Michigan football practice update: 'Energized' Wolverines are full steam ahead before Florida trip

Michigan football’s players had a week off directly following the team’s Big Ten championship game win, while the coaching staff hit the road for in-home recruiting visits, finalizing the 2022 signing class that was inked Wednesday.

The Maize and Blue returned to meetings and practice this week, with all attention turning to Georgia, their Orange Bowl and College Football Playoff semifinal opponent. After some time off, Michigan took its time to get back into the flow of things, but by Thursday afternoon, it was full steam ahead.

“Slowly working us back into it,” sophomore defensive tackle Christopher Hinton said Thursday night. “Today, we went. It was like our Tuesday practice, which is our … we’re banging.

“The coaches have a great plan to not kill us early, but get us right so we’re fresh for the game in a couple weeks. I really like their plan, trust their plan, and we’ve been trusting the coaches all year.”

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Michigan has two weeks to prepare for the Bulldogs, including a week of preparation in the Miami area. There has been no lull after the off week, with plenty of juice and focus.

“Good. We’re back, energized, fresh and ready to go,” redshirt freshman cornerback DJ Turner said of practice.

“Locked in,” second-year freshman Blake Corum said of the tenor of practice. “We had a nice little week off to refresh our minds, refresh our bodies, and now we’re back locked in and focusing on Georgia, watching their film and going over plays — plays that will work. We’re in getting ready for Georgia mode.

“The goal is still the same. The goal was to get this far, and the goal is to keep going. Our focus is the same; our goals are the same. We’re still approaching everything the same way. Just working. Why change it? We’re going to prepare the same and just go from there.”

Michigan’s last game held outdoors (versus Ohio State) was in freezing temperatures, with snow falling. That won’t be the case at Hard Rock Stadium, and the Wolverines are making sure to take that into account during game prep.

“We’ve been practicing inside, turning the heat up a little bit in the indoor [practice facility],” Hinton said. “But also, getting down there a little early so we can get acclimated in the weather — the best acclimation is actually being in it.

“So I know [head] Coach [Jim] Harbaugh and the staff are going to help us get acclimated to that heat and that humidity. Being from the South, I’m kind of used to it, but I know it’s different than up here, for sure.”

Michigan is slated to arrive in South Florida Dec. 26.

The aforementioned week off proved beneficial for a number of Wolverines, with many who could heading back to their hometowns. Hinton went back to Georgia, for example.

“I had to finish up some stuff for school, and then I went home,” Hinton revealed. “My brother [Stanford offensive lineman Myles Hinton] was home. Haven’t really spent time with him since we were home with COVID, with both playing college football. All my family still lives in Atlanta, so it was great.”

Prepping For The Bulldogs

Georgia is known for its strong defense at the line of scrimmage, with what is touted as the nation’s top front-seven. The Bulldogs rank third in the country in rushing yards allowed per game (81.7) and average 6.5 tackles for loss per outing. Corum and the Michigan ground game is facing a tremendous challenge.

“Georgia is stout,” Corum said. “They’re stout up front, and they’ve got some good ‘backers.

“The O-line has to continue doing what they’re doing, and create those one-on-one matchups for us — whether that be with a ‘backer or safety or just the secondary. As long as we get to the second level, we’ll be good. But

“Georgia is a good defense. As you guys know, you don’t end up in the College Football Playoff without a good offense and good defense, and they’ve got some good players.”

On the other side of the ball, the Bulldogs are less productive but still have a formidable offense, slotting 26th nationally with 443 yards per game. Georgia’s strong suit is running the ball, with the team racking up 195.1 yards per outing on the ground (28th). Like Michigan, Georgia uses multiple running backs who have different styles.

“They’re a really good team,” Hinton said. “They’ve got four really good backs and use them all differently. We’ve got to be prepared for that. They come out with different personnels, so we’ve got to be prepared for that.

“They were the No. 1 team for the whole year, so we know what we have at hand. But we’re a really good team, too, and we’re going to prepare these next couple weeks and be ready.”

The Wolverines hope they’ll have another week-plus of practice after New Year’s Eve, too.