He likes it. He’s a tough guy and he can run.

Harbaugh also said anchor/three-tech via the Attack Each Day podcast (transcribed by Isaiah Hole):

McKeon said on Friday that he hadn’t yet gone up against him, but that he came across, when on the defensive line, as a more muscular Chase Winovich. Now, Winovich currently has two pounds on Mason, and played out at end. But Mason, according to Harbaugh, has been playing on the interior defensive line. And — you could say — it’s going well.

“Havoc – he’s causing havoc!” Harbaugh said. “He’s causing havoc at the 3-technique. He’s playing running back, and playing tight end and he’s causing havoc on the D-line.”

As for depth, well, this bit is from Harbaugh last week, and it's hard not to read it like a big "Help Wanted" sign at a certain position:

What led to you guys getting Mike Danna, and are you looking for more grad transfers?

“Um…yeah, we would—we would be…if they’re like Mike Danna, sure, yeah. At that position or others, we would potentially have room for grad transfers.

What it means: I'll reiterate what I said last time and said again on the podcast: spring is for hyping up the position that you're most concerned about. Last year it was Dwumfour, who turned out to be virtually unplayable against the run, though his first step is as advertised. Right now the only available tackle besides Kemp is Jeter, so we get Jeter, and not even at the position Jeter played a little last year. It doesn't mean ignore it, but account for bias—here's what information they can scrounge up and frame in such a way that you'll think everything's going to be okay—and adjust accordingly.

This starts to come off as a knock on Carlo Kemp, and at 290 he's only a little small to be playing nose the Glasgow/Martin/Renes way. The thing is those guys could generate pressure AND stand up to doubles. Mone could do the latter, and that was fine, and if you don't believe a low-built smaller guy can use leverage to win the battle in the A gaps, watch any Michigan football (minus the Will Carr/Jason Horn years) from the 20th century. The question on Kemp is can he generate pressure from nose, because he couldn't at three-tech. Michigan's ability/inability to generate pressure up the middle was the difference between shutting down the JT Barrett offenses and getting eviscerated by a guy who's perfect for the Giants.

Ben Mason immediately making the most noise of any three-tech is mostly about Ben Mason and the fact that Dwumfour's out. Not that we needed much confirmation but Jeter at the position Mason is challenging says the coaches think Kemp is the best thing they have inside, and you can adjust your Jeter thoughts from there. It's still possible they can string together a functional unit with Kemp and Dwumfour backed up by Jeter, Mason, and Don Brown stuff. It's also like losing Aubrey Solomon AND the very good coach who wasn't playing him was the worst possible outcome.

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[After THE JUMP: another position-switch nobody noticed]

Defensive Ends

They're done talking about Kwity. [Eric Upchurch]

What we want to hear: Something about Luiji beyond "So great that he can be out here on a football field." Nothing about Kwity or Hutchinson because it's too boring to say they're awesome and anyway you saw that already.

What we're hearing: Interestingly the first DE that Brown mentioned was the guy we haven't seen before:

Luiji Vilain has practiced all five practices and you know: arrows up.

He followed that with:

I don't have to tell you about Kwity Paye and Aidan Hutchinson.

And later on he remembered that one kitchen utensil that doesn't really fit the knife block, but is also way too sharp to stick with the stirring spoons and spatulas, and anyway it's so damn useful that you end up leaving it out on counter until company's over:

Oh, up front the other guy too, the swiss army knife is Uche. He's 253 pounds. He can play a lot of places, and he will. He's a fast, explosive guy.

The Shaun Nua presser was a bit awkward. Somebody had to ask three times about Kemp to get the quote he obviously needed for a Kemp leadership story, and then there were the journalists filing stories on Kwity's leadership to get to, and the first half was spent on stuff for the "I think I'm gonna like it here" number they have to write on a new coach, and left no time to talk about anything football-related.

After Don Brown said Kwity Paye had come out of his shell, Kwity Paye was made available to the media, prompting a Kwity comes out of his shell article, and a Kwity breaks out of his shell article, plus a question to Nua about Kwity breaking out of his shell. I swam through the fluff and can report back that Kwity's been yelling "pad level" at guys.

The guys down the line are getting fluff about hanging muscle:

[Welschof's] coming along extremely well. He looks like Aidan Hutchinson when they stand next to each other from a stature standpoint. He’s filling out really nicely.

Harbaugh's podcast mate Matt Dudek thought Welschof had a great practice recently. Lorenz said Aidan Hutchinson is going to be a Dude. Nua was asked about Luiji Vilain and said the sky's the limit:

Impressive. Very very athletic, very very smart. He got out there—I thought he was going to be rusty but—he's off to a great, great start.

Nua added Luiji can play anchor (strongside) or end (weakside).

What it means:  I'm sticking to what I said before re: Vilain—the timbre of the talk on him is high ceiling but a long way from it. Hutchinson and Kwity are guys, Danna arrives in fall.

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Middle Linebackers

Different style, equally disliked by the Big Ten's most despicable elements. [Barron]

What we want to hear: Josh Ross in a sentence that out of context sounds like the plot to an '80s horror flick, and some of that sweet sweet Cam McGrone hype please.

What we're hearing: Devin Gil again.

Devin Gil might be the most improved guy—body-wise, speed-wise. He's gotten through helping this football team by being a steady eddy, classic guy that knows what to do, and he's hard to knock out of there. Well now he's playing at a high level. He should walk in and give [strength and conditioning coach ] Ben Herbert a kiss on the lips because he's helped him a lot.

