Michigan wants 'wrecker' Jaishawn Barham to 'go attack'

The Michigan Wolverines‘ defense found another gear a few weeks ago when senior linebacker Jaishawn Barham moved down to the first level of the defense as a pass rusher and edge defender. It helped unlock his freakish athleticism and also made the defensive line all the more disruptive.

Barham is tied for second on the team with 11 pressures on the season and is tied for second in sacks with 2, along with sophomore linebacker Cole Sullivan and graduate defensive tackle Rayshaun Benny.

Still, Michigan is working him at both EDGE and linebacker as it tries to deploy him effectively and get its best 11 guys on the field.

“We work him at both,” defensive line coach Lou Esposito said Wednesday. “He’s an elite player. And I think him playing edge more has let him just go attack, go attack, go attack. And Coach [Pernell McPhee] , [defensive coordinator Wink Martindale] and [linebackers coach Brian Jean-Mary] have done a great job with him. And for us to be successful, we need him attacking the football the way he’s been doing it. It’s been great for us.

“He’s a game wrecker. He’s a guy. He’s a dude. You’ve got to make sure that you know where he’s at. So it helps us in a lot of other ways, too. And just his presence closer to the football gives us that opportunity to be able to make some great plays with him being there, which is good for us.”

Barham’s move is aided by a Michigan linebacker room with starting-caliber options aplenty. It has helped Sullivan and senior Jimmy Rolder get on the field more and gives them a little more optionality in their looks.

“It’s definitely helped our defense,” Esposito said. “And what’s done is when we talked about playing a bunch of guys, Cole Sullivan and Jimmy Rolder were playing at a high level, so now he comes in, and now those guys can play, too. And again, it gives us the flexibility to play more bodies, to be fresher in the second half, and ultimately win the game. That’s what we’re trying to do.”

Barham’s work as a pass rusher is still a work in progress, but he has been a natural picking up the things the Michigan staff wants him to.

“I think it’s been riding the bike for him,” Esposito said. “He just gets on the bike and rides it. There are some things in the run game that Coach Phee did a great job helping him out with. But he is a great player. He’s played at EDGE some, which helps us. He’s been in the defense as a linebacker, so he knows what the D-line does, where he fits, how he fits. So it’s been a seamless transition for us. It’s been really good.

“And he’s not just going to play there. He’s still going to play some linebacker. And you watch him. He did it in the game versus Wisconsin. He’ll do it versus USC. We’ll do some different things with him to help us put ourselves in the best position to win.”

Michigan and USC kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET Saturday in Los Angeles with NBC carrying the national broadcast.