Michigan football players reveal standout young defenders in winter

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Michigan football is set to begin spring ball on Tuesday, with 15 practices on deck, culminating with the annual spring game on April 18 at The Big House.

There is a ton of optimism about the offense, with so many returning players to go along with a new offensive coordinator in Jason Beck, but what about the defensive side of the ball? Jay Hill comes aboard to oversee that side of the ball after the past few seasons at BYU, and while there might as much depth on defense, there are some up-and-coming players who could play factors sooner than later.

The latest episode of The Team, hosted by Michigan quarterback Chase Herbstreit, came out this week, and he sat down with two defenders, linebacker Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng and cornerback Jyaire Hill. He asked them which young players have stood out in winter conditioning, and the first answer was a linebacker out of Cincinnati who flipped to the Wolverines after being a longtime Wisconsin commit.

"I would want to say one dude that's been bugging me a lot. It's Aden Reeder," Owusu-Boateng said. "Yeah, he's a great player. Great kid.

"Bugging me in a good way. Asking questions. I remember during (matchups), he was like competing against me, talking trash, and everything like that. So it was just good to see that these young guys had the same aspirations, and they want to have that same dog. They want to, but to be a dog, you gotta be born with it. You gotta develop it. You gotta be born with it. You have it, or you don't. It's true. So far, we'll see what he got. Bring it out of him."

Hill had a different answer, albeit an encouraging one.

One of the other late additions to the 2026 class was a highly-rated four-star cornerback in Jamarion Vincent. Vincent was a longtime Baylor commit who flipped to Michigan the day after The Game, and Hill thinks he's further along than he was at the same juncture as a true freshman.

"I'd say Jam. Cornerback from Texas. Waco," Hill said. "I mean, I've seen a lot of good traits in him. I mean, a lot. I mean, he got work to do, getting his body right and stuff. So far, I mean, he's better. He's doing better than I was in my freshman year. I mean, so if he just keep applying himself, I mean, learn something and apply and be great."

Not all of the defensive commits have made it to campus just yet. Perhaps the most anticipated is five-star edge rusher Carter Meadows, who will arrive in Ann Arbor after spring ball.

This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Michigan football young defenders impress teammates in winter

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