Texas native and former secondary starter Troy Woolfolk has volunteered his time for an interview. If you have any topics or questions that you would like addressed, post them in the comments section, and I’ll try to get to them.
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| Bo Dever |
In one of the more engaging and enjoyable interviews that I’ve done so far, former walk-on defensive lineman and current Manhattan mogul Tim North made an interesting and true statement about walk-on players. “You couldn’t have a football program without walk-ons,” Tim Said. “I mean, it would be impossible to have a practice without walk-ons.” In the end, Tim did more than just practice with the team, eventually earning substantial playing time and, most importantly, a Michigan degree that allowed him to cultivate a successful career.
2012 preferred walk-on wide wide receiver Bo Dever from Lake Forest, IL, also knows about the value of walking on at Michigan. Ignoring some interest from other schools, Bo chose to attend the alma mater of his father, Dave Dever, who played as a defensive lineman under Bo Schembechler. And if you’re wondering, it’s no coincidence that Bo shares his name with the legendary coach for whom his father played.
Here are some quick hits from my conversation with Bo shortly before he traveled to Ann Arbor.
Feeling comfortable: “I have a few high school friends who go to school up there in Ann Arbor and aren’t on the team, so the transition should be pretty simple. Also, [I’ve built relationships with] A.J. Williams and Chris Womley. Chris was actually out here a couple weeks ago in Chicago. He and his buddies came up here and stayed at my house for a couple days. A.J. and I talk pretty much every day. We’re rooming together in the fall.”
Awards despite injury: “Last year I got hurt (ACL) in game four or five, and I was out for the rest of the year. But I’m back to 100% now. Last season I was still All-Conference, All-Area. . .”
Height, weight, style of play: “I’m 6’2” and 200 lbs. Going into the season I’d like to be 205/210 and sophomore year maybe 215 because I’m more of that bigger possession receiver coming across the middle. I’m not going to run a 4.4 forty or be a deep threat guy. I’m that big body, catch in traffic guy. . . I’d also like to play some special teams.”
Michigan heritage: “My dad played football at Michigan back in the mid to late eighties, so ever since I was growing up, I wanted to go there. And when I had to decide, I knew I wouldn’t be happy anywhere else. “
Expectations: “I’m excited. I just want to go out and do what’s best for the team. I need to go out there and prove myself first [before thinking about playing time], and not get too hot in the head.”
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| Jenkins-Stone at FB at Cass Tech HS, registering 309 yards and 5 touchdowns his senior year. Image via the Detroit News. |
Freshman linebacker Royce Jenkins-Stone has plenty of swagger – which extends from the football field all the way into the kitchen. “I can throw down – everybody loves my cookin’,” Royce said. “I can barbecue, and I can cook just about anything.” But Royce’s confidence on the field and in the kitchen hasn’t come without a lot of hard work and ambitious goal setting. He’s been doing “explosiveness training drills” and intense workouts in the hopes of making it to the NFL. Royce has also been spending hours in the kitchen and around the grill in the hopes of eventually becoming a chef.
As a naturally outgoing and social guy, Royce was recently kind enough to take some time out of his evening to talk about football, cooking, the West Side Cubs and a variety of other topics. In doing so, he answered several questions posed by TTB readers.
Strengths, weaknesses, technique: “I’m good at tackling; I’m good at rushing the quarterback. I’m good with using my hands, but I still want to learn because there’s always room for improvement with everything. That technique is what’s going to get me through. It’s what gets everybody through – great technique and great footwork. So those are the things I know I’m going to need to work on. . . . My athleticism is what got me all my big offers – that and being bigger than everyone else. But everyone’s as big as me or bigger than me in college, so that’s why I’ve got to learn good technique and footwork – to get past those big O-linemen.
Height, weight, workout: “I’m 6’2” and 215 lbs. . . . No, the coaches haven’t talked to me about that yet [target weight], but I’m pretty sure I need to go up some more. I know I’ll put on weight my freshman year. Everybody does. So I’m just working out with my trainer and trying to keep my speed up. I do crossfit training, and that’s a pretty intense workout. It’s like ring drills and stuff like that.
