All offseason, there was buzz surrounding Michigan football sophomore linebacker Chase Taylor. The former three-star from Georgia had little hype as a recruit, but saw early playing time right away for the Wolverines last year, burning his redshirt before the rule changed, eliminating them entirely.
But the new staff in Ann Arbor was excited about what they inherited, and given how much he's played already through two games for the maize and blue.
Taylor is third on the team in terms of linebacker snaps, behind Troy Bowles and Nathaniel Staehling. Taylor has played 80 snaps already, and though he's been a work in progress, his position coach, Alex Whittingham, has been pleased with where he's at.
"Chase is, he's special. I mean, that's pretty apparent
to everyone who watches him," Whittingham said. "Some mental things, just as far as scheme-wise in that first week for him that came up. He's been so good, made so much progress since we got here in spring, just maturity-wise. And off the field, kind of learning how to carry himself, go to class, do all those little things. He's come a long way in that regard.
"And then athletically, I mean, you see that he just, he makes things look easy. He's got a lot of fluidity to him and how he moves, and he's got great speed, great length, everything that you look for in a linebacker. And then he's just going to continue to mature and get better, and eventually we're going to get to that ceiling for him."
Though it had appeared that Taylor had improved from Week 1 to Week 2, his PFF grades declined in many metrics, though his pass rush grade did go up.
More than being the player on the field, Whittingham says that Taylor is an enigmatic person that brings a lot of joy to his room.
"Chase, he lights up the room. He's got a great personality," Whittingham said. "Like I mentioned before, we had to bring him along a little bit with some maturity, and he's done a great job of that. But he is easygoing, always happy, always got a smile on his face. He, like I said, brings a great energy to the room, talented as heck, and just he's a great, and that's the thing about the linebacker room here is each guy kind of brings their own flavor, and he does a great job of being who he is and letting that personality show, and it's fun to work with him."
Fans will get another opportunity to see Taylor in action on Saturday when Michigan football hosts UTEP at The Big House at 3:30 p.m. EDT. The game will be broadcast on BTN.
This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Michigan coach explains why Chase Taylor is a 'special' linebacker
