10/21/2026 4:00:00 AM | MGoBlue Podcasts
Jon Jansen • 00:00
Well, I tell you, I cannot wait to get a chance for you guys to listen to the defensive player of the week in the Big Ten, Chris Bracy. His impact on this defense and setting foot on campus has been immeasurable. He joins me in just a few moments on in the Trenches.
[music builds]
Jeff Laurence • 00:16
Welcome to the official podcast of Michigan Football in the Trenches with Jon Jansen, presented by Meijer, presenting sponsor of the twenty twenty six Michigan football season and proud supporter of hundreds of local sports teams across the Midwest. Nobody covers Michigan football better than the two time captain, national champion and Michigan athletics hall of honor inductee.
Chris Bracy • 00:38
Just coming down, having a flat, having eyes on the quarterback, you know, seeing the man go out to the flat, run into the flat, get my eyes back to the ball and the ball being right there, I wish I wouldn't have jumped, but it was a good picture.
Jeff Laurence • 00:50
This is in the Trenches presented by Meijer. Once again, here's Jon Jansen.
Jon Jansen • 00:56
Welcome back, friends. Another edition of In the Trenches. And I want to let you know what's going on at MGO Blue Podcast. Already out the radio replay of inside Michigan Football. My guests, one common guest every single week. I guess you can probably guess who that is. It's Kyle Whittingham, the head coach of Michigan football. Jason Beck, offensive coordinator, joined me on Monday night. And Bryson Kuzdzal with the very dramatic and long awaited forty three yard touchdown. Ron got things off and running in the second half. Defend the block. It's already out. You got the Oregon State recap on the men's side, Dallas Loughridge, an interview on the women's side. Also on the men's side, Kenny Noland from men's basketball. Still to come throughout the rest of this week, we've got conquering heroes on Thursday morning, talking Michigan hockey in the trenches on Thursday afternoon.
Jon Jansen • 01:46
It's going to be my Indiana preview. Keys to the game. Can't wait for that. And in the Trenches on Saturday night it will be the Indiana recap. So we'll get a chance to hopefully celebrate a big Michigan victory. At this time, I'm going to bring in Brian Boesch, the voice of men's and women's basketball. How you doing, Brian?
Brian Boesch • 02:06
I'm great. What's going on? We normally get to our comments coming up about twelve thirty five or so on the live stream. But we got goats since yost. We've got David. We've got some great questions from Patrick and Christopher. We'll get to those a little bit later on, but people are fired up. It was one heck of a victory. On Saturday, plenty to clean up. But man, you want to talk about, I think it was with Jack's conversation post game, just a weight off the shoulders type of a thing. Michigan hadn't won in twenty eight days and now I know there's a lot of optimism. I get it. It's a week to week thing and Michigan succeeded this week.
Jon Jansen • 02:44
Right. And when we talk about the game, it's all with a little bit of a grain of salt because it was a Penn State team. It's not, not your traditional Penn State team, but this was a, a, a football team for Michigan that desperately needed a win. They desperately needed to find some confidence in the run game in the past game. They found all of that in the second half. So I could not be more excited. I'm glad that it happened. Better late than never, but certainly before the defending national champs come to town on Saturday.
Brian Boesch • 03:13
So let's get into our seven from seventy seven. Like most Michigan football conversations right now and over the last few weeks, we're going to start at the quarterback spot assessing. Tommy Carr came in, helped Michigan with that rally. Certainly others around him played very well too. So your takeaways on how Tommy Carr played and how Michigan rallied around him?
Jon Jansen • 03:34
Well, anytime you hear from the coaches and you heard this even from the players, we all saw it in the stadium. If you're watching on TV or if you're listening on the radio, the poise that Tommy Carr went in there and played with, I love the fact that Jason Beck was able to call up a very confident, easy throw form. It was there completion to start off the second half. Really felt like there was even in that one play a lot of juice in the stadium. Certainly there was a lot of people that were hoping to see Tommy Carr, but to be able to have that moment and then throughout the course of the second half, the running game got going, the pass game was there, good decisions, you're not turning the ball over offensively. And that's really where I think Tommy really did a great job is he never put the ball at risk. There was never a time where the ball was bouncing around or he tried to fitted into a tight window.
Jon Jansen • 04:26
He wasn't overconfident. He made good decisions with the football. And I mean every possession should end in a kick. We're hoping it's a, a pat, but whether it's a field goal or a punt, as long as you are the one that is determining when that drive ends and it's not in a turnover, that right now is a win, it's all baby steps and it's all something that's headed in the right direction. So I thought Tommy played with good poise, accuracy, throwing the ball, good decisions, and you could see the offensive line, they were juice to play in front of him as well. They protected him well and they also allowed him the opportunity to, you know, hand the ball off and, and allow that running game to take a lot of pressure off the quarterback.