Via Brown, Josh Ross isn't Devin Bush Jr. but he's "fast enough" and "mean as a rattlesnake" and "will knock the paint off your helmet." All of the linebackers are cross-training both Will (weakside LB) and Mike (middle). Brown added Cam McGrone and Jordan Anthony as guys who are going to get snaps.

What it means: Brown didn't mince words with Ross, and you know the coaches adore Devin Gil. You can read McGrone and Anthony getting mentioned together as good for Anthony or a dropback for McGrone or maybe a bit of both. I bet you they're both over the "Guy" line but nobody here is going to be a Dude.

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Viper

What we want to hear: Khaleke Hudson's level has progressed beyond his coaches' command of the English language.

What we're hearing: Brown thinks Khaleke is [bottle rocket sound] after a little too much [shake head] but also [blows dust]:

Lorenz (on his podcast) said he thinks Khaleke Hudson had a disappointing junior year and thinks Khaleke thinks so too. On their podcast father and son Harbaugh were seeing you, Jordan Glasgow:

Jim: Did you watch Jordan Glasgow at all?

Jack: Hair literally on fire.

Jim: He's become the guy we've got to take out. He plays Will backer, he plays Viper, then he's in there starting when they go to the two-Viper package.

Brown didn't mention Glasgow, but did bring up Barrett when talking about the linebackers…

Michael Barrett, who's a freshman, I'm seeing really good things from him.

…and then later when trying to think if he'd forgotten anybody he said Viper…I talked about Michael Barrett.

What it means: Khaleke Hudson is a Dude, and that was probably true starting about midway through last season. Jordan Glasgow is still out there being a Glasgow, though as the tweener with a Dude ahead of him we'll only really get to see it in the backup viper time.

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Safety and Cornerback

A gray area (ha!) [Patrick Barron]

What we want to hear: New generation stepping in. [New guy] reminds us of [great DBs of recent yore].

What we're hearing: I'm going to pile the corners and safeties into one group here because we only have a Brown presser and a Metellus meeting to go on, plus a position switch to announce.

Don Brown:

If you said to me, secondary-wise, where you thought you'd be and where you are it's two different places. I thought we'd be fighting for our lives at this time. Ambry Thomas has really taken the next step—leadership-wise, being a role model for young guys. Vincent Gray is going to be a real guy. Brad Hawkins, J'Marick Woods: both vastly improved and more confident. This Josh Metellus has turned himself into a real player.

As you might expect, Brown leads off this discussion with Josh Metellus, the leading leader with leadership who leads:

"That guy that walked by (Josh Metellus) did a good job of really taking charge as we started practice today just getting the guys minds right and energy level right," he said of Metellus. "He’s been through it all. He’s had great moments, he’s been criticized in my opinion unfairly because the only guy that should get criticized is the old guy and I’ve been there and done that a lot. Life is good. I think he’s done a tremendous job.

Brown doesn't just do guys and dudes; within the Guy zone there's a dividing line for players he feels comfortable putting on the field. He said there are 16 above that line*, and one in the gray area:

I think there are a bunch of guys sitting on the fringe. Jaylen Kelly-Powell, he's playing full-time corner and doing a really good job. So he's a guy; he's just got to keep doing what he's doing.

When Brown got done they brought out Josh Metellus, who talked about leadership, but reiterated few points about the corners who are impressing:

“Ambry is a hell of a leader,” Metellus said of Thomas. “Soon as the season ended and David (Long Jr.) declared (for the NFL), Ambry knew he was the next man up and just took that to the chest and said ‘alright, I’m going to be a leader, I want to be one of the guys that help get the young guys better while getting myself better.’ Ambry is out there being vocal. He’s trying to get better. He’s trying to fix things. He’s just being a hell of a football player.”

and..

Ambry's fast and he's aggressive. Sometimes being fast and aggressive can get you messed up in man a little bit, so he's got to find a when to play with the right patience, and when to be calm, but as far from that he's a hell of a football player.

As for the safeties stepping up, it's the guys you know, and they also bring leadership:

“J’Marick Woods and Brad Hawkins have been doing an amazing job. I feel like they have been here as long as me they way they tell me stuff about me and what I can do better, the way they take criticism from coaches and act like real vets. I’m happy to see that because in the defensive back side, we need a lot of leaders because the stuff we do is not normal to other defenses and other offenses. Having guys come along early especially this early in the off-season is real help to guys like me, who are trying to lead the defensive backs.”

As for greener cornerbacks it's the guy Brown mentioned and one of the Greens:

Vincent Gray is doing a great job stepping up to the role. He's going to have to play. We got Gemon Green stepping up to the role.

*What it means: One man's guess at the Brown's 16 Guys (of those available right now, so no Danna, Dwumfour or Lavert) in no particular order: Kemp, Kwity, Hutchinson, Uche, Ross, Gil, McGrone, Khaleke, Glasgow, Metellus, Hawkins, Woods, Ambry, Gray, Jeter, and Jordan Anthony.

Kelly-Powell moving to cornerback means he hasn't grown into the safety role they envisioned. You saw his long speed last year when he got torched a few times, and he's not getting mentioned by anyone but that one time by Brown, so stock's down there. There's nothing about Hawkins or Woods that suggests either has been different than the guys you've seen on the field already. The job is more or less Daxton Hill's to walk into.

Ambry talk is VERY good, especially since last year's tape showed he was quite behind the starters. Michigan won't be able to rotate as much but they've got two very good cornerbacks and Gray seems like he'll be fine in that freshman Stribling role if you want to move Hill over slots.