Newsstand: Michigan DT Mazi Smith goes viral for being named college football's top freak
Tweets Of The Day
Michigan Wolverines football has four of the top 100 ‘freaks’ in college football, according to The Athletic‘s Bruce Feldman on his annual ranking. The definition of a ‘freak,’ according to Merriam-Webster, is, “a person or animal having a physical oddity and appearing in a circus sideshow.” On the football field, standing out for possessing those unique traits is a good thing, of course.
The only other teams to have four players make appearances are Oregon and Wisconsin.
The premise of Feldman’s rankings is to “showcase guys who generate buzz inside their programs by displaying the rare physical abilities that wow even those who observe gifted athletes every day.”
Michigan’s players to land on the list are senior defensive tackle Mazi Smith at No. 1, graduate EDGE Julius Welschof at No. 7, senior cornerback DJ Turner at No. 36 and freshman defensive tackle Kenneth Grant at No. 46.
Michigan is no stranger to having ‘freaks,’ with Aidan Hutchinson standing No. 2 last season and Kwity Paye topping the list in 2020. Welschof was No. 33 in 2021, before moving up 26 spots.
“His former teammate, Aidan Hutchinson, almost was our top guy in 2021, but this year a Wolverine is the No. 1 Freak in college football,” Feldman wrote of Michigan’s defensive tackle. “The 6-foot-3, 337-pound senior has rare power and agility. So rare, in fact, it’s hard to find the right superlative to begin with.
“But let’s start with this: Smith does 22 reps on the bench press, but that’s with 325 (not 225). He close-grip benched 550 pounds. He vertical-jumps 44 inches. He broad-jumped 9-4 1/2. Smith, who had 37 tackles last season, has clocked a 4.41 shuttle time, which would’ve tied the best by any defensive tackle at this year’s NFL Scouting Combine, and it would’ve been better than any defensive tackle weighing 310 pounds or more in the past decade. His 6.95 3-cone time would’ve been by far the fastest among defensive tackles in Indianapolis. The fastest was 7.33. Smith’s 60-yard shuttle time is 11.90.”
Graduate wideout Ronnie Bell had a highlight catch in practice over graduate cornerback Gemon Green.
It appears Green came back from it, though, and notched an interception.
Michigan men’s basketball has released its official roster ahead of the 2022-23 season with a multitude of developments. The list sent out on Wednesday afternoon provided a look at returning players making gains in the weight room, numbers for fresh faces and much more.
Chief among the developments is sophomore guard Kobe Bufkin, who has bulked up to 195 pounds – a 20-pound gain from his freshman season. He still stands at 6-4 and is expected to push for a starting job during training camp.
Other sophomores that made the leap under strength coach Jon Sanderson include guard/forward Isaiah Barnes, who is up to 6-7, 200 pounds (up from 185 as a freshman) and forward Will Tschetter, who now stands at 6-8, 240 pounds (230 during freshman year).
Quote Of The Day
“They just go together — everybody, that whole group — so well. With their communication, we’ll be in walkthroughs, and they’re just screaming at each other, over-communicating. Everybody — linebackers, secondary — everybody. You can just tell from that, they’re all bought into it. Of course you had guys that played great last year, and some new guys this year that are getting opportunities, but I think that group just meshes so well together — and it’s going to be fun to watch.” — Michigan graduate tight end Luke Schoonmaker on the Wolverines’ defense
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• Clayton Sayfie, The Wolverine: Michigan football countdown to kickoff: 24 days until 2022 season
• Chris Balas, The Wolverine: Revamped Michigan defense is already opening eyes in fall camp