Brian Boesch • 05:06
Several things you mentioned there, the Jason Beck description of what they dialed up on the first play, that, that easy pass play for Tommy Carr was really interesting on Monday night's radio show. You can catch that on our audio feed. M GO Blue podcast, of course, Kyle Whittingham discussing how that decision came about, how it was communicated. So rate a replay of inside Michigan football is always a must listen, I would say, especially this week. Now, number two on our seven from seventy seven, of course, Bryce Underwood. He got the bad news that he would be on the bench for the second half. He's one of four captains on this team. Kyle Whittingham did not commit to who would be the starting quarterback for this weekend. But whether it is on the field or as a captain off the field, how can and will Bryce Underwood have an impact on this program the rest of the season?
Jon Jansen • 05:55
Whether he's starting or if he's the backups, the same thing as Tommy was when he was the backup, you're only one play away from going in. So I expect, and I know that he is still working on everything that he needs to work on as a quarterback and he's going to get a chance to get back in the game at some point. Hopefully it's not due to injury. And you know, I just, I know that he's going to be on the field when that happens. Is he, how wisely is he using his time? And it's more, it's not just about what he's doing at practice or in the film, but it's on game days when you get a chance to have the quarterback come to the side and he asked the question, what are you seeing? We saw that Bryce was engaged in the game. He was the first one to meet Tommy after, you know, every single drive. But when you get a chance to see things from that perspective and you have to explain it to, you know, what you are seeing and you know you're going to be, you're going to be asked those questions, you, you start thinking about it in a different manner and maybe he can see some of the coverages develop and he can see you know, hey, I would have thrown it over here, but now I get a chance because I'm not under duress and I'm not out there playing.
Jon Jansen • 07:01
I could see JJ Buchanan coming over and the throw shouldn't go to Andrew Marsh.
Brian Boesch • 07:05
I could.
Jon Jansen • 07:05
You can start to see what the offense is supposed to look like. Not that Tommy's going to make all the right decisions, but when he comes over and you have those discussions, I think it's really going to develop to help develop his football iq, IQ of the offense, everything that you need. Because at some point he is going to be back in there.
Brian Boesch • 07:25
So number three on our seven from seventy seven. We shall see how Michigan elects to go at QB one. Indiana now has a half's worth of work from Tommy Carr to scout Curt Cignetti was asked about it. Cignetti expects it to be Carr. How does that change the dynamic? Because you know these staffs, especially if you're getting ready for a conference foe. Indiana staff has watched plenty of freshman year Bryce Underwood. They probably dipped in here and there over the course of this season. So they've got a foundation on him already. And now they get a little bit of extra time on Tommy Carr. You hear a lot of times where the first time a quarterback goes out there in that relief appearance, second half for Tommy, it's one thing, then you get some film. There's going to be some adjustments made, especially by an elite Indiana defense.
Jon Jansen • 08:13
Well, it is an elite defense. And what I expect is they're going to throw some unique blitzes at Tommy and they're going to have a few things that they haven't done to this point through seven games, Indiana's played seven of them. They're going to do a few things that are maybe nuanced enough so they look new, some actually new blitzes. And so they're going to try and confuse the look for Tommy. And the biggest thing for Tommy is, yeah, you want to study the Indiana defense, their tendencies, their trends and, you know, get to know the personnel. But it, it's really going to come down to his preparation in Michigan's game plan. You know, what are my options on every single pass play? And then it comes down to some of the decision making we, we, we just talked about in the second half of Penn State when to throw the ball, when not to throw the ball, when to throw the ball away.
Jon Jansen • 09:08
And you know, everybody thinks that throwing the ball away is, is, you know, five rows into the, into the stands. It can also be at the feet of, of a receiver Just, hey, anything that does not put the ball at risk, and that's really where Tommy is going to sell. So it's not so much about what Indiana is doing. Yeah, you want to decipher that. You want to be able to have success against it, but it's really comes down to mastering Michigan's game plan and then going out there and performing within the parameters of the plays that are
Brian Boesch • 09:37
called number four on our seven from seventy seven. Of course, Tommy Carr stole a lot of the headlines, but, boy, you want to talk about someone who we raved about on postgame. He's gotten plenty of love. Big Ten Defensive Player of the week, Chris Bracy, who will be on the audio version of MGO Blue podcast. So if you're on YouTube watching live, check that out Wednesday, either back here on the Michigan Athletics page or. Or on our audio feed, MGO Blue podcast. I want to talk about him, but also anybody else who deserves spotlight from a really strong second half for Michigan when, I mean, gosh, at halftime, that was an uneasy feeling just because it was seemingly a continuation of what we saw in the second half two weeks prior against Minnesota. And for a while, nothing had been really cleaned up offensively from that loss to the Gophers.
