The one position that Michigan football used to be widely known for that has underachieved for the most part of the past few decades has been wide receiver.
The storied position group once boasted players such as David Terrell, Braylon Edwards, and Mario Manningham, but since the days of Lloyd Carr, having elite players at the position has been scarce. New wide receivers coach Micah Simon hopes to change that.
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Simon followed head coach Kyle Whittingham from Utah to Ann Arbor, and spoke on an officially released Michigan football social media post about his philosophy of the position group as well as what he hopes to see from the wideouts under his tutelage.
“Everything we do in practice is competitive,” Simon said. “There’s hardly any periods in practice where there’s not a competition, and that’s something that Coach Whitt’s carried for years, and it’ll continue to go that way. It is being able to show up, put the football down on the grass, and let’s play. We treat it very much like literally, you’re already wearing your pads in the car driving to the game, and you hop out the car and then you tell your coach what’s up, and then you start playing football. That’s what we want to bring to Michigan.”
As far as what he wants to see from his position group, it’s about making things easier for the quarterback. That requires a little extra effort than simply running routes and catching a perfectly placed ball.
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Simon says that the receiver group needs to also be able to do more than the typical receiver duties, noting that there may be games where blocking is paramount, and they’ll have to relish that as an opportunity rather than get mired down in not getting the ball.
“Characteristics that make a good receiver is someone who can attack the football in the air,” Simon said. “The quarterback, man, they have to deal with a lot in the pocket, and every time the football is not going to be perfect, can we make up for a little misthrow or a little mis-timing, and then obviously just the speed on the field. You have to be a player that can threaten the defense in more than one way. To be able to take the top off and threaten the defense down the field is something huge, and that’s something that we’ll be looking for and recruiting as we continue to build out our roster here.
“As receivers, we’re people that think we’re always open or we think we should always give the football. It is doing something that’s a greater good for the team. If it’s a game where we have to block 50 snaps, that’s what we’ll do. If it’s a game where we have to throw it 50 snaps, that’s what we’ll do. So, we’re always going to be that less drama, more work mentality, and that’s something that the kids have been buying into each day so far.”
The Wolverines revamped the wide receiver room this past season by bringing in transfers JJ Buchanan and Jaime Ffrench while also getting five-star freshman Salesi Moa to flip from Utah.
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This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: New Michigan coach Micah Simon demands more from wideouts
