just watched the game again, some things stood out to me on the defense;
It's a MAC school caveats apply, but Western had an elite offense in the MAC by the #'s last year and was favored to win the MAC, and returned nearly everyone from their offense last year. Aside from an early 1st QTR TD where Western marched down the field and it looked like it might be a long day for a Michigan defense that was truly terrible in 2020- Michigan's D blanked them. Western didn't score another point until garbage time in the 4th QTR when the game was 47-7 and way out of hand and Michigan unloaded the bench.
Aidan Hutchinson & Dax Hill both looked primed and ready for big seasons. Both these guys are future high NFL draft picks imo. Hutchinson has great talent but also a relentless motor. Dax Hill is one of the most freakish DB's in college football. They lined him up everywhere and he excelled everywhere. I wouldn't be surprised to see Hutchinson go late 1st rd or early 2nd, and I'd be shocked if Dax wasn't a top 10 pick. Why? He will blow the combine up, and at roughly 6-1, 190 with legit 4.3 speed and 40+" inch vertical- NFL teams will drool over the guys ability.
David Ojabo was a real surprise off the edge. Maybe he shouldn't be, he's a bonafide freak of nature. He could be the breakout player of the year for that defense. The tackling looked so much improved, sure tackles, good fundamentals- they really didn't miss any tackles. What was a little bit concerning was they were getting gashed up the middle on some run plays. The interior of that DL still looks like a work in progress. The only guy who looks like he can play is OMERRRRG FIVE STARRRRZZZ Chris Hinton. The pass rush looks like it will be very good. The tackling looked much improved. The coverage looked much improved. Still concerned a little bit about the interior DL & run defense.