Jon Jansen • 10:25
Well, and so I'll start with obviously, you know, most things on offense, right? That, that's, that was the best half of offense that had played. And I'll get to the particulars in just a moment. But it also paired with, yeah, there was some extra juice because Tommy was in there, but it also was the defense and Rod Moore with the interception. And it was, you know, Chris Bracy with the sack, fumble, also with the interception. And, you know, Chris Bracy was all over the field. Even when he wasn't making plays, he was the one that was causing plays to be made. And, you know, I do encourage people to go listen to the audio version because hearing him talk about his preparation and why he's able to react so quickly. I was talking about it, you know, with coach. I was talking about it during the broadcast. Chris Bracy was always around the ball, and it wasn't because there was a blitz.
Jon Jansen • 11:18
And, hey, he was making a play at the line of scrimmage or he was on the quarterback. It was because of the recognition and being able to process and react quickly. So make sure you go listen to his answers and how he prepares for a game, especially if you're a young football player. I think it's great to hear from, from some of these guys and learn from how they prepare for games. But his reaction, you know, and especially in the run game where he was twelve yards deep, sometimes fifteen yards deep, but he was, he was reading the offensive lineman's helmets, he was reading the quarterback, the motion. All of these different things were clues as to how he was going to play that play and led him right to the football. So he was always around the ball, making something happen. And then let's, let's talk about the offense. Other things other than Tommy.
Jon Jansen • 12:09
It was really about the offensive line. You know, it was the first time where it felt like the offensive line was controlling the line of scrimmage. And they were doing it in both the run and the pass. They did a tremendous job. There were a number of times where Penn State was trying to run through the A gap and whether it was, you know, left guard, right guard, they were picking it up. And when they ran through the B gap, it was tackles that were picking it up in blitzes, protecting the quarterback, but more importantly in the run game. And I highlighted one of the plays on Sunday morning on the Inside Michigan football radio show, but it was Bryson Kuzdzal's forty three yard touchdown run. I thought it was great awareness by Avery Gach who was playing in his. It was starting in his first game, he had had a number of reps as the Rhino. He came in instead of, of Brady Norton when, when Brady Norton got a little dinged up, played had a couple of, of reps at guard.
Jon Jansen • 13:04
But for the most part it was, it was the bulk of his first experience on the floor of the big house as a major contributor. And I thought he did a tremendous job of picking up a safety. Wasn't his responsibility, but he showed up in his gap, he picked him up. That's the block that actually sprung Bryson Kuzdzal to get to the second level. And then I've been highlighting this all week long. It's Channing Goodwin down the field making that final block. And that was a one hundred percent effort block that was able to put Bryson into the end zone. So those are the types of performances that you expect from the offensive line. We hadn't seen it, but now that we've seen it, we're going to expect it against Indiana, we're expected against Rutgers, we'll expect it against Michigan State. Go right down the list. We expect that every single time from that group.
Brian Boesch • 13:54
And let's face it, Michigan needs it against Indiana as we get into number five on our seven from seventy seven. Indiana comes in after its first loss since the twenty twenty four CFP when they fell to Notre Dame in the first round. Nineteen fifteen, a defensive struggle in the top five clash with Ohio State. What stood out about the Hoosiers in that game? And is there going to be some sort of motivation for Indiana? I know there will be, but do you think that'll impact a whole lot? Because Cignetti, he seems to be a coach that will try to latch on, do anything and try to use it as motivation. Allow one of his former coaches that he assisted for Nick Saban.
Jon Jansen • 14:35
Well, and sure, yeah, coaches are going to use a lot of different things to motivate their team throughout the course of the week once the ball is kicked off. I don't know how much, much that actually impacts what's happening on game day, but it certainly will impact the, the preparation for it. And this is a team that, you know, in Indiana that probably needed a little bit of a refocus. Even though some of the names are different, there are still some of those guys. And I'm not saying that they weren't focused and weren't preparing the way that they should, but they flirted with danger against Northwestern. They certainly flirted against Nebraska where they were down in the fourth quarter. And that's the only game where they've given up one hundred yards rushing, not to one guy, but to a team. The only game this year where they've given up one hundred yards rushing.
Jon Jansen • 15:21
And then you go to the Ohio State game where it was a defensive battle, it was back and forth. They just came up on the short end. I guarantee you every single guy there is going to be refocused on all the minutia, all the details as they try and repeat as national champ. So they're going to be a little bit more focused and ensure coming into Michigan Stadium. It's, it's going to be a big moment for them because the last time they beat Michigan, it was down there. And so it's, it's. It'll be a big moment for both teams, certainly bigger for Michigan because it's. The tables have turned, obviously, where Michigan's trying to save their season, get back into the mix and say that in the second half of the season, we aren't who we were in the first half. No better time to do it than against the defending national champs. That bullseye on Indiana is gigantic, one hundred percent.
