Roundup: Best of Cade McNamara, Michigan players at Media Day

INDIANAPOLIS — Michigan quarterback Cade McNamara was one of four U-M seniors to make the trip to Indianapolis for annual Big Ten Media Day, and it didn’t surprise him. He’s done his part to become one of the leaders on the team, he said, and he handled himself well among the hordes of reporters asking questions at the event. 

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McNamara’s confidence in holding on to his job was evident in every one of his answers, but he’s not taking it for granted. He said being pushed by someone like J.J. McCarthy has made him a better quarterback, assuring he’s always working and doing something to improve himself. 

Asked the importance of keeping the quarterback room cordial rather than cutthroat, he paused and said, “it’s about winning.”

“If it’s not — we’ll change it,” he said. 

McNamara worked a lot with the ones in spring with McCarthy limited by a shoulder injury, and that gave him plenty of time with new center Olu Oluwatimi. The Virginia transfer is “just different” according to his teammates, especially physically, and McNamara acknowledged as much. 

While he appreciated everything Andrew Vastardis did, McNamara noted Oluwatimi is just “different physically.” The next step, though, is to get so familiar with calls to the point that McNamara and the other quarterbacks can depend on him with the right checks and getting them into the right play, etc. That was like second nature between McNamara and Vastardis last year, and they’re “getting there,” McNamara said. 

It’s clear, though, that Oluwatimi is going to be a force to reckoned with. He and Mazi Smith became friends even before they went head-to-head on the field. Since, they’ve gotten even closer. The battles have been epic, and Smith said he got better because of it. 

“He’s a beast,” Smith said. “I haven’t gone up against anyone like that, really, since Cesar Ruiz (played at Michigan).”

Ruiz is now with the New Orleans Saints, a former first-round pick.

While the former players were more than complimentary to Vastardis, it’s clear expectations for the middle of the line are through the roof with Oluwatimi. He’s continued to work with line coach Sherrone Moore, McNamara noted, to make sure he knows the responsibilities of all three levels of the defense. 

An Ohio State reporter asked McNamara if he was surprised at last year’s outcome of “The Game,” a 42-27 drubbing. McNamara said the gap might have surprised him a bit, but they were confident in their lines going in — especially the offensive line. 

“I think they were very confident,” he said, and added he expects they will be again when they head to Columbus Nov. 26. Several OSU writers asked what McNamara thought about playing in the ‘Shoe, and if he’d ever been there. He was there for a visit in seventh grade, he noted, adding he was excited to play there. 

He wasn’t about to give any bulletin board material when asked what he expected. 

“I think it will be loud … and I think there will be a lot of red,” he deadpanned.

Receiver Ronnie Bell is ready to return with a vengeance

Michigan is loaded at receiver. In fact, McNamara singled out the U-M freshman group as extremely talented before adding (like many of his teammates before him) how talented the whole class was on both sides of the ball. 

But fifth-year senior Ronnie Bell remains Michigan’s best bet to lead the team in receiving. Asked if some were underestimating the effect Bell could have on the team, McNamara smiled. 

“I’m sure Ronnie will use that as motivation,” he said. He added Bell means “everything” to the team, and that he couldn’t wait to get him back on the field. 

Tight end Erick All agreed. 

“He’s a beast,” he said, noting he was simply one of the team’s best players and workers. Both he and All agreed he was just as important to the team as a leader, if not more so. He and his teammates were devastated when Bell went down, All noted, knowing how hard he’d worked to prepare. 

“He was our captain last year [for a reason],” McNamara noted.

All said there wasn’t a time he went into the training room this year that Bell wasn’t there rehabbing his knee (an injury suffered in the opener against Western Michigan) and prepping for his return. 

Several have been quick to write him off or call him a “possession receiver.” His teammates think that’s crazy talk and believe he’s one of the most important pieces to this year’s team. 

Mike Sainristil a natural at defensive back in Jesse Minter’s defense

DJ Turner comes across as one of the most confident corners Michigan has had in years, and he’s ready to meet the hype. He said the defense “didn’t miss a beat” under new coordinator Jesse Minter. In fact, he and Jesse Minter said it felt like the second year in a system. 

That was just what head coach Jim Harbaugh had in mind when he hired Minter. 

“My brother John [Baltimore Ravens coach] recommended two coaches to me. He said you can have Mike MacDonald or Jesse Minter, really take your pick,” he said. “They’re both great.”

Macdonald, now back with the Ravens, got the nod because he talked to him first and had a great conversation. But Minter could just as easily have been the guy after having developed the Ravens defense with Wink Martindale and Macdonald.

“They were in on the ground floor,” Harbaugh said. “And an added bonus — Jesse Minter got a year of defensive play calling under his belt as the defensive coordinator at Vanderbilt.”

Turner said the pieces fit extremely well. He credited senior Mike Sainristil’s presence for bolstering the secondary. 

“I wasn’t surprised at all,” Turner said of his teammate’s success. “He played defensive back in high school. All he had to do is learn the playbook. Once he did that …”

Expect him to be a big part of the Michigan defense this year. 

Other Michigan notes 

• Smith said he’d come a long way since his East Kentwood (Mich.) days, both as a player and a person. Asked for one big difference, he said, “no more goggles.” 

Turner laughed when Smith spoke of how he used to wear thick, plastic glasses while he played. 

“Nobody dared to say anything to me about it since I was so big,” he said. “But they had to go.”

Smirth said he’s taken his duties in the middle seriously, noting teams won’t beat them if they can’t run the ball. He’s all about keeping his shoulders square and “building the wall,” he said … but there’s one thing that really motivates him.

“I don’t like people touching me,” he said while Turner laughed. 

• Michigan didn’t receive a single vote to win the Big Ten East Division (or the Big Ten). That didn’t surprise any of the U-M contingent. 

“I don’t care what anybody says about our team,” All said. 

“No, I’m not surprised,” Turner added. “It’s not the first time people have doubted us.”

It was clear when on their tour around the state of Michigan how much it meant to the Michigan fans, McNamara noted. And now that they’ve done it, they want to do it again. He talked consistently about how important it was not just to get the culture back, but to keep it. 

He insists he’s going to do his part, and it shows in the way he handles himself.