Long, Hart and Crable Elected Captains for 2007 Season
8/20/2007 12:00:00 AM | Football
Press Conference Comments: Coach Lloyd Carr | Captains
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- University of Michigan football head coach Lloyd Carr announced today (Monday, Aug. 20) that three players -- left tackle Jake Long (Lapeer, Mich./Lapeer East HS), tailback Mike Hart (Syracuse, N.Y./Onondaga Central HS) and outside linebacker Shawn Crable (Massillon, Ohio/Washington HS) -- have been elected captains by their teammates for the 128th season of Wolverine football. Hart and Long will represent the offensive side of the ball and Crable was selected as the defensive captain.
"The greatest honor a Michigan football player can receive is to be selected by his teammates as captain," said Carr. "They're very competitive guys, they like to win and I think they're going to be great leaders. Along with an excellent group of seniors, Jake, Mike and Shawn will be responsible for providing the leadership that will enable this team to achieve its goals."
A fifth-year senior, Long became the 11th player in school history to be elected captain at least twice (see notes below). Long is the leading candidate for the Outland Trophy and Rotary Lombardi Award this season. He earned 2006 consensus All-America honors and was the Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year after receiving All-Big Ten first team accolades from both the coaches and media. Long enters 2007 having started 17 straight games at offensive tackle and 27 overall contests during his career.
Hart heads into the 2007 season 794 rushing yards shy of Anthony Thomas' U-M career rushing record (4,472 yards). Hart holds the Michigan career record with an average of 111.5 rushing yards per contest. The nation's active career leader in rushing yards, he has carried the ball 750 times for 3,679 yards and 27 touchdowns. Hart is a two-time All-Big Ten first team selection (2004, 2006) and was selected as the 2007 preseason Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year. He was a finalist for the 2006 Doak Walker Award and placed fifth in the Heisman Trophy balloting.
A fifth-year senior, Crable is one of four returning defensive starters. He helped U-M finish as the national leader in rushing defense last year, allowing 43.4 yards per contest, and among the top 25 nationally in seven total defensive categories. Crable earned All-Big Ten second team honors after he collected a career-best 37 stops in 2006. He was third on the team with 10.5 tackles for loss and was fourth on the squad with 4.5 sacks. He is on the watch list for three individual national awards this season: the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, Bednarik Award and Ronnie Lott Trophy.
The 2007 captains lead the Wolverines into a four-game homestand to start the season, beginning with a Sept. 1 battle against Appalachian State at noon EDT on the Big Ten Network.
Captains Notes
Long became the 11th player in school history to be elected captain at least twice in his career. The others are: Horace Prettyman (1884-85-86), John Duffy (1887-88), George Dygert (1892-93), Angus Goetz (1919-20), Kirk Lewis (1975-76), Robert Thompson (1981-82), Mike Mallory (1984-85), Jarrett Irons (1995-96), Jon Jansen (1997-98) and Steve Hutchinson (1999-2000).
Long is the third offensive lineman to be selected captain twice under Carr. He joins David Baas (2004), Steve Hutchinson (1999-2000), Jon Jansen (1997-98), Rod Payne (1995) and Joe Marinaro (1995) as offensive linemen elected captain during Carr's tenure.
Hart joins Anthony Thomas (2000) as the only running backs selected captain during Carr's tenure.
Crable is the sixth linebacker selected captain during Carr's tenure, joining Jarrett Irons (1995-96), Eric Mayes (1997), Eric Brackins (2001), Victor Hobson (2002) and Carl Diggs (2003).
Head coach Bo Schembechler introduced co-captains at Michigan in 1970.
Media Contact: David Ablauf (734) 763-4423
