Michigan football’s summer standouts: Strength coach names young players turning heads

The Michigan Wolverines are looking to get back into the College Football Playoff picture this year after an 8-5 campaign in 2024. There are plenty of new pieces, but the preparation has stayed rigid with a few tweaks to the program.

Strength coach Justin Tress, now in his second full season on the job after assisting longtime former staffer Ben Herbert, took what they learned last season and applied lessons to tweak the offseason training.

“You evaluate kind of what you did the year before,” Tress told Jon Jansen on the In The Trenches podcast. “You’re always looking for ways to improve it. Not necessarily in different techniques or anything, but how could I reach the team better? What could I get out of the team? And I think our number one goal was that Coach Moore had the saying, ‘Team over Me.’ That’s the number one goal. 

“How do we get them to grow together at a fast rate but at a methodical pace. So really it’s just looking at how we do things and how we’re going to incorporate guys pushing one another and guys holding each other accountable. We have tweaked a few things just in terms of some of our running with the skill and the big skill guys. Some things that are more position-specific to the offensive line and defensive line that this summer in particular, we’ve seen a lot of great gains.”

Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore said at the end of last season one of the goals was the increase the physicality within the program. Tress revealed that it has come through an increased emphasis of “strain” within the program, typically referring to players going the extra mile or getting the extra rep in when it may not be easy to do so.

 ”Coming from Coach Moore, one thing we wanted to prove across the board is just a level of strain,” Tress revealed. “What are we gonna implement? And most importantly, how are the guys doing things? Exposing them to different levels of strain. We think back to the winter… how far are these guys gonna push each other? And then holding a competition. Every rep was counted as a win or a loss. And I think back to that and kinda setting the table for what we do this summer.”

Michigan missed the CFP for the first time in four years last season, which ended the season on Dec. 31 in the ReliaQuest Bowl win over Alabama. That gave them a few extra weeks of winter work, and Tress broke down how he planned for this year’s cycle.

 ”You get a little extra time when you’re not in the playoffs,” he said. “So at the end of the season, the guys always get a two-week mandatory discretionary period just to get their bodies back underneath them. And then the first thing we’re gonna look at is what’s their flexibility and mobility look like. What are some of our baseline tests where they’re at coming out of the season? And then from there, that helps me once I get that information. That helps me plan accordingly, then I program out from there.

“At the beginning of each cycle, I’ll set the table for our leaders and guys that have been here.  And for the new guys, I set the table on how things are done, what the standards should be, what it’s been, and how it needs to improve. All credit to our guys that have been here, and every new guy that’s entered the program has fallen right in line. It’s a player-led team. Just finding ways to set that table and make the expectations clear from day one. That way there’s no gray area. Then, let the leaders lead at that point. That’s the biggest thing.”

Michigan finishing out summer workouts, Tress names standouts from offseason

Michigan has placed an emphasis on not only personal growth, but doing so to benefit the team over oneself. With camp set to start on July 30, Tress wants to make sure his guys finish the summer workout circuit on the highest note possible.

“When we’re conditioning, worry about everybody else’s body language,” Tress said. “Make sure everybody’s standing up, make sure we’re holding each other to a certain standard. What you see is that throughout the summer, it has just taken a new level. I had to remind them last week that we still have a week and a half until training camp. I can tell you guys are ready, and I love that. Let’s finish it off the way we know and how we started. Let’s finish what we started, and then when we get into camp, that process is done right. It’s still a day-by-day progression to get to where we need to go.”

Despite a rigorous offseason training period, Michigan’s goal is to have its players peak physically down the stretch, specifically in time for its Nov. 29 tilt against the Ohio State Buckeyes. It is a key to extending the win streak in the rivalry to five games.

 ”We like to tell our guys that does not make sense to be at your physical best in the summer,” he said. “We want to peak in season. Especially for that last game of the season. So one of my first talks when we get in season will be we’re not maintaining. That’s not the mentality to have. The goal now is to be at your best in season. So the progression will still take place. They’ll still be getting stronger. The volumes will drop out in the weight room. The intensities will go up. By the end of [the goal is] to get these guys to their physical best at that time.

 ”Coach Moore does a great job of allocating a good bit of time as we get into training camp and sprinkling in it at the end of practice. We have things we call a fourth quarter finisher that our guys take a lot of pride in. The emphasis with that is it’s at the end of practice. You’re already tired. How are you going to finish? Whether we sprinkle in some strength training there, and then there’ll be dedicated lift, throughout the days in training camp, to where we will adjust it between the lower body, upper body, total body and still working on the most injury-prone areas of the body. Your rotator cuffs, your neck, hamstrings, right and left hip, right and left ankle. Just piecing it all together to make it seamless. 

“And then just not losing that grit associated with training. You may be tired, but then once you get through that initial phase, then you start seeing the adaptation taking place and these things become easier.”

The player leadership tone has been set by captain Max Bredeson, who is heading into his fifth season in Ann Arbor. The guys who have been with the program multiple years have carried the group, too.

“ I’d say Max Bredeson returning as the captain has been instrumental in bringing the young guys along,” Tress said. “Ernest Hausmann, Derrick Moore. There are countless guys, and I think with all these upperclassmen and guys that have been here and guys that were here last year, I know they have a bad taste in their mouth from last year. And they’re taking it personally and talking amongst each other on how they’re leading the team. And it’s, it’s been really cool to see.”

Michigan’s ceiling will be dependent on the strides some of its young pieces take, too, namely on the offensive line. Tress singled out two potential starting tackles as those who have impressed him the most among the youth movement on the roster.

“Andrew Sprague is one.  Andrew Babalola is one,” Tress said. “There are countless guys top to bottom. I’d say those two are big ones right off the jump that stand out to me. But you look at [wide receiver] Andrew Marsh, [quarterback] Bryce Underwood; there are countless guys that I could name. They’re all seeing gains and they’re all doing a really good job… It’s been really cool.”