Meet The Wolverines

Thu., Jan. 1, 1998

When the Wolverines have the ball

Left tackle

Jeff Backus 79

6-foot-6

285 pounds

Freshman

Norcross, Ga.

… Missed spring drills because of a ruptured appendix. Mother, uncle and grandfather all Michigan grads.

73 - Paul Tannous

6-5, 189, Fr.

Houston

Left guard

Steve Hutchinson 76

6-foot-5

292 pounds

Freshman

Coral Springs, Fla.

… Moved from defense to offense because of his agility and started 11 games.

63 - Eric Warner

6-5, 270, Fr.

Brighton, Mich.

Center

Zach Adami 68

6-foot-5

296 pounds

Senior

Maumelle, Ariz.

… Fifth-year senior who has played guard, tackle and center. Was Arkansas high school player of year.

64 - Steve Frazier

6-4, 288, So.

Kingwood, Texas

Right guard

Chris Ziemann 52

6-foot-7

283 pounds

Sophomore

Aurora, Ill.

… Moved from defensive end to tackle in spring drills. Nickname, not surprisingly, is “Z.”

67 - David Brandt

6-4, 290, Fr.

Jenison, Mich.

Right tackle

Jon Jansen 77

6-foot-7

299 pounds

Junior

Clawson, Mich.

… Nickname is “Rock.” Played some quarterback in high school and completed 7 of 13 passes.

78 - Noah Parker

6-4, 299, Jr.

Milton, Fla.

Tight end

Jerame Tuman 80

6-foot-5

249 pounds

Junior

Liberal, Kan.

… Other than Charles Woodson, Tuman averaged more per catch (15.0) than any UM receiver.

36 - Aaron Shea

6-4, 249, So.

Ottawa, Ill.

Split end

Tai Streets

6-foot-4

190 pounds

Junior

Matteson, Ill.

… Once played on Michigan’s basketball team. Long-jumped 23-7 in high school. Four TD receptions.

85 - Marcus Knight

6-1, 173, So.

Sylacauga, Ala.

Flanker

Russell Shaw

6-foot

186 pounds

Senior

Los Angeles

… Was outstanding receiver at El Camino (Calif.) CC. Nickname is “Boo.” Caught 19 passes for 235 yards.

19 - Aaron Wright

6-0, 174, Fr.

Highland Village, Texas

Fullback

Chris Floyd 7

6-foot-1

231 pounds

Senior

Detroit

…A bulldozing runner who had 267 yards rushing. Great lead blocker who opened holes for Howard.

27 - Demetrius Smith

6-2, 270, Fr.

Calumet Park, Ill.

Tailback

Chris Howard 8

5-foot-11

215 pounds

Senior

River Ridge, La.

…Led UM in rushing with 868 yards. Led UM with 35 catches. had team-hight seven rushing TDs.

32 - Anthony Thomas

6-2, 229, Fr.

Winnfield, La.

Quarterback

Brian Griese 14

6-foot-3

207 pounds

Senior

Miami

…Completed 175 of 277 passes for 2,042 yards with 14 TDs. Son of former pro and TV analyst Bob Griese.

10 - Tom Brady

6-5, 215, So.

San Meteo, Calif.

Place kicker

Jay Feely 49

5-foot-10

206 pounds

Junior

Odessa, Fla.

…He is 3 of 4 on field goals, with a long of 51 yards. Had 20 touchbacks on kickoffs.

46 - Kraig Baker

6-1, 183, Jr.

Terre Haute, Ind.

When the Cougars have the ball

End

Glen Steele 81

6-foot-5

289 pounds

Senior

Ligonier, Ind.

… Team-high seven sacks and 14 tackles for loss. Third in sacks on Michigan’s all-time list.

90 - Juaquin Fenzell

6-4, 275, Jr.

Fort Valley, Ga.

Nose tackle

Rob Renes 58

6-foot-1

286 pounds

Junior

Holland, Mich.

… Good athlete who won a Michigan state heavyweight wrestling title. Only lineman to start all 11 games.

60 - Nate Miller

6-3, 277, Jr.

Imlay City, Mich.

Tackle

Josh Williams 91

6-foot-3

271 pounds

Sophomore

Houston

… Had 51 tackles, 10 for loss, and six sacks. Followed former captain Chris Hutchinson to UM.

95 - Pat Kratus

6-2, 271, So.

Rocky River, Ohio

End

James Hall 56

6-foot-3

251 pounds

Sophomore

New Orleans

… Comes from same Louisiana high school that produced ex-Wolverine Leroy Hoard. Had two sacks.

99 - Jake Frysinger

6-4, 235, Fr.

Grosse Ile, Mich.

Outside backer

Clint Copenhaver 43

6-foot-4

243 pounds

Junior

Brighton, Mich.

… One of three who have started at outside linebacker. Had 29 tackles.

45 - Jeff Holtry

6-3, 239, So.

Salt Lake City

Inside backer

Sam Sword 93

6-foot-2

242 pounds

Junior

Saginaw, Mich.

… Leading tackler with 91. He also had two sacks, one fumble recovery and 12 tackles for loss.

44 - Rob Swett

6-3, 239, Sr.

Chalfont, Pa.

Inside backer

Dhani Jones 55

6-foot-2

225 pounds

Sophomore

Potomac, Md.

… Enjoys snow-boarding, painting and writing poetry. Wants to be a pediatric plastic neurosurgeon.

20 - Ian Gold

6-1, 205, So.

Belleville, Mich.

Strong corner

Andre Weathers 30

6-foot-1

188 pounds

Junior

Flint, Mich.

…Drew most of the attention as offenses shied away from challenging Woodson.

5 - James Whitley

5-11, 85, Fr.

Norfolk, Va.

Strong safety

Marcus Ray 29

6-foot

210 pounds

Junior

Columbus, Ohio

…Had 66 tackles and five interceptions. Engineering major. Nickname is “Ray Roc.”

41 - T. Hendricks

6-2, 205, So.

Houston

Free safety

Tommy Hendricks 41

6-foot-2

205 pounds

Sophomore

Houston

…Father, Tom, was a UM letterman. First-team high school All-American.

16 - B. Washington

6-0, 191, So.

Inkster, Mich.

Weak corner

Charles Woodson 2

6-foot-1

198 pounds

Junior

Fremont, Ohio

…Versatile player won Heisman Trophy, first mostly defensive player to do so.

23 - Will Peterson

6-0, 193, Fr.

Uniontown, Pa.

Punter

Jason Vinson 38

6-foot-2

191 pounds

Junior

Troy, Mich.

…Walk-on who averaged just 38.9 yards per kick. Punted 11 times against Ohio state.

46 - Kraig Baker

6-1, 183, Jr.

Terre Haute, Ind. , DataTimesILLUSTRATION: 25 Photos

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: These two pages contain numerical rosters and the two-deep (starters and first substitutes) for the University of Michigan and Washington State University. Also included is a brief scouting report on each team’s starters compiled by staff writers Mike Sando and Jim Meehan. When the Wolverines have the ball

This sidebar appeared with the story: These two pages contain numerical rosters and the two-deep (starters and first substitutes) for the University of Michigan and Washington State University. Also included is a brief scouting report on each team’s starters compiled by staff writers Mike Sando and Jim Meehan. When the Wolverines have the ball