Brian Boesch • 16:15
And as we will talk about in the comments here in a little bit, a wide range of perspectives on how the rest of the season is viewed, what this opportunity looks like. It is amazing what a win can do. But we'll break down some other storylines. A lot of interesting stuff to sink our teeth into around college football. But first, Jon, if you're coming out to the game on Saturday or any game the rest of this season, a new way to enjoy the hometown call of Michigan football at the Big House.
Jon Jansen • 16:42
Yeah, and I think this is the best way to enjoy a day out at the Big House for all home games for the rest of the season. You can catch our radio broadcast with limited delay inside the Big House. So if you want to follow along with our call, head to the Michigan Athletics app, click more along the bar at the bottom of the screen and scroll down and you're going to see a little tab that says in venue audio. Click on that limited delay maximum audio coverage from our crew, which is Doug Karsch, Jason Avant, myself, and you can hear Brian and Jason or Jack Miller at halftime. Go to the Michigan Athletics app, click more and then scroll down to in venue audio. The best way to experience game day in the Big House.
Brian Boesch • 17:26
We've been testing it out throughout the early stages of this season. Less than two second delay is the expectation, which is really, really cool. It's a great way to tune in. All right, number six on our seven from seventy seven Big Ten topics. And I did not expect to kick things off on any of these number sixes throughout the year with ucla. But the Bruins remain unbeaten. Backup quarterback Ty Dieffenbach leads the Bruins past Wisconsin seventeen seven. That is a game that deserves its own quick discussion because the winner of that game would put themselves into really a really unique spot in the Big Ten as they're jockeying for position jockey, jockeying for playoff opportunity. And it's UCLA that keeps humming along.
Jon Jansen • 18:09
It is. And I mean anytime you lose your starting quarterback, you're wondering, hey, does our season go down the drain? But Ty Dieffenbach has done a nice job of coming in when you know, hey, their quarterback got hurt. And then obviously starting this past game against Wisconsin and Wisconsin's a good defense, twenty two with thirty three, two hundred sixty four yards. He didn't throw for any touchdowns in one turnover, but in his first start I thought it was a very mature start. Again, like I said, a very experienced and tough defense. That's kind of one of the things that Wisconsin is reason they're four and two. Two and one in the Big Ten has been the play of their defense. Offense has been still a little bit inconsistent. You know, the rushing game really hasn't been there. And in the passing game against UCLA was, was nearly Non existent.
Jon Jansen • 18:58
They only threw the ball sixteen times, completed six of them for sixty six yards. But ucla, I mean that they're an eye opener and they don't play Ohio State. So right now you get two teams at the top of the list in the Big Ten and neither of them are going to play each other.
Brian Boesch • 19:16
When you have an eighteen team league, that's kind of how it unfortunately goes. Not ideal.
Brian Boesch • 19:21
All right, Oregon scores late to edge Nebraska at home, seventeen to fourteen. Northwestern five and one. The Wildcats edge their former head coach Pat Fitzgerald and Michigan State. Any thoughts on that or the slate this weekend? UCLA hosting Michigan State. Iowa at Minnesota. USC visits Wisconsin. Northwestern entertains Rutgers. Oregon heads to Illinois.
Jon Jansen • 19:45
I think it's USC. USC heading to Rutgers. I mean, sorry, USC heading to Wisconsin. Camp Randall is not an easy place to play. They're coming across the country, which is still a part of the story. It's not the entire storyline anymore. But USC, I don't know if they're going to overlook Wisconsin, but they've got Ohio State next week and Jayden Maiava is a guy that I, I've got a lot of respect for as a passer. Again, we're talking about that Wisconsin defense. If they can cause some turnovers against USC, it's probably outside of the Michigan game, the one I'm most intrigued about in the Big Ten this week.
Brian Boesch • 20:24
And usc, if they're going to get in the playoffs, they will have earned it at Wisconsin, home against Ohio State, at Indiana, home against Maryland, at UCLA. That is one heck of a challenging finish.
Jon Jansen • 20:37
It is. But when, when Lincoln Riley, I mean his back is against the wall. I don't know if he's on the hot seat or not. I don't pretend to know what's going out there, going on out there in la, but I know that the results haven't been there. And he's got the quarterback this year to make some things happen. He went out there and hired Gary Patterson as their defensive coordinator. A lot of eyeballs on, on what Lincoln Riley is doing there at, at Southern Cal. So yeah, there's, it's a tough schedule but I know with a quarterback like that anything is possible.
