Sherrone Moore’s flawless hiring game has doused all the doubts about his coaching abilities. Since Moore put on the cap of the Michigan head coach, he has wowed the Michigan fans with his excellent replacement choices of the former Michigan staff members who picked Jim Harbaugh’s team. His most lauded pick was DC Jesse Minter’s replacement, Don ‘Wink’ Martindale. That pick has competition now as Moore is set on track to make another replacement hire.
Scoring another win against Ohio State, Moore is to hire Buckeye RB coach/assistant head coach Tony Alford as the replacement for Mike Hart, the running backs coach at Michigan. While this is a win for Michigan’s staff, it’s also an homage to Jim Harbaugh’s efforts in keeping the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry alive with his 3-0 record.
BREAKING: #Michigan to hire Ohio State RB coach Tony Alford to replace Mike Hart. #GoBlue (STORY) https://t.co/bJ6fhb6odf pic.twitter.com/bDMqtG8dGi
— Sam Webb (@SamWebb77) March 13, 2024
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If Moore can pull this off, it will arguably become his best staff move, overtaking Martindale’s hire. Alford’s arrival at Ann Arbor is a sign of victory for Michigan since he is considered one of the most revered running backs coaches in the country, per 247 Sports. Well, his seasoned skills were evident during his eight seasons at Ohio State, and at Notre Dame for six seasons before that.
All these years of coaching have perfected Alford’s recruiting skills. That, paired with the freshly officialized defensive staff at Michigan, consisting of Wink Martindale, Scruggs, Brian Jean-Mary, and Lamar Morgan, is set to make the defense at Michigan a thing to behold. Especially now that the defensive coordinator, Wink Martindale, has his motto for Michigan’s defense set for the upcoming season.
Wink Martindale on Michigan’s defense
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Although Alford is bringing in his charisma, it is going to be a tough competition since Wink Martindale is also set in the CFB ways once again, going back to his OG style. The DC at Michigan is thrilled to take on the defenses led by Jesse Minter, the guy who learned the basics of defense from him. Yet, Martindale is a fan of the strategies Minter and Harbaugh used to elevate Michigan’s defense as the leader of the table.
So, Martindale is ready to continue with Minter’s explosive way of stopping the run. However, he added a small requirement to the mix. “You better be physical if you’re going to play at the University of Michigan,” the Michigan DC said. The defensive scheme wants the guys to lift heavily to become the defensive heavyweights in the conference again.
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Michigan already boasts of some solidly massive players on the roster, who are also top-ranked players across the Nation. With Martindale’s strategy on the table, what will Tony Alford add to that once he familiarizes himself with the ways of Michigan? Will he put his spin on it? What do you think?