{"id":47949,"date":"2024-04-16T22:01:45","date_gmt":"2024-04-17T03:01:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/?p=47949"},"modified":"2024-04-16T22:01:45","modified_gmt":"2024-04-17T03:01:45","slug":"michigan-dl-coach-lou-esposito-would-love-to-see-better-dt-duo-than-mason-graham-kenneth-grant-discusses-special-edge-rushers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/michigan-dl-coach-lou-esposito-would-love-to-see-better-dt-duo-than-mason-graham-kenneth-grant-discusses-special-edge-rushers\/","title":{"rendered":"Michigan DL coach Lou Esposito \u2018would love to see\u2019 better DT duo than Mason Graham, Kenneth Grant, discusses \u2018special\u2019 edge rushers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Michigan Wolverines football<\/a> <\/strong>defensive line coach Lou Esposito<\/a> <\/strong>has the privilege of coaching two of the top defensive tackles in the nation in juniors Kenneth Grant<\/a> <\/strong>and Mason Graham<\/a><\/strong>. <\/p>\n

In fact, PFF ranked Graham the No. 1 interior defensive lineman in the country and Grant No. 6 heading into the 2024 campaign<\/a><\/strong>. Esposito joined the Michigan staff in March after spending two months at Memphis and the six previous seasons coordinating the defense at Western Michigan.<\/p>\n

Through just over two weeks of working with them, Esposito has seen enough to be hard pressed to believe there\u2019s a better tandem out there.<\/p>\n

\u201cI haven\u2019t watched everybody else, but if there are two D-tackles better than them, I\u2019d love to see \u2018em, playing as a group,\u201d Esposito said Tuesday.<\/p>\n

RELATED<\/strong>
\u2022 Michigan spring ball quick-hitters: Transfer portal, injuries, defensive tackle duo and a new \u2018starter-level\u2019 tight end<\/a><\/strong>
\u2022 Michigan football: Rayshaun Benny\u2019s recovery, another defensive tackle \u2018dinged up\u2019<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Graham is a 6-foot-3, 318-pounder who made 7.5 tackles for loss in 13 games a year ago, while Grant stands 6-foot-3, 339 pounds and made 5 stops behind the line of scrimmage in 15 contests. Their skillsets complement each other, too, the Michigan assistant explained.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey each do something different, which makes them each better, if that makes sense,\u201d Esposito said. \u201cKG is a huge person that has unbelievable feet, unbelievable quickness, but can literally beat you with power at any moment. So you have to be prepared for that as an offensive lineman.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd then Mason is a guy where you can see he was a high school wrestler. He plays with great leverage, he understands the transfer of weight and he understands his hands \u2014\u00a0and he just keeps getting better and better and better.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd I\u2019ve challenged those guys every day. You can ask them, they get better every day. It doesn\u2019t matter what you do last year, it only matters what you do today. And I think both those guys have bought into it and done a great job. They\u2019re great leaders on the defense and great leaders on the team.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\n

Michigan\u2019s Kenneth Grant RUNNING OVER Washington lineman <\/p>\n

pic.twitter.com\/B1QNTCzqkE<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 MLFootball (@_MLFootball) January 9, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/span>\n<\/div>\n

Esposito was asked how often Michigan plans to put both players on the field this coming season, to which he replied, with a laugh, \u201cas many plays as we can.\u201d<\/p>\n

The edge rushers have also impressed Esposito, with senior Josaiah Stewart<\/a><\/strong> and junior Derrick Moore<\/a> <\/strong>leading the charge. Senior TJ Guy<\/a><\/strong> has emerged, as has sophomore Cameron Brandt<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have some special guys there, between Stewart and D-Mo and Guy, and then some of those young kids that have come along \u2014\u00a0Brandt,\u201d Esposito said. \u201cThere are some special players there.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd then the inside kids mixed in there. What it does, when you have a good defensive front, you can\u2019t just scheme one guy. They can\u2019t just say we\u2019re going to go scheme to Mason, we\u2019re going to go slide to D-Mo, we\u2019re going to go slide to Stewart. There are so many guys up there, so it opens everybody else up. And that\u2019s the key to having a deep front.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the reasons why we won the national championship here last year was because of the depth up front, and that\u2019s what I think we have to keep building, keep building, keep building.\u201d<\/p>\n

Michigan building depth along defensive line<\/h2>\n

Building depth is a key for Michigan this spring and ahead of the 2024 season. The Wolverines have five defensive tackles that played over 240 defensive snaps a year ago, but only three of them are still on the team \u2014\u00a0Graham (442), Grant (403) and senior Rayshaun Benny<\/a><\/strong> (244), who\u2019s currently out with a foot injury but is expected to be healthy by fall camp<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know as much going into it; every game plan is different, but you want your best players on the field as much as you can,\u201d Esposito continued. \u201cThe interior D-linemen, you don\u2019t want to get their reps too high, because then their level of play comes down.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou want them playing at a high level, and the reason why we were so good up front is because they were so deep. They could just roll bodies in and bodies in, and not skip a beat. That\u2019s what we\u2019re trying to get to right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Senior Ike Iwunnah<\/a> <\/strong>(6-3, 313) hasn\u2019t played a single snap in a game during his three-year career so far, but Esposito mentioned him first among those contributing behind the known commodities at defensive tackle. Sophomore Enow Etta<\/a> <\/strong>played EDGE last season but has slid inside and is competing at both positions this spring, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cIke has done a great job this spring for us,\u201d Esposito said. \u201cHe\u2019s played a lot of snaps [in practice]. And then Enow, we\u2019ve had the ability to move him from outside to inside and inside to outside. He\u2019s a 6-4, 292-pound kid that ran an 11.3 100[-meter dash] out of high school. He\u2019s a really, really good athlete.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just that he has to learn, as you get closer to the ball, the hand combat becomes quicker. It gets on you faster. The further you get away from the ball, it takes a little bit of time and you can use your athletic ability out there.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe biggest thing with him getting some of those inside reps has really helped him on the edge, because now when you put him on the edge, some of the weaknesses that he had, he doesn\u2019t have anymore in the physicality part, because he\u2019s been extremely physical all spring. He\u2019s a big part of what we\u2019re gonna do moving forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

The post Michigan DL coach Lou Esposito \u2018would love to see\u2019 better DT duo than Mason Graham, Kenneth Grant, discusses \u2018special\u2019 edge rushers<\/a> appeared first on On3<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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