Keon Sabb details first-career pick six, who his toughest cover is in practice
The Michigan Wolverines had no shortage of splash plays during the team’s 52-10 win over Minnesota last weekend. Chief among them was a pair of pick-sixes by the defense, both from sophomore defensive backs Will Johnson and Keon Sabb.
Johnson was a known commodity coming into the season, but Sabb is in the middle of a breakout campaign that is now headlined by his first career interception and score against the Gophers. During a Tuesday night session with the media, he described what he saw that led to it.
“So in that situation, I was guarding a tight end,” Sabb said. “The d-line and everybody got there quick, so it was a little bit of pressure on his face. And I got blocked so I just stayed in the window and ended up throwing it right to me. So did my job and picked it off and took it for a score.”
“I was just thinking to get to the touchdown. So I looked over to my left, and I saw my guys blocking everybody, blocking, they blocked it really well. Saw a pretty clear path and I just took it.”
So often, plays that are made on Saturday can be attributed to the looks that Michigan’s players give each other in practice. With the defense rotating so frequently during games, it keeps snap counts low, which in turn keeps guys fresh for preparation during the week.
In a lot of ways, the competition that Michigan players give each other outweighs what they’ll see from opponents.
“During the week, I feel like we work really hard,” Sabb said. “It’s fun when you can compete with the good on good, even the younger guys competing with the older guys. There’s always a competition. So there’s never time to practice when guys are just loafing around and letting guys beat each other. That’s what helps in the game as well.”
Sabb was guarding a tight end during his big play on Saturday, and battles with Michigan’s star tight end in practices are giving him plenty of positive experiences.
“I guard Colston Loveland all the time,” Sabb said. “We’ve always had healthy battles. So I look forward to guarding him, AJ Barner and a lot of the different tight ends just guarding them as well. [Colston and I] talk about how he runs routes and how as the defender we guard. So we’ve taught each other some different things. It helps me a lot guarding other tight ends because he’s a really good tight end. So I’m ready for a lot of different stuff people throw at me just from playing against him in practice.”
Sabb has made four starts at safety this season and feels like he is coming into his own. The emphasis moving forward is honing in on the finer points of his game.
“I’m a lot more comfortable getting some games under my belt and being able to get experience and dealing with the defense and feeling guys out and be able to have some type of chemistry,” Sabb said. “So I think it’s a lot easier for me and I’m looking forward to playing better to have more experience.
“I’m finding something at the beginning of the week I need to work on and just work out on those throughout the week. By the time the end of the season comes around, I’ve gotten better and I am who I am by that time.”
The next step for Sabb and the Michigan defense comes Saturday afternoon with a 12 p.m. ET kickoff against the Indiana Hoosiers at the Big House. The game broadcast is set for Fox’s Big Noon Saturday.
