David Dawson talking about under classmen
http://michigan.247sports.com/Bolt/EXIT-INTERVIEW-Dawson-shares-which-y…
ANN ARBOR, MI -- Redshirt junior offensive guard David Dawson might be departing Ann Arbor for Ames, Iowa in the coming months, but he's still had a keen eye on the players who could make a significant contribution for the Wolverines going forward.
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Regardless if he didn't see as much playing time as he would have liked, Dawson made sure that he was available for the younger players as they got acclimated to Ann Arbor and the systems that Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh was running. He wouldn't call it a role of leadership as much as he likened it to a brotherhood, where he would help the freshmen where he could.
"I wouldn't say it was like a leadership role, because we all are trying to do the same thing," Dawson said. "We [veteran players] might know a little bit more, but the offensive line wasn't like, 'I'm a senior, you're a freshman,' type deal. It was like, 'If you need help, I'm gonna help you.' It was no ladder of power or anything."
In that light, there were several players who Dawson says should see the field for the Wolverines early and often:
"I'd say definitely Michael Onwenu, Ben Bredeson, Josh Metellus, Lavert [Hill], David Long," Dawson said. "They've got some young guys that could come up and make a lot of noise. Michael Dwumfour -- a big strong guy -- Ron Johnson. There's a couple guys. And Devin Bush, too."
While that's a bevy of young Wolverines who should be ready to make an impact sooner than later, there's one player that Dawson singled out as a standout: Michael Onwenu.
Onwenu is a fellow Detroit (MI) Cass Tech alum, like Dawson, and someone that Dawson made sure he spent time with during this past season at Michigan.
"Working with Mike, I try to help him out, with the playbook and things like that, during the season," Dawson said. "He'll be a good player, man. He's a great kid. He loves football. Likes to learn about the game of football, so he's going to be good."
January 25th, 2017 at 8:03 AM ^
Is going to be special. I also expect the freshman WR class to contribute early.
andare blu
January 25th, 2017 at 8:15 AM ^
Are you telling me I have to click the link to find out what he said?
January 25th, 2017 at 8:27 AM ^
I don't know what in the hell I was thinking? Also, could Dwumfour be a diamond in the rough? I know a lot of us were thinking he was more of a security blanket for Gary.
January 25th, 2017 at 11:47 AM ^
to PSU so it's not like he was uncovered in a cave on a treasure hunt. The "diamond in the rough" tag gets tossed around pretty easily here.
But it would be awesome if he's a contributor next year given the depth of the D line. That would be a pleasant surprise, certainly.
January 25th, 2017 at 8:26 AM ^
January 25th, 2017 at 8:40 AM ^
All content, free or paid for, ends up on this site eventually. That's the beauty of this site. I used to be a paid member of Scout and Rivals, and the only benefit was getting the info instantly, as opposed to waiting a day or 2. I realized a long time ago, a little patience goes a long way, in regards to recruiting, and other matters of the heart. This site does it for me.
January 25th, 2017 at 8:46 AM ^
January 25th, 2017 at 9:30 AM ^
The horse beaten to death is still dead.
January 25th, 2017 at 8:29 AM ^
January 25th, 2017 at 9:13 AM ^
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
January 25th, 2017 at 9:29 AM ^
January 25th, 2017 at 9:36 AM ^
Pure fluff.
January 25th, 2017 at 10:10 AM ^
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
January 25th, 2017 at 9:45 AM ^
it takes a lot of maturity to recognize when other people are better at something than you are and not become bitter and blame others for your situation. I couldn't do it at that age; everything was "bad luck" (which is a real thing but I used it as an excuse too often) or somebody else's fault. I wish him the best and maybe he'll become a coach some day.
January 25th, 2017 at 10:24 AM ^
January 25th, 2017 at 2:03 PM ^
when his playing days are done. More branches to the tree.
January 25th, 2017 at 11:45 AM ^
I'm not saying this is the case for Dawson, don't know enough about his abilities relative to other guys.
That said, I know that system has a big deal to do with how successful a player is and how productive they can be.
One example off the top of my head is Blake Countess who was a terrific zone cover corner, but not a very effective match up man to man cover corner. He did quite well at Auburn, but clearly was not a fit for what Michigan wanted to do going forward with press man to man coverage.
Of course some guys, like the Jabrill Peppers of the world, would be successful in any system at many positions because they are simply freaky athletes, but football is very much a game of specializations these days, even within a given position group.
Perhaps Dawson will be a quality pulling guard, or zone run blocking lineman....no idea really, but wishing him the best and hope he finds a system and roster that gives him the best opportunity at success.
Anybody with more knowledge know what Harbaugh looks for in linemen? I know he loves the power run game with maulers, but he also seems to like to run many variations of this, with gap schemes and some pulling guards.
January 25th, 2017 at 1:18 PM ^