Unorthodox is the Normal for Ryan
9/24/2014 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 24, 2014
By Steve Kornacki
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Fifth-year senior linebacker Jake Ryan has undergone many transformations during his football career at the University of Michigan.
He spent two seasons as a defensive end before becoming an outside linebacker last year, and completed his position evolution by moving to middle linebacker in 2014.
Ryan went from shoulder-length, blonde hair to a short, neat coif with a closely-trimmed beard.
He went from having Rich Rodriguez as his head coach to Brady Hoke.
Ryan also went through surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his knee during spring practice last year, and underwent a demanding and successful rehabilitation to return to the starting lineup by mid-season.
And he went from wearing No. 90 to No. 47 to honor Bennie Oosterbaan, a three-time All-American who was the head coach of Michigan's 1948 national champions.
However, now all the changes and challenges are in his rear-view mirror and Ryan is flourishing the way he did as a sophomore, when he was a second-team All-Big Ten selection and led the Wolverines with 88 tackles, 16 tackles for losses, 4.5 sacks and four forced fumbles. ESPN rated him the No. 17 player in the nation, and the sky was the limit.
Ryan is once again showing that he's a top talent by leading the Wolverines (2-2) with 33 tackles and three quarterback hurries going into Saturday's (Sept. 27) Big Ten opener with Minnesota at Michigan Stadium.
"Yeah, it is all coming together for me," Ryan said. "I've overcome a lot with a change of positions and that ACL injury. I think I've been doing well, and I just have to keep improving and taking the necessary steps to improve."
-- Coach Mattison on Ryan
When asked about his career-high 13 tackles last Saturday against Utah, Ryan said his defensive linemen -- whose names he proudly rattled off in succession -- were creating the hit opportunities. Ryan explained that he simply had to "go downhill" and make the tackles.
Coach Hoke explained Ryan's humble attitude thusly: "It's part of being Jake Ryan."
And so is making big plays with a special flair.
"He sometimes is very unorthodox and he has a knack," Hoke said. "His body bends certain ways that I don't know how he re-directs as well as he does. He'll take three steps the wrong way on his initial read, and he will cross-over step or he'll get skinny underneath an offensive guard. There is a play in the game where (Utah's) tackle has a free shot at the linebacker, and he kind of gets himself thin, comes out and he's in the B-gap, and he makes the hit."
Wolverine defensive coordinator Greg Mattison said, "I don't know what unorthodox is. To me, when the ball carrier has the ball and you tackle him, then you're playing linebacker. Sometimes they're not picture-perfect tackles. Sometimes you might not be perfect with your footwork.
"But Jake's been unorthodox since the day he got here. You know, that's Jake. And that's why I love him."
Ryan finds a way to get to the ball and make the tackle, and that's all that matters to his coaches.
"It's feel and it's instinct," said Hoke. "I think his instinct is probably, aside from the athleticism, what he possesses most. I think his instinct for the game of football and for the run game in particular is real positive."
How does Ryan put his instinct and feel into words?
"Feel comes when you are on a block and you know which way the guy is going to go," said Ryan. "But a lot of it is film work and knowing what's going to happen before the play."
Then it's a matter of quick reactions. Ryan said that if the blocker is pushing him outside, he knows the runner is coming inside. "And I've got to get an arm over and get to the ball," he added.
Ryan said, "I play my technique and my position, and I line up to see what's going to happen before the play ... You've got to look at the big picture before the actual play starts. But it's just see ball, get ball. If it's there, you've got to make the play. You've got to go down and attack it, and that's all I try to do."
But beyond his impact in games, Ryan influences his teammates. Hoke was asked to describe Ryan's leadership qualities.
"Awesome," said Hoke. "He does as much by example as he does verbally. He does it with how he studies film. He does it with what he does in the weight room, what he does during summer conditioning. He does it every practice with how he comes out. I think he's earned the respect by what he does more than what he says."
Ryan won a state championship at Cleveland St. Ignatius and learned much from the school's long-time coach, Chuck Kyle. But he said his father, Tim, an All-Atlantic Coast Conference wide receiver at Wake Forest in 1982, influenced him most as a leader. And Jake also credited his older brother, Connor, who was Ball State's captain as a wide receiver in 2012 and 2013.
"My dad taught me everything there is to know about being a leader," Ryan said. "He presents himself well, and I try to take over that role. It was doing the right thing every single day, and what are people going to think about you. He's taught me so many things about how to speak, how to talk to people, to make eye contact. It's the smallest things, but it all boils down to, 'What do people think about you?'"
His father is a stock broker and financial adviser in Cleveland, and Connor works for Merrill Lynch in Indianapolis.
Ryan said the entire coaching staff at Michigan has impacted his leadership skills, and added that All-American center David Molk and defensive end Ryan Van Bergen also were strong influences.
"They had an impact on me," Ryan said. "I wanted to be like them. They were like my older brothers.
"Now, I just try to lead by example -- do everything right, get to meetings on time, be an hour early for everything."
So, the time on Ryan's watch is different from everyone else's?
"Yeah, a little bit," he said with a laugh. "But the main thing is just doing everything right and being humble."
Ryan was elected as a captain in 2013. And while Hoke has opted to have his captains selected after this season, there is little doubt that Ryan will be one of them.
He's notched 188 tackles in his career and been brilliant. But the Big Ten championship he covets has been elusive. His final quest for that begins Saturday in the Battle for the Little Brown Jug.
"It's huge," Ryan said. "It hasn't happened to me since I've been here, and this is my last go-round. And with this team, I have all the confidence in the world. I can't wait for the Big Ten season to start."
The No. 90 is gone, along with the coach who recruited him. His first two positions are history, along with the long hair.
And Ryan has an interesting story about the hair.
"My favorite player in any sport is Dirk Nowitzki," he said of the Dallas Mavericks' future Hall of Famer. "I liked the way he played and I liked his hair a lot."
Ryan laughed at the thought of his blonde hair getting significantly longer than Nowitzki's ever did.
"So," Ryan said, "I grew my hair out like his. And he has the only jersey I've ever owned in my life.
"I really liked basketball, too. But I couldn't play."
Did he at least have a decent jump shot?
"No," said Ryan. "I had a layup."
He chuckled some more, and added, "But I could play defense."
Yes, he can.
