Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham continues to amaze
Michigan sophomore defensive tackle Mason Graham was expected to miss two or three weeks after thumb surgery and ease back into action following a game with Rutgers. Instead, he missed a game at Nebraska, got good news from his doctor last week Tuesday, and was fitted for a club on his left hand to protect it.
Few knew how much it would affect him, only that it should given how important hands are to a defensive lineman in combat with his counterparts on offense. Instead, Graham threw the thing around like he was in medieval battle, finding different ways to split defenders and get to the quarterbacks and ball carriers in a 52-10 win over Minnesota Saturday night. He was dominant, a huge reason for the Wolverines’ success against the Golden Gophers.
“I tried to call him Thanos because he has that big club on,” Michigan edge Josaiah Stewart said with a laugh. “He just laughed it off. Hopefully, it sticks. Hopefully, he likes it.
“I feel like this little injury he has, it’s just a little roadblock and he’s showing us that no matter what’s in his way, he’s going to go right through it. That’s the type of guy he is. That’s just his mindset. He’s not going to get beat by anybody no matter who’s out there. Playing with one hand, he’s going to give us his all.”
And that’s proven to be more than most guys playing with two hands. Graham initially injured the hand against Bowling Green, and he knew immediately it might be serious. He tried to fight through it
“My hand was throbbing, and I knew something was wrong,” Graham said. “I just went to the trainers and then shortly after the game, checked it out, checked up on it, and then took some X-rays and found out … broken thumb.
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“Obviously, I felt limited, ut you’ve just got to do it. You’ve got to … it is what it is. I’m just trying to get more comfortable every day in practice so I can be more comfortable in the games. Some people always come up to me [and say], ‘Do you hit people with it?’ I try not to. I just try to play as if I would have two hands still. I was just not thinking about it so I could just play freely.”
But if he Graham does hit them, consider it collateral damage. For the most part, he just swung through people while splitting double teams rather than clubbing Gophers. It was a beautiful sight, defensive line coach Mike Elston admitted.
“It was pretty remarkable, actually,” Elston said of Graham and his performance. No one really knew what to expect with him going out there with that big club on. Minnesota actually had an offensive lineman with a situation — the left guard played with a club on for the last three games we scouted them. He was hit or miss in his ability to do certain jobs.
“But Mason went out there and with his athleticism, twitch, and explosion, he was able to get off blocks remarkably with just one hand and the club. I was very encouraged, and he’s only going to get better as he goes with this thing.”