Brian Boesch • 21:14
No doubt. All right, number seven top twenty five stories. A wild week. Eight of the nation's top eighteen teams lost. Auburn, the biggest surprise of them all winning at number one Georgia on a last second field goal. Twenty seven, twenty four. That to me I can see some of these other ones that happened. At least I could have seen a path the Auburn over Georgia where you And I were talking about them as, you know, what the potential national championship favorites. And they lose at home to Auburn.
Jon Jansen • 21:47
Yeah, I mean they had a fourteen nothing lead. I think they kind of got a little bit complacent and turnovers was the thing that really did them in. And obviously the final turnovers where, where Gunner Stockton runs into his offensive lineman, drops the, lays the ball on the ground. He threw two interceptions. Again, Gunner Stockton is not the quarterback that I believe is going to go win you a lot of games. They just simply say don't go lose one. And it's not all on Gunner Stockton, but he certainly did not protect the football. And we know how in Ann Arbor, how costly that can be.
Brian Boesch • 22:21
BYU handing Notre Dame its first loss. So BYU, what, number two in the country. Now how about that? A fascinating one that went down to the wire with some controversy out there in Provo.
Jon Jansen • 22:33
Sure. I mean, should it have been pass interference? You could have called it. Should there have been a second left on the clock? Sure. If they had reviewed it, I think they would have put a second on there. There's no guarantee that Notre Dame would have been able to convert. You know, here's the thing. BYU is going to have two big games all season long. It's this game against Notre Dame, which they aced the test and rightfully so, should be the new number two team in the country. Some would even say they should be the number one team in the country. I think they're, they're right where they should be. And then who is it they play? Utah, who is currently ranked number ten. And I believe that one is going to be in Utah. Not just the state, but where Utah resides. Pretty sure that one's going to be in the state of Utah. But it's, it's. I know Bear Bachmeier.
Jon Jansen • 23:21
A lot of people are, you know, chanting Heisman. I don't know how many people are actually going to watch outside of those two games. BYU or any in the big. Anyone in the Big twelve. And will it be a legitimate test against Utah? A couple of, you know, you know, Big twelve opponents. I still. Hey, Brian, you know how I think about this? I know that the SEC has taken some hits and some losses. The Big Ten certainly has taken some hits and some losses. I'm just still not sure that the quality of play in the Big twelve is where is comparable yet to the Big Ten in the sec.
Brian Boesch • 23:56
Yeah, I would agree. But hey, if you keep winning, you can change that narrative. Utah has a pretty interesting one game day out there this weekend for a home matchup with uh, Houston critical in the Big twelve race. And the reality is the Big twelve and the acc, they, they need better sequencing in order to get multiple teams into the CFP. Remember last year it was what BYU and Texas Tech faced off twice and there was a path for those two teams both get in. But Texas Tech just dominated both those games. So much like they need BYU and Utah to be close, it normally is. Ask Kyle Whittingham and many of the members of this Michigan football staff. Now they've been through that holy war several times, so it'll be really interesting to watch. The number one team in the country is Miami and they hold off Florida State in double overtime. Forty three, thirty five.
Brian Boesch • 24:43
Speaking of a team that maybe, yeah, they've kept winning, do I think Miami is a national champion favorite? I, I don't. And, and I, I think that this past weekend showcased that a little bit against a Florida State team that has been pesky, but they haven't been able to finish off anybody of note.
Jon Jansen • 25:00
Well, no, they haven't had anybody of note on their schedule. They got Stanford, Florida in them, Wake Forest, Central Michigan, Clemson, who's not the Clemson of old, and Florida State. Yeah, Florida State is, they've been pesky, but that's a rivalry game and you know, they go into double overtime. They do what they've got to do to finally get a, get, get a win. But if you look at their schedule, the only ranked opponent that they're going to play is Notre Dame. And again, look at Notre Dame schedule. I'm not sure that Notre Dame can prove that they're one of the top teams in the country even though they're currently ranked four. And you know, they just dropped that one to byu. So there's still a lot of question marks. But the beautiful part of it is, is while we may not get a chance to see all of them, we will. And, and I don't know that there's, I don't think there's going to be a situation like there was last year where it was, you know, do we put Miami in or Notre Dame?
Jon Jansen • 25:52
I think it's going to be pretty clear cut this year as to who are the teams that are supposed to be in along with the, the gold star winner group of five. But it's, it's, it's going to be interesting to see how the CFP committee ranks these teams. And we're only a couple of way weeks away from getting that first iteration and that's because that's Going to be November third.