Position: “The coaches – well, they really haven’t told me yet – but I’m pretty sure I’m going to start off at outside linebacker because I think I’d fit best there right now. . . . So I think I’ll start off at that outside linebacker spot because you got Kenny Demens in front of me. Either that or we’re sharing time. And I wouldn’t mind doing that. I’m just trying to do the best I can as a freshman and get my name out there, and fill in where I can, as quickly as I can. . . . I feel that I should start off at the outside linebacker spot because I’m so athletic and I’m good at rushing the quarterback, and once I get a feel of the defense I’ll move to the middle linebacker spot when the coaches feel that I’m ready. . . . They recruited me as a middle linebacker, so hopefully I’ll make my way to that spot soon. . . . Greg Mattison told me I look like another Ray Lewis. He thinks he got his Ray Lewis for college.
West Side Cubs: “They’ve always been a winning program, and everybody wants to be a Cub. Growing up, you either didn’t like the Cubs because they were winning all the time or you did. They taught us all that you never give up. You want to always be a winner in life and in football. They instilled in us ‘God, books and ball.’ They always preached that.
Nickname: “I haven’t got a nickname yet. . . . I haven’t heard any nicknames yet. I don’t know where that one [the Law Firm] came from.”
Roommate, major: “I’m rooming with Amara Darboh. He seems like a pretty cool guy. I talked to him on the phone a couple of times, but we were both breaking up. . . . I’ve signed up for Kinesiology and Personal Training for right now.”
Erik calls it “the best gift I’ve ever been given.” And considering Taylor Lewan’s notorious affection for his tandem bike, there is only one logical conclusion: “Left tackles abhor normal bicycles.”
Choosing Michigan: “Well, it’s pretty simple. It was coach Hoke. I wouldn’t have much interest in Michigan if it weren’t for Coach Hoke going there from San Diego State. So I had a relationship with him and I was pretty close with him. He started recruiting me early my sophomore year, and I had a good relationship with him all that year, and then he moved, and then I called and said, ‘Get me on board. I want to play for you.'”
Height, weight, goals: “I’m 6’6″, 295 lbs. I want to stay right around the 295/300 pound area, but I want to drop fat. My body fat could stand to drop a little bit, and I want to get stronger. So that’s my goal. I don’t want to gain too much more weight – I just want to make it the right weight.”
Moving to Ann Arbor: “As far as the football team, I hardly know anybody, and I hardly know the city at all besides the football stadium and the football facilities, so everything will be completely new to me. It’s going to be an adventure.”
Roommate: “I’m going to be rooming with Kyle Kalis. . . .a lot of personality in one room.”
Playing as a freshman: “I want to play. I’m going to get there and work my butt off. I’ll be working out, but I’ll also be studying. I’ll learn from the players, watch as much film as I can, learn as much as I can as fast as I can because I don’t want to sit out. I want to make an impact right away. . . . Coach has told me I’ll have a chance to do it, so that’s what I’m trying to do.”
Passion and heart, being well-rounded: “I think one of the things that gives me an advantage over other people is how much passion and heart I play with. I take this very seriously because it’s what I love to do. I think a lot of players don’t have that like I have. Physically, I think I’m a good pass blocker; I’m a pretty good run blocker – I’m pretty well-rounded. But hopefully I can get better at keeping low and that type of thing. In run blocking I need to stay lower, and that type of thing I’m going to work on.”
The next great left tackle: “Some people have told me that I’m going to play left tackle, but obviously I’m young to play left tackle since Taylor’s there right now. I’m open to playing anything on the offensive line; I don’t care if I have to play center, right tackle, anything. Eventually I’ll end up playing left tackle. . . . As far as anything he [Coach Funk] has ever said to me is that I could project to right tackle so I can play early, but eventually he wants me playing left tackle. That’s what they recruited me as, and that’s what they want me to play.”
NFL, the next goal: “College is another step in getting to my goal. When I was in high school my goal was to make varsity, after varsity my goal was to get a division one scholarship, and now that I’ve done that my big goal is to make it to the NFL. That’s one of the reasons why I picked Michigan – I think they give me a good opportunity to do that.”
Sticking with the unicycle: “I don’t know about that [riding Lewan’s tandem bike]. I’m more of a unicycle guy. I like my unicycle.”
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| Jeremy Clark shed his grayshirt after a strong senior season. |
As a medium-sized city, Ann Arbor can be viewed as either a thriving urban area or a small college town, depending on perspective. In the case of incoming freshman free safety Jeremy Clark, it’s clearly the former.