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While Kyle Whittingham had noted that Michigan football's defensive backfield didn't have much depth in spring ball, he must have been speaking about the cornerbacks, because at safety, there's depth in spades.
For a position group that only puts two players out there any given snap, there are about six guys who very well could be a part of the rotation. And there are more who are up and coming, to boot.
According to new safeties coach Tyler Stockton, one of the most exciting things about the room is no two players are alike. And that gives him and the coaching staff that much more latitude to make things difficult on opposing offenses.
He shared more on the In the Trenches podcast with Jon Jansen.
"Most importantly, we're looking for really good football players," Stockton said. "And then we're kind of, like you said, we're like a basketball team. We got some guys who are like point guard sides, who are under 5-10, then we got a center like Mason Curtis, who's 6-5. So I mean, every single one of those guys, even though they're different sizes, have a unique skill set, but really, all of those guys can play the free or the strong position as well, because that's why they came here to Michigan, because they're damn good football players."
Throughout the podcast appearance, Stockton broke down some of the players individually. Here's what he had to say.
Rod Moore is returning after having only played three games in two years (all three were played in 2025). Now expected to be back to full strength for his sixth season, Stockton feels like Moore shouldn't just be able to take off and resume his role as one of the best at his position, his leadership is truly unparalleled in Ann Arbor.
"My expectation of Rod is to be one of the best safeties in the country," Stockton said. "We're going to fight day in and day out to make sure he is healthy, which he's been doing an unbelievable job. He is far in advance right now on where he should be, but I see a guy in Rod that is going to go down at this university as one of the better leaders to ever come here. I mean, Michigan was 1898 was the first Big Ten championship victory, and Rod could be the first three-time captain ever at this university, so that speaks volumes about how much he's invested into this program."
Entering his third year, Mason Curtis remains a versatile threat, despite his lanky size at 6-foot-5. Last year, the coaching staff toyed with playing him at nickel, and though this staff is a little mum on what it wants to do with him, given his diverse skill set, they're excited to see what he can do.
"I learned that Mason is, like you said, he's a football guy as well," Stockton said. "And I think the unique thing about Mason is he came in here, he's played so many different positions since he's been at Michigan. And I think his love for the game is unmatched, and that's why you see that he came in as an edge. He played a little bit of a wide receiver, and now he's finally found a home at safety. And I see a guy this year that's going to have a big year for us."
A transfer from Memphis this offseason, Bracy came alive while with the Tigers and has a big opportunity in Ann Arbor. He got some accolades from Rod Moore on his own appearance on the In the Trenches podcast, and Stockton also sees a lot of promise of what he might be able to do this season in a winged helmet.
"Chris has played close to 700, over 700 snaps at Memphis, and Chris is a football guy, you know what I mean?" Stockton said. "He wasn't a guy who's highly recruited or anything. He has a chip on his shoulder, so he knows that his whole objective is to prove to the country that he can be one of the best safeties in the country. I've been so impressed with Bracy. I know his teammates have been impressed with him as well, and I'm expecting big things from him this year as well."
When former four-star running back Taylor Tatum departed Oklahoma for Ann Arbor via the transfer portal, the initial thought is that he would add to the depth of the already deep room. However, the big surprise came in January when it was revealed that he would be converting to safety.
Stockton shared the thought process for moving him over to defense and what he's seen from him thus far.
"The first thing is what's best for the team, and we thought that Taylor Tatum had a unique skill set from an explosive standpoint, a ball skill standpoint, because he's also a baseball player as well," Stockton said. "He's just scratching the surface. This was his first time ever backpedaling, so it fires me up because you got a piece of clay that you can just fine-tune and make him into a great player, and if he does a good job, just get him better every single day. The first time he took a rep, he lost. Who wouldn't? If you never done it? Then all of a sudden, towards the end of the spring ball, he's going against our better wide receivers, competing his tail off."
But how will he work as a safety? What are the biggest challenges he's facing? The one, really important element, Stockton says, is already working for him.
"The physicality piece is there," Stockton said. "It's more of some of the technique stuff that he's not used to. He's always used to going forward. Now he's got to work on going backwards at times, but the cool thing, what you'll see from him is when he goes forward, he's explosive, and it's exciting to see that."
Jordan Young had entered the transfer portal before withdrawing -- excellent news for the maize and blue given what he showed in his freshman season. When asked by Jansen who's been the most impressive, Stockton proferred Young, who reportedly really came on late in spring ball.
"The person that probably impressed the most was Jordan Young," Stockton said. "I think, obviously, he played around 150 snaps last year as a young player, but he's up there with those guys competing for a starting position."
While Stockton didn't mention Jacob Oden, who's entering his third year, he did run through a litany of young players who are standing out. He mentioned two true freshmen, a sophomore, and some former walk-ons who are making impressions in the early going.
"Then we got two young guys as well, Jordan Deck and Ernest Nunley, that have came in as early enrollees and competed their tail off every single day," Stockton said. I really like the room. Kainoa Winston, he redshirted last year. He's a kid that ran a 10-4, 10-5 out of high school.
"We got a competitive group, and then we got guys who are unsung heroes with our walk-ons like Nico (Andrighetto) and Max Reyes, who come in every single day and compete their tail off too."
This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: DB coach breaks down Michigan football safeties who are standing out
Continue reading...