Brian Boesch • 26:14
Yeah. I'm going to have to disagree with you on thinking it's going to be easy. I just look at the sec. I mean, there, there are going to be five or six SEC teams that are going to feel like it is their birthright to be in the playoff. And the SEC has that vehicle behind them. It is probably the deepest league right now in college football. So I, I think we're gonna have a lot of debates. The one thing about Miami, they did beat Wake Forest. Wake Forest hasn't lost since. They have played well, so that is something of note with them. I. Wake Forest has played very well. It's. Do I think that that's a deal breaker? No, not, not at all. The Miami Notre Dame winner is going to be smooth sailing almost certainly into the playoff. Now if Notre Dame loses it, we could be in that same spot. It just a matter. It just depends on how much attrition we have. And I remember we talked about this on, over the summer.
Brian Boesch • 27:03
The SEC has eight additional losses this year, so that can help. If the SEC played nine games last year, conference games, Notre Dame might have gotten in. Not saying that we don't know how that iteration would have gone and how it have all laid out, but I do think that that's something really interesting when it comes to the playoff. But man, I don't know. I think on December, whatever it'll be, there's going to be a lot of controversy just because it's so tough to be. Especially when you've got all those folks down south that, you know, they, they do think it's their birthright to be in the final twelve.
Jon Jansen • 27:34
Oh yeah. And they'll bitch and moan louder than anyone else.
Brian Boesch • 27:39
So.
Jon Jansen • 27:39
But remind me, remind me. The, the, the memorandum that was signed is that Notre Dame, as long as they're in the top ten, they get an automatic bid. Or is it the top twelve?
Brian Boesch • 27:53
I think it's Notre Dame top twelve.
Jon Jansen • 27:55
Okay.
Brian Boesch • 27:55
All right. So that, I mean, that'll be in last year, even though. Yep, it is the top twelve. So that's a good point. I did not think about that. Which again would be really wild if they're sitting there at twelve and the last at large is number nine.
Jon Jansen • 28:12
Right. And if they're ten and two and they have lost to BYU and Miami.
Brian Boesch • 28:15
Yeah.
Jon Jansen • 28:16
What, what on their schedule says, yeah, this, this team that should be in one hundred percent?
Brian Boesch • 28:21
Speaking of our friends down south, Tennessee handles Alabama twenty six to ten. Florida gives Texas its second straight loss. Twenty seven twenty four. Ole Miss Dismantles Missouri thirty one. Three. Mississippi State really banged up. No Kamario Taylor. They lose to lsu thirty one to nothing. Also, we mentioned Houston. They got Utah this weekend. They eke past Oklahoma State thirty five, thirty two. I just. It's really tough for me to dictate, especially when you got Auburn beating Georgia. Yeah, I respect the depth of the sec. That doesn't mean I think they should just get five teams in the playoff, because I don't know how many teams have been that consistent. Say, yes, this is unquestionably one of the best teams in the country. I understand the schedule might be a little bit deeper, but that doesn't mean that you just automatically are elite if you lose three or four games.
Jon Jansen • 29:07
No. And it's on the heels of. I mean, they haven't won a national championship in three years. Like, what is the top end of the SEC actually mean? And again, this is up for the committee to. To try and figure out, like, how are they going to rank these teams? What type of. Of criteria are they using? Because you can't just use schedules anymore.
Brian Boesch • 29:27
Unquestionably. All right. The team, they can't look ahead, but we can. There is a great event we want to let our listeners and viewers know about before the Michigan State game that you've got to check out.
Jon Jansen • 29:37
Yeah.
Jon Jansen • 29:38
Game. They just got a style upgrade. Before kickoff for the Michigan State game on november seventh, head to the Tommy Hilfiger pep, Prep rally at fanfest on the corner of Stadium and Maine to check out pieces from the Varsity Prep inspired collection. Get a free Tommy Hilfiger hat that you can customize with a patch if you sign up for the Hilfiger Club. But you gotta hurry. Supplies are limited. The first five hundred fans then step inside their Airstream, strike a pose, snap a photo to remember the day. Do the pregame right with the Tommy Hilfiger Prep rally. Find them at the Michigan State Fan Fest open four hours before kickoff.
Brian Boesch • 30:19
Way to stick with that Hilfiger Prep Rally.
Jon Jansen • 30:22
Yeah, I know. Yeah. Well, I mean, everybody thinks it's a pep rally. And I kept thinking it was a pep rally.
Brian Boesch • 30:28
Let's just say defend the block. Also had that read and it take one, did not make the final production. Yes, the joys of pre recording. All right, let's make our transition. Speaking of pre records, great audio conversation Jon had with defensive back Chris Bracy.
[music builds]
Jon Jansen • 30:53
Excited to be joined by Chris Bracy, who had an unbelievable game against Penn State, has had a great season to this point. Chris, thanks for joining me. What was it about?
Jon Jansen • 31:06
Playing against Penn State because you were
Jon Jansen • 31:09
third on, on the team in total tackles, eight, five solo. You had the interception, you had a sack, sack, fumble. What was it about that team, that
Jon Jansen • 31:18
game where it felt like you just, you were on it.
Chris Bracy • 31:21
Honestly, just coming in, knowing it's a big week, big win for us, must win. Just honestly, just ready to have a breakout game, just putting everything together and having a good game. Honestly, you were.
Jon Jansen • 31:34
During the broadcast, I was talking about
Jon Jansen • 31:35
this because there were times where in
Jon Jansen • 31:38
Jay Hill's defense, right, you line up
Jon Jansen • 31:39
closer to line of scrimmage. There are other times where you're twelve, fifteen yards deep and you were reading things so quick that you know, whether it was run pass, but especially on the run, you would trigger and be making plays at the line of scrimmage. What were you seeing that allowed you to have that quick of a reaction at the line of scrimmage?
Chris Bracy • 31:58
It's really a lot of things, honestly. Just the quarterback and watching film on him, reading the tackles, reading the tight end and split, different splits and stuff, low hat, high hat by the old line and just watching a lot of film on the quarterback and different things. I see.
Jon Jansen • 32:11
How long does it take for you?
Jon Jansen • 32:14
I mean, like I, I got to
Jon Jansen • 32:15
imagine as a freshman, you probably weren't seeing all of that at one time. How long does it did it take for you to put what you're seeing on film and be able to recognize those things at. At game speed?
Chris Bracy • 32:28
I think it honestly just comes with reps. As the time game goes on, just seeing and just playing, having more reps at it, just seeing it, watching film and seeing that you can trigger and different things like that.
Jon Jansen • 32:42
When I do want to ask you
Jon Jansen • 32:43
this as well, because you've been playing in the secondary with Smith Snowden, Rod Moore, Zeke Berry, Jyaire Hill, a couple other guys sprinkled in there, but for the bulk of the reps, that's, that's who those guys have been. How have you been able to build relationships? Ultimately the communication you need in the secondary to play the way you guys have played throughout the course of this
Chris Bracy • 33:03
year, for sure, I mean, it's very, very, very important. I love those guys. It's great playing with those caliber type of guys. All of them are amazing. All Big Ten guys, you know, just playing with them, communicate with them out there, it makes my job easy.
Jon Jansen • 33:16
Walk us through the interception that you had against Penn State.
Chris Bracy • 33:19
Just coming down, having a flat, having eyes on the quarterback, you know, seeing the man go out to the flat, run into the flat. Get my eyes back to the ball and the ball bearing right there. I wish I wouldn't have jumped, but yeah, it was a good pick.
Jon Jansen • 33:33
When a ball is coming at you like that, obviously receivers like it happens
Jon Jansen • 33:37
to them all the time and you're
Jon Jansen • 33:38
always defending it, but is there a
Jon Jansen • 33:40
moment where you know you're going to
Jon Jansen • 33:42
have the interception, you're going to have the ball in your hands?
Chris Bracy • 33:45
Yeah, there's always, you know, the receiver's eyes get big. Db's is kind of the same as well. Once you see the ball, your eyes are going to get big and, you know, be ready to make a play on the ball.
Jon Jansen • 33:55
It's, it's been a season that's been,
Jon Jansen • 33:58
it's been challenging, but defensively, you guys have been consistent. A winning effort felt like every single week. What has led to the consistency of the defense?
Chris Bracy • 34:08
Just being about us. I mean, trying to be the best defense in the nation, honestly, just coming in each and every week not being satisfied with what's on film because we watch it, you know, just like the other coaches watch it, and just trying to hone in on all the areas that we can grow in just being the best defense in the nation.
Jon Jansen • 34:24
We hear this a lot from football players. I'm just doing my one eleven. When, when it's put in that perspective, what is it that you are doing day in, day out, but specifically on game days to give this team the best chance to win?
Chris Bracy • 34:37
Honestly, just with that one hundred eleven, it's just if you do your one hundred eleven, those plays are going to come to you. In this type of defense, I mean, flying around, getting to the ball, the plays are going to come. So just do your one eleventh. You're going to have a great game.
Jon Jansen • 34:48
How long does it take? And I sort of asked you this question about the teamwork and the camaraderie that you guys have in the secondary. But to be able to trust a guy like Rod Moore or Smith Snowden, because you hadn't played with those guys
Chris Bracy • 34:59
before, just, just coming in, building a relationship, trusting those guys is building and creating habits. Seeing the practice, talking to him, communicating, watching film with them, that all that stuff Tone hones in and helps and creating those relationships.