For a position group that only puts two players out there any given snap, there are about six guys who very well could be a part of the rotation. And there are more who are up and coming, to boot.
According to new safeties coach Tyler Stockton, one of the most exciting things about the room is no two players are alike. And that gives him and the coaching staff that much more latitude to make things difficult on opposing offenses.
He shared more on the In the Trenches podcast with Jon Jansen.
"Most importantly, we're looking for really good football players," Stockton said. "And then we're kind of, like you said, we're like a basketball team. We got some guys who are like point guard sides, who are under 5-10, then we got a center like Mason Curtis, who's 6-5. So I mean, every single one of those guys, even though they're different sizes, have a unique skill set, but really, all of those guys can play the free or the strong position as well, because that's why they came here to Michigan, because they're damn good football players."
Throughout the podcast appearance, Stockton broke down some of the players individually. Here's what he had to say.
Rod Moore
Rod Moore is returning after having only played three games in two years (all three were played in 2025). Now expected to be back to full strength for his sixth season, Stockton feels like Moore shouldn't just be able to take off and resume his role as one of the best at his position, his leadership is truly unparalleled in Ann Arbor.
"My expectation of Rod is to be one of the best safeties in the country," Stockton said. "We're going to fight day in and day out to make sure he is healthy, which he's been doing an unbelievable job. He is far in advance right now on where he should be, but I see a guy in Rod that is going to go down at this university as one of the better leaders to ever come here. I mean, Michigan was 1898 was the first Big Ten championship victory, and Rod could be the first three-time captain ever at this university, so that speaks volumes about how much he's invested into this program."
Mason Curtis
Entering his third year, Mason Curtis remains a versatile threat, despite his lanky size at 6-foot-5. Last year, the coaching staff toyed with playing him at nickel, and though this staff is a little mum on what it wants to do with him, given his diverse skill set, they're excited to see what he can do.
"I learned that Mason is, like you said, he's a football guy as well," Stockton said. "And I think the unique thing about Mason is he came in here, he's played so many different positions since he's been at Michigan. And I think his love for the game is unmatched, and that's why you see that he came in as an edge. He played a little bit of a wide receiver, and now he's finally found a home at safety. And I see a guy this year that's going to have a big year for us."
Chris Bracy
A transfer from Memphis this offseason, Bracy came alive while with the Tigers and has a big opportunity in Ann Arbor. He got some accolades from Rod Moore on his own appearance on the In the Trenches podcast, and Stockton also sees a lot of promise of what he might be able to do this season in a winged helmet.
"Chris has played close to 700, over 700 snaps at Memphis, and Chris is a football guy, you know what I mean?" Stockton said. "He wasn't a guy who's highly recruited or anything. He has a chip on his shoulder, so he knows that his whole objective is to prove to the country that he can be one of the best safeties in the country. I've been so impressed with Bracy. I know his teammates have been impressed with him as well, and I'm expecting big things from him this year as well."
Taylor Tatum
When former four-star running back Taylor Tatum departed Oklahoma for Ann Arbor via the transfer portal, the initial thought is that he would add to the depth of the already deep room. However, the big surprise came in January when it was revealed that he would be converting to safety.
Stockton shared the thought process for moving him over to defense and what he's seen from him thus far.
"The first thing is what's best for the team, and we thought that Taylor Tatum had a unique skill set from an explosive standpoint, a ball skill standpoint, because he's also a baseball player as well," Stockton said. "He's just scratching the surface. This was his first time ever backpedaling, so it fires me up because you got a piece of clay that you can just fine-tune and make him into a great player, and if he does a good job, just get him better every single day. The first time he took a rep, he lost. Who wouldn't? If you never done it? Then all of a sudden, towards the end of the spring ball, he's going against our better wide receivers, competing his tail off."
But how will he work as a safety? What are the biggest challenges he's facing? The one, really important element, Stockton says, is already working for him.
"The physicality piece is there," Stockton said. "It's more of some of the technique stuff that he's not used to. He's always used to going forward. Now he's got to work on going backwards at times, but the cool thing, what you'll see from him is when he goes forward, he's explosive, and it's exciting to see that."
Jordan Young
Jordan Young had entered the transfer portal before withdrawing -- excellent news for the maize and blue given what he showed in his freshman season. When asked by Jansen who's been the most impressive, Stockton proferred Young, who reportedly really came on late in spring ball.
"The person that probably impressed the most was Jordan Young," Stockton said. "I think, obviously, he played around 150 snaps last year as a young player, but he's up there with those guys competing for a starting position."
Other young players
While Stockton didn't mention Jacob Oden, who's entering his third year, he did run through a litany of young players who are standing out. He mentioned two true freshmen, a sophomore, and some former walk-ons who are making impressions in the early going.
"Then we got two young guys as well, Jordan Deck and Ernest Nunley, that have came in as early enrollees and competed their tail off every single day," Stockton said. I really like the room. Kainoa Winston, he redshirted last year. He's a kid that ran a 10-4, 10-5 out of high school.
"We got a competitive group, and then we got guys who are unsung heroes with our walk-ons like Nico (Andrighetto) and Max Reyes, who come in every single day and compete their tail off too."
This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: DB coach breaks down Michigan football safeties who are standing out
Continue reading...