Jon Jansen • 35:14
How much time do you spend on a weekly basis? You don't have to give us an exact amount of time, but in terms of watching films, so that you do have the ability to react the way that you're reacting. So it's not thinking, it's reacting.
Chris Bracy • 35:28
I don't really know. It's a Lot though, just, just what's
Jon Jansen • 35:31
your weekly schedule look like?
Jon Jansen • 35:32
What like and how much do you
Jon Jansen • 35:34
that do, do you do that on your own versus along with the other guys in the, in the secondary.
Chris Bracy • 35:39
So I, I, I watch some in the morning. We have, I have also classes in the morning, then we come in in the afternoon, watch film usually with the guys. It's usually after practice. That's where I watch the film with them mostly. And then at home also.
Jon Jansen • 35:53
What's the conversation like? Because as a veteran player, you see things a little bit different than some of the younger guys and you may
Jon Jansen • 36:01
see things different from Rod and he
Jon Jansen • 36:03
may see things different from you. How much are, is it an open conversation about sharing what you're seeing so that everybody has the same amount, the same advantage you're playing with?
Chris Bracy • 36:11
For sure. Honestly, it's just every day, every, if you see something, I mean it doesn't do good for you to hold it in. Just communicating, talking each and every play, just sharing those information with each other, make each other better and just starving off each one another.
Jon Jansen • 36:26
You guys got a big time challenge coming in this weekend in Indiana. It's, it's probably the best receiving core, best team you guys have played to this point. What are the challenges that you see early in the week with this Indiana team?
Chris Bracy • 36:41
Just, just being able to limit the offense, just shut them down, limit the two receivers, create turnovers, as always. And I feel like that's a big,
Jon Jansen • 36:51
that's going to help us coaches emphasize the turnovers. You guys had three of them in the second half. And I do want to talk about your force fumble and sack as well.
Jon Jansen • 36:59
But when, when coach emphasizes that, what
Jon Jansen • 37:04
are some of the things that you guys are trying to do in practice to come up with those turnovers?
Chris Bracy • 37:09
For sure, we do turnover drills every week. We do different things like just taking the ball away, me off the edge, hitting the quarterback in the hands, getting a hand up for tips. We do all type of different things for drills, for turnovers and just seeing that relate to the game, it's amazing.
Jon Jansen • 37:24
So Rocco Becht is rolling out and it looked like his first option.
Jon Jansen • 37:27
He wanted to get the ball out
Jon Jansen • 37:28
of his hands quick and it wasn't there. You were bearing down on the backside for the sack fumble. What was going through your mind at
Jon Jansen • 37:35
that time and is it a different
Jon Jansen • 37:36
feeling in that moment than it is for the interception?
Chris Bracy • 37:40
A little bit. It is because the timing, you don't know really how much time you have before he throws the ball or throws the ball out of bounds and just trying to get to him enough to where I can just get my hand on the ball and make us a play.
Jon Jansen • 37:51
Did you think Enow was going to be able to get up and score?
Chris Bracy • 37:54
I thought he was at first, but the old lineman watching film, he made a good play and had his leg.
Jon Jansen • 37:59
What are some of the things that you worked on in the bye week and some of the things that you
Jon Jansen • 38:04
want to continue to do better throughout the rest of this season?
Chris Bracy • 38:07
Mostly for me, my practice habits, just, just paying attention to detail, taking every period as the most opportunity I can. Just taking practice happens better.
Jon Jansen • 38:17
You've got the defending national champs. Eventually you guys are going to travel to Oregon, which is a tough place to play. You got the Buckeyes at the end of the season. Michigan State rivalry game here.
Jon Jansen • 38:27
When you look at the rest of the schedule with the, with the, with the fact that you guys have two losses, how do you guys talk about what the opportunities are still there for you guys?
Chris Bracy • 38:37
For sure. I mean we know what has to be done week in and week out. We got to go one and oh, focus on the next, next team. Just focusing on us bettering us on both sides of the ball.
Jon Jansen • 38:48
Chris, I appreciate your time. Thanks for joining me.
Chris Bracy • 38:50
Appreciate it. Thank you.
[music builds]
Jon Jansen • 38:58
Well, thanks to Chris for his time. Really excited about the prospects of this team moving forward with some energy and some confidence coming out of that Penn State game. Looking ahead to the Hoosiers on Saturday. For all that's going on in and around Michigan football, keep it locked in here on in the Trenches.
Jeff Laurence • 39:15
Thanks for listening to this edition of in the Trenches with Jon Jansen, presented by Meijer, presenting sponsor of the twenty twenty six Michigan football season and proud supporter of hundreds of local sports teams across the Midwest, in the Trenches is part of our Michigan Athletics Podcast network for M GO Blue Podcasts. The preceding is a Learfield presentation of the Michigan Sports Network.